- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,152,448
- Reaction score
- 59
A year ago, the Blue Jackets went down to the wire before reaching agreements on contract extensions with two defensemen who could’ve hit the open market as free agents.
More: 6 offseason tasks for Columbus Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell
It’s best to keep what happened with Dante Fabbro and Ivan Provorov in mind when looking at the Blue Jackets' five unsigned free agents roughly two weeks before the July 1 start of free agency.
“We’re at a point now where they might get to market, which, if they become UFAs, they have that right,” Blue Jackets president/general manager Don Waddell said. “We’ll keep talking to them before [July 1]. Last year, we signed Fabbro and Provorov right before free agency, so you never know, but agents call around. They find out what the market's going to pay, so that’s just what we have to deal with.”
That doesn’t sound like great news for the Jackets' potential of keeping their three headline UFAs: captain Boone Jenner, forward Mason Marchment and defenseman Erik Gudbranson.
Things can always change, but the current feeling is that all three may be available to other teams when the NHL flings the doors open for free agency. If so, the Jackets could lose all three plus unsigned depth forward Danton Heinen and depth defenseman Brendan Smith.
Waddell plans to touch base with agents of his UFAs again this week, but all involved are currently in a holding pattern.
“That’s fair to say,” Waddell said. “Again, it’s [June 15]. It’s not June 30th. So, they’re going to do what they need to do and we’ll wait. Obviously, we’ll stay in contact with them and see where they’re at in the next [7-to-10] days.”
Contract length has been the biggest stumbling block to new deals, especially given the ages of Jenner, Marchment and Gudbranson.
Jenner turned 33 on June 15, Marchment turns 31 on June 18 and Gudbranson is already 34, which puts them all on the wrong side of 30 as players looking for more than a year or two on their next contracts. Each has an extensive injury history, as well, which tends to make a GM hesitant when negotiating extensions.
That said, all three held significant roles for the Jackets.
Jenner was named captain by former coach Brad Larsen prior to the 2021-22 season and has played his entire 13-year NHL career for the Blue Jackets, who selected him in the second round (37th overall) in 2011. He’s also at or near the top of most all-time franchise stat rankings, has a relentless work ethic, wins draws, provides leadership by example and is coveted by many NHL coaches.
Marchment joined the Blue Jackets in a trade Dec. 19, 2025, with the Seattle Kraken. Columbus parted with a fourth-round pick in 2026 and second-round pick in 2027 to get him. The Jackets replenished those picks and added Heinen in a trade 10 days later (Dec. 29, 2025) that sent disgruntled forward Egor Chinakhov to the Pittsburgh Penguins, but losing Marchment and Heinen would leave just two picks from Pittsburgh (2026 second round, 2027 third round) as remaining assets.
That’s the risk in trading for a pending UFA, which Waddell was fully aware of while making the swap, but it’ll sting if the Blue Jackets lose Jenner and Marchment, who quickly became a key part of the top line.
Losing Gudbranson would also dent the Jackets in size, grit, toughness and leadership from the blue line. That's not as easy to quantify as offensive production, but not having those around from a veteran who's become a locker room leader will be felt if he's not retained.
Waddell did keep one key pending UFA by re-signing center Charlie Coyle, 34, to a six-year deal worth $36 million on May 12, but that took up a big chunk of the salary set aside for retaining other free agents.
It also put the Jackets in a tougher spot to keep their remaining UFAs, so now it’s a balancing act between keeping one or more of them while preserving enough cap space to re-sign a handful of young stars plus star defenseman Zach Werenski in the next two years.
“It has to make sense [to re-sign the UFAs], not only short-term but long-term,” Waddell said.
Dispatch Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at [email protected] and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets face uncertainty with unrestricted free agents
Continue reading...
More: 6 offseason tasks for Columbus Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell
It’s best to keep what happened with Dante Fabbro and Ivan Provorov in mind when looking at the Blue Jackets' five unsigned free agents roughly two weeks before the July 1 start of free agency.
“We’re at a point now where they might get to market, which, if they become UFAs, they have that right,” Blue Jackets president/general manager Don Waddell said. “We’ll keep talking to them before [July 1]. Last year, we signed Fabbro and Provorov right before free agency, so you never know, but agents call around. They find out what the market's going to pay, so that’s just what we have to deal with.”
You must be registered for see images attach
That doesn’t sound like great news for the Jackets' potential of keeping their three headline UFAs: captain Boone Jenner, forward Mason Marchment and defenseman Erik Gudbranson.
Things can always change, but the current feeling is that all three may be available to other teams when the NHL flings the doors open for free agency. If so, the Jackets could lose all three plus unsigned depth forward Danton Heinen and depth defenseman Brendan Smith.
Waddell plans to touch base with agents of his UFAs again this week, but all involved are currently in a holding pattern.
“That’s fair to say,” Waddell said. “Again, it’s [June 15]. It’s not June 30th. So, they’re going to do what they need to do and we’ll wait. Obviously, we’ll stay in contact with them and see where they’re at in the next [7-to-10] days.”
You must be registered for see images attach
What’s the biggest holdup for Columbus Blue Jackets re-signing Jenner, Marchment and Gudbranson?
Contract length has been the biggest stumbling block to new deals, especially given the ages of Jenner, Marchment and Gudbranson.
Jenner turned 33 on June 15, Marchment turns 31 on June 18 and Gudbranson is already 34, which puts them all on the wrong side of 30 as players looking for more than a year or two on their next contracts. Each has an extensive injury history, as well, which tends to make a GM hesitant when negotiating extensions.
That said, all three held significant roles for the Jackets.
You must be registered for see images attach
Jenner was named captain by former coach Brad Larsen prior to the 2021-22 season and has played his entire 13-year NHL career for the Blue Jackets, who selected him in the second round (37th overall) in 2011. He’s also at or near the top of most all-time franchise stat rankings, has a relentless work ethic, wins draws, provides leadership by example and is coveted by many NHL coaches.
Marchment joined the Blue Jackets in a trade Dec. 19, 2025, with the Seattle Kraken. Columbus parted with a fourth-round pick in 2026 and second-round pick in 2027 to get him. The Jackets replenished those picks and added Heinen in a trade 10 days later (Dec. 29, 2025) that sent disgruntled forward Egor Chinakhov to the Pittsburgh Penguins, but losing Marchment and Heinen would leave just two picks from Pittsburgh (2026 second round, 2027 third round) as remaining assets.
That’s the risk in trading for a pending UFA, which Waddell was fully aware of while making the swap, but it’ll sting if the Blue Jackets lose Jenner and Marchment, who quickly became a key part of the top line.
You must be registered for see images attach
Losing Gudbranson would also dent the Jackets in size, grit, toughness and leadership from the blue line. That's not as easy to quantify as offensive production, but not having those around from a veteran who's become a locker room leader will be felt if he's not retained.
Waddell did keep one key pending UFA by re-signing center Charlie Coyle, 34, to a six-year deal worth $36 million on May 12, but that took up a big chunk of the salary set aside for retaining other free agents.
It also put the Jackets in a tougher spot to keep their remaining UFAs, so now it’s a balancing act between keeping one or more of them while preserving enough cap space to re-sign a handful of young stars plus star defenseman Zach Werenski in the next two years.
“It has to make sense [to re-sign the UFAs], not only short-term but long-term,” Waddell said.
Dispatch Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at [email protected] and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets face uncertainty with unrestricted free agents
Continue reading...
