It's another homecoming in Columbus.
A few years ago, Sean Kuraly was showing off his World Junior gold medal at Nationwide Arena with good friend and Team USA teammate Connor Murphy.
On the first day of free agency 2021, Kuraly inked a deal to play for his hometown team, a four-year agreement worth a total of $10 million ($2.5 million per season).
“Sean Kuraly is a big, strong center that plays a two-way game, can kill penalties and will add size, physicality and character to our lineup,” said Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen.
“He grew up in this area, won league championships in college at Miami, won a gold medal with Team USA at the World Junior Championships and was an important part of Boston’s Stanley Cup finalist team. He’s a winner and will be an important part of our leadership group as we move forward.”
Aaron Portzline of The Athletic was the first to report the signing.
The Blue Jackets were interested in Kuraly from the get-go, and made him a priority on their free-agent target list. When the ink dried this afternoon, the Dublin native had signed a four-year deal to wear the Columbus sweater and join Jack Roslovic (another friend of his) as local kids to play for the team they grew up watching.
Sean Kuraly, signed 4x$2.5M by CBJ, is a PK specialist fourth line centre. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/adBtXTu3Kb
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) July 28, 2021
This isn't just a feel-good story, either. Kuraly fills an urgent need for Kekalainen, mainly because the Blue Jackets are desperately thin at center ice.
Kuraly isn't a big points producer by any means, but he'll provide stability in the bottom six and give the Blue Jackets a respected voice to help lead a young team. He's a reliable guy, and every team needs a few of those.
Kuraly officially became a free agent on Wednesday after he and the Boston Bruins couldn't agree to terms on a new contract. He recently completed a three-year, $3.825 million deal in Boston.
