Blue Jackets' Organizational Depth Chart Shows Where Columbus Might Look to Add this Offseason

The next few weeks will go a long way into shaping not just the next Columbus Blue Jackets team but what fans will see down the road as well.

One player will leave via the expansion draft. Others will join the organization after being picked in the amateur draft. Surely a player or two will be inked in free agency once that begins shortly thereafter, and you never know when a trade will happen as well.

So where might the Columbus Blue Jackets look to be adding (or facing subtraction) over the next few weeks of rapid roster realignment? To answer that question, we decided to look at the players under team control – as well as those drafted and whose rights are retained by the team – for answers.

Think of it as an organizational depth chart with an eye on the future. 

CENTERMEN

One of the big priorities of the offseason for the Blue Jackets will be signing Wennberg to a long-term deal, which seems all but assured of happening. That will leave the centers at the NHL level relatively stable as the top two are largely written in ink. From there, there are some question marks. Karlsson could be a target of Vegas during the expansion draft, though last year's emergence of Sedlak gives the Jackets another solid option for the bottom two lines. And Boone Jenner has played both center and wing during his career and could always be an option. 

From there, the next question to answer: What of Dubois? The first-round pick last year got off to a slow start in the QMJHL, was traded at midseason and was strong at the end while leading his team to the league final. He has played both wing and center in the junior ranks, but the thought was this year was to develop his game in the middle; of course, transitioning to the NHL might require a start on the wing as he gets used to the speed and intricacies of the game. 

After that, Dalpe is a veteran who helped the Cleveland Monsters quite a bit this year and could fill a bottom-six role in a pinch. Everything past that is young depth and expected to continue to develop over the next few years. This is a spot you could see the Jackets trying to bolster going forward, especially as team brass speaks of adding firepower up front.

WINGERS

Obviously, Columbus has a solid group at the NHL level, though what we just said about adding firepower up front remains a point here as well. The team's ability to go four lines deep was pretty strong this year, and such players as Foligno, Atkinson and Saad were dependable goal scorers while Bjorkstrand showed off his sniping skills as the year went on. Anderson also showed he has the speed and goal-scoring skills to go with his good size to make him into an intriguing NHL player, and Jenner was still a solid player despite a downturn in scoring. And of course, Calvert was Calvert.

Beyond that, there are questions to be answered. Hartnell appears likely to be on his way out the door given his nearly $5 million cap hit and declining production at age 35. On the other side of that, Milano poses an interesting question; he's coming off a year in which he led AHL Cleveland in points at age 20, but the chorus of those who wonder if the skilled winger truly has what it takes to play a full game at the NHL level seems to be getting louder.

Hannikainen is a solid fill-in at the NHL level when need be, and beyond that, many of the top young prospects on the team are wingers. Kolesar, Abramov, Sherwood and Thurkauf each had excellent years when it came to putting the puck in the net at the CHL level, and you have to think one or two of those guys will have the ability to be legitimate NHL threats at some point; from here, it's a matter of development. But you have to feel pretty good about that combination of players. 

Columbus doesn't so much need to restock the cabinet here as it does cement the roster at the NHL level. Again, the stated goal to add firepower could remake the Blue Jackets' forward lines, while it remains a possibility someone like Anderson or Calvert could be on the way out the door to Vegas. What Columbus does up front is the biggest question facing the team this offseason.

DEFENSE

About 20 months ago, the team's defense was thought to be the real weak link on the squad as the Blue Jackets pretty much wasted the 2015-16 campaign.

Fast-forward less than two years and you have to love what you see here. The development of Werenski and Nutivaara combined with the acquisition of Seth Jones immediately remade the defense at the NHL level and was one of the big reasons Columbus put together the best campaign in franchise history. Add in the dependable David Savard and Jack Johnson duo and the young and talented Ryan Murray and you had one of the steadier and more versatile blue lines in the NHL.

There's also things to like in the depth. Carlsson jumped over from Sweden at the end of his season and was so impressive to the coaching staff he jumped right into the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Gavrikov is so impressive you get the sense team brass believes he's NHL ready right now, though whether he'll come to America this year remains to be seen. 

Harrington proved to be a steady bottom pair or seventh D, as well, so the NHL crew next year seems pretty set unless Johnson disappears in the expansion draft. There is also depth and some young players to like, including some recent draft picks. The Jackets will likely look to add here in the draft just to keep the pipeline flowing, but this seems like a pretty strong spot for Columbus going forward.

GOALTENDERS

I've said it before and will say it again – this is kind of a precarious spot for Columbus.

At the top, things are obviously good with Sergei Bobrovsky, who is T-minus one week away from adding a second Vezina Trophy to his cabinet. You do have to worry about his health, though, as injuries have been a part of his story, and there are questions after that as well.

Korpisalo looked like an NHL starter two years ago and a fringe NHL backup last year, but he recently re-signed and looks ticketed to be the team's No. 2 this year barring expansion draft shenanigans out of Vegas. Forsberg is thought by some to be more consistent of the two young goalies, but his NHL trials have been disasters thus far. After that, there's no one with NHL experience, though the offseason signing of Kivlenieks is expected to fortify things going forward. Dansk's future is murky at best, though Merzlikins also appears to be a big talent in the pipeline and is a potential starter after a few more years of development in Europe. 

It's hard to think the Jackets will do anything here this offseason other than maybe draft a project, but this is an interesting spot to watch going forward.