SvoNotes: Voracek embracing his role as a veteran leader

I admitted it was probably a silly question, but I asked it anyway.
Throughout the Blue Jackets training camp, it just felt like Jakub Voracek was having more fun this year.
It's impossible to quantify this, but if you could, it felt like his smiles per 60 was up, whether it was on the ice, in the locker room and even at the annual Blue Jackets Foundation Golf Classic.

Maybe he was more comfortable in year two of his return to Columbus, so it was worth asking if that was the case.
I was, of course, wrong.
"I didn't (have fun) last year?" he replied.
Well, maybe with COVID restrictions lifted, we're just seeing you more often, I replied. But really, no difference from a season ago?
"Nah," he said. "I've been the same for the last 15 years."
And, well, he has. Voracek is Voracek, a straight shooter no matter the question that is asked. He's equal parts self-deprecating to himself and a good-natured smack talker to others, the kind of veteran who thrives in a hockey locker room by keeping everyone on their toes.
He'll say he hasn't changed much in his 15 NHL seasons, but his stature in the game -- Voracek is one of just 26 active players in the league to have skated 1,000 games -- means his words carry more weight than ever. Every NHL locker room needs a veteran like Voracek, who's not afraid to give you crap when you've screwed up -- but also stand by you when you need it most.
Just ask Russian youngster Yegor Chinakhov, who is in his second year with the Blue Jackets.
"It is nice to play with Jake," Chinakhov said through interpreter Anton Poltyrev. "He gave me plenty of advice last year. I feel like I didn't necessarily listen too well. This year I feel like every single piece of advice actually works."
Chinakhov's response drew laughs, including from Voracek when he was asked about the comments.
"At least he pretended he was listening," Voracek said. "That was good enough for me."
But there's no denying Voracek is a critical piece of what the Blue Jackets are trying to build here. Columbus entered last year as the youngest team in the NHL and is the fourth-youngest squad this year, meaning there are plenty of youngsters who can benefit from veteran leadership.
Voracek doesn't wear a letter on his sweater, but the 33-year-old -- the oldest player on the team -- has embraced being a key sounding board for such players as Chinakhov, Kent Johnson and Cole Sillinger, all talented but young offensive players who like Voracek will be in the league a long time.
"I've slowly started to see that my time is coming to an end," Voracek said. "When you look at it, you see how the young players are. So we'll see how many more years I'll play, but I'll just try to help guys that I see have the potential to do something, be the best they can be. That's why I was brought here. I embrace that situation, and I love it. I just try to pass everything I can to them."
As the game seemingly becomes younger and faster by the day, the number of veteran players who excel into their late 30s is dwindling. Even though he finished second all-time in assists for a season in CBJ history last year, showing he still has plenty of game, Voracek has acknowledged at times since he arrived last season that he knows he's on the back half of his career.
No matter what, though, Voracek seems energized by his return to Columbus. He didn't see it coming a year ago, with the draft deal last summer that swapped him and Cam Atkinson catching both by surprise. But being back with the team that drafted him and he debuted with has been the perfect move at the perfect time in his career.
"100 percent," Voracek said. "Like I said last year, I had a great time. I didn't know what I was coming into. We did what we did last year, and right now we are in a state that's not a rebuild anymore. We have to be successful. Obviously we signed Johnny, we re-signed Patty. Those are incredible players, and I think the construction of the team is great. We'll see how we're going to perform. I'm sure we will perform well."
In the meantime, one of the all-time locker room players will keep being one of the most important players in the CBJ room.
"I enjoy it," he said. "I enjoy having fun, I enjoy being around the guys, making new friends, being with your friends. That's what it's all about. I hear from retired players, that's what they miss the most, the locker room, the camaraderie. I enjoy it."

Blue Blue

Obviously, if you're in Columbus, Ohio, you know what the rivalry between Ohio State and Michigan is like. It's always an interesting proposition, then, for the talented players who don Maize and Blue and then make their way to the Blue Jackets.
It's mostly in good fun, of course -- there's a reason Zach Werenski loves the city so much -- but it can still be a talking point. The Blue Jackets have had more standouts from U-M than Ohio State over the years, though perhaps it is poetic that former Ohio State star R.J. Umberger and Michigan product Jack Johnson each finished with exactly 445 games played with the Jackets.
Right now, there's a Maize and Blue tint to the roster, with Werenski, Nick Blankenburg and Kent Johnson all having played at U-M. And last night, two of them ended up on a defensive pairing together, with Blankenburg's strong season debut earning him a spot next to Werenski for much of the comeback victory.
For Blankenburg, a native of suburban Detroit who walked on at Michigan before becoming a team captain a year ago, playing next to one of the Wolverines' marquee alums last night was a memorable experience.
"For me, it's pretty special to be able to play with him, especially being a guy from Michigan who plays at Michigan," he said. "I'm just soaking it in every moment I can."
Just about everyone was impresed by Blankenburg's play last night
, and you can definitely put Werenski on the list.
"He's fun to play with," the CBJ assistant captain said. "He battles hard. You saw early on, he was hitting guys, getting in scrums. He's a smaller guy, but he plays with a big heart. It's always fun to play with guys like that."

#CawlidgeHawkey

Speaking of colleges, the Blue Jackets have four draft picks in the college ranks this year, all defensemen -- 2021 first-rounder Corson Ceulemans of Wisconsin as well as Guillaume Richard (Providence), Robbie Stucker (Vermont) and Aiden Hreschuk (Boston College).
That means only one of them will trip to Columbus this year, and it already happened. Ceulemans and the Badgers began their Big Ten season the weekend of Oct. 7-8 at Ohio State, with the Buckeyes sweeping the series.
As someone who spent a lot of time covering Ohio State games just up the road, I love college hockey, and I think it's great we have three Division I programs in the Buckeye State with Bowling Green and Miami joining OSU.
The only matchups between Ohio schools will take place Dec. 16 and 17 when BGSU and Ohio State stage a home-and-home, and fans looking for a fun road trip might want to take in the Ohio State/Michigan showdown in Ann Arbor on Jan. 13, one night before the Blue Jackets take on the Red Wings in Detroit.
So far this year, the Buckeyes are off to a 4-1-1 start and ranked 16th in the USCHO.com poll, while the RedHawks are 2-1-1 and the Falcons are 2-4-0. Good luck to all three programs in their bid for successful seasons.

Eye on Prospects

After talking with my good friend Dylan Tyrer, our CBJ radio host and broadcast coordinator, we're planning to bring back the CBJ Prospect Report and Pipeline Podcast this season. It's simple -- Dylan interviews a prospect every other week, then I include it in a written piece that also sums up what's happening around the entire Blue Jackets development pool as well as the Cleveland Monsters.
We're shooting for the first one of those next week, so keep an eye out for that. But in the meantime, there's one Blue Jackets prospect who can't be ignored for his hot start to the season.
2022 third-round pick Jordan Dumais already has a lot of fans around Nationwide Arena, and he might have even more by the time his season with Halifax of the QMJHL is over. Dumais has been unstoppable since his return to the Mooseheads, ripping off 14 points (three goals, 11 assists) in his first six games of the year.
Dumais has multiple points in five of those six contests, including a 1-6-7 line in his first two games of the season after spending training camp with Columbus. He posted 39 goals and 109 points last year to place third in the Q in scoring, and I asked him in camp if he believed he can do even better than that this year.
"Yeah, for sure," he said. "It's a long season, and I put in a lot of work this summer and worked in a lot of different things I need to improve. I believe in myself, and I think that can lead to a better season."
So far, so good. We'll see if he can keep it up, but it appears Dumais could be quite a third-round find for the Jackets down the road.
Oh, and speaking of Tyrer, be sure to catch our first Safelite Skate Space of the regular season, to be hosted tonight at 6 p.m. on Twitter.