The NHL insiders have been warning fans to buckle up for more chaos after the blockbuster Brady Tkachuk trade on Sunday night, and it sounds like the team we might have to keep our eyes on is the Columbus Blue Jackets.
With rumors around Zach Werenski picking up in recent days, Frank Seravalli updated his trade board on Tuesday, and it included not only Werenski but fellow Blue Jacket and star winger Kirill Marchenko.
“Superstar defenseman and newly crowned Norris Trophy winner Zach Werenski has joined Hockey 24/7’s Trade Targets board alongside the Blue Jackets’ best forward in Kirill Marchenko.
Teams have been calling Columbus GM Don Waddell about Marchenko for the last couple weeks, his name percolating in the rumor mill. And while the Blue Jackets are not actively seeking to move Marchenko, a burgeoning star that will be incredibly difficult to replace, that hasn’t stopped teams from wondering whether he’s actually interested in extending in Columbus this summer.
The same is true with Werenski. To be clear, Werenski has not requested a trade. It will be a sad day whenever he departs Columbus, because he loves the city, the organization and the fanbase. But that reality appears to be approaching – sooner rather than later. He is eligible to sign an extension next July. If the Blue Jackets asked Werenski’s camp today to forecast the chances of an extension, they probably would not find a ton of confidence in the reply. Werenski doesn’t want out of Columbus, he wants a chance to compete,”
The 28-year-old Werenski has two years remaining on the six-year, $57.5 million extension he signed to stay in Columbus in 2021, while Marchenko, 25, is poised to enter the third and final year of the three-year, $11.55 million extension he signed with the Blue Jackets in 2024.
Werenski and Marchenko are major additions to trade bait boards, and if Columbus determines that neither is all that interested in signing long-term, they could pivot and move both for packages of future assets to accelerate a rebuild of sorts.
That decision will have to be made rather quickly if the Blue Jackets want to acquire 2026 draft capital, because Round 1 is less than 80 hours away.
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