The Columbus Blue Jackets make roster moves ahead of free agency

01/07/2024

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The Columbus Blue Jackets had to make qualifying offers to some players by 5 P.M. yesterday. New GM Don Waddell did just that and more. He's gearing up for free agency by clearing roster spots.

Let's take a look at what we know so far.

Players That Received Qualifying Offers - Negotiations Have Started

Jake Christiansen - 46 points in 62 games in 23-24. Cleveland Monsters 3rd all-time leading scorer with 140 points.
Jet Greaves - 30-12-4 in 23-24. Cleveland Monsters all-time leader for wins.
Kent Johnson - 16 points in 42 games.
Kirill Marchenko - 42 points in 78 games.
Cole Sillinger - 32 points in 77 games.

Players That Did Not Receive A Qualifying Offer - Will Now Be UFA

Tyler Angle - 16 points in 40 games for Cleveland in 23-24
Jake Bean - 13 points in 72 games for Columbus in 23-24
Marcus Björk - 25 points for Cleveland in 23-24
Alex Nylander - 15 points in 28 games for Columbus in 23-24

Other Moves

Adam Boqvist was put on unconditional waivers. If Boqvist clears unconditional waivers at noon ET on July 1, the team will buy out the final year of his contract. The team will get a credit of $66,666 next season, and then in 2025-26 will have a dead cap hit of $533,334.
Defenseman Nick Blankenburg will be allowed to leave in free agency, per The Athletic's Aaron Portzline
Carson Meyer will also not return to Columbus. He will also leave in free agency per Portzline.

The loss of Adam Boqvist was a sign that the CBJ couldn't trust his health. He only played in 133 of a possible 246 games in his three seasons with Columbus. Boqvist, should he stay healthy may make a team very happy. Unfortunately, he just couldn't stay in the game.

Nick Blankenburg is in the same boat as Boqvist. In his two-plus seasons with Columbus, he missed time with six different injuries, not counting any time missed playing in Cleveland.

Jake Bean was traded by Don Waddell from Carolina to Columbus. And now Waddell sends Bean packing yet again. This time passing on a $2.8 million qualifying offer, which makes Bean an unrestricted free agent. Like the others, Bean has had injury concerns.

What does new GM Don Waddell have in store for free agency? Will he find a trade partner for Patrik Laine? Can he swing a deal for Martin Nečas? Rumors Sunday of the Jackets and Sean Monahan being interested in one another were also floating around.

Indications are that Don Waddell will make some signings will free agency opens today. Stay tuned.

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