And there you have it.
This evening, the Blue Jackets traded defenseman Seth Jones to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for young defenseman Adam Boqvist. There were also picks exchanged between the teams. Chicago received the Blue Jackets' 2021 31st-overall pick (1st round), and a 2022 sixth-rounder. The Blue Jackets received the Blackhawks' 2021 first-round pick (11th overall), a 2021 second-rounder, and a 2022 first-round pick. If the 2022 first-round pick is in the top two, it becomes a 2023 first-round pick instead.
Since a report broke that Jones wanted to leave Columbus, the Blue Jackets had been shopping him around, and they have found a partner in Chicago. In 381 games with the Blue Jackets, Jones tallied 50-173-223. He was an All-Star once (2017-18), and finished fourth in Norris Trophy voting in the 2017-18 season as well.
Boqvist is a 20-year-old right-handed defenseman from Sweden whom the Blackhawks selected him eighth overall in the first round of the 2018 NHL Draft. He had a strong last season year with Chicago, tallying 2-14-16 in 35 games while averaging 16:59 TOI. In 76 career NHL games, he's notched 6-23-29. Boqvist has a bright future, and the Blue Jackets did well to get him in return for Jones.
Adam Boqvist, still just 20 years old, has top pair upside and an Extremely Interesting top comp. pic.twitter.com/8NytaDe2kt
— dom at the athletic (@domluszczyszyn) July 23, 2021
His 5v5 play needs some fine tuning, but he's equipped with the skill to get better. Boqvist began to blossom last season, and the Blue Jackets are very excited about his future.
