The Blue Jackets are entering the next stretch with one contract still unresolved and another one shaping up to be the real pivot point.
Adam Fantilli remains unsigned for this season and beyond, but that situation doesn’t appear to change the team’s direction. The expectation is clear: the deal will get done, and once it does, the spotlight shifts fast to Kirill Marchenko.
That’s the negotiation that could actually send Columbus down very different roads. Marchenko made things a little more uncomfortable at his first press conference of the season last Friday, when he sidestepped every question that included the words "Columbus" or "long-term". From here, that issue sits at the front of the line for GM Don Waddell and the Blue Jackets, whether it ends in a trade or, "until he signs a new contract?"
That possibility matters because Marchenko is not just another name on the roster. His value may not match a player like Fantilli or franchise face Zach Werenski, but losing him would still sting in a major way. He’s the kind of player this organization needs to show it can keep around.
He also sits right in the middle of the competitive core Waddell has been building. Columbus has younger players still learning, and veterans helping guide them, but there aren’t many scorers entering their prime the way Marchenko is now.
That’s why the decision on #86 carries so much weight. What Waddell and the Blue Jackets do here could shape the franchise’s path for years, and it could send this team in several different directions.
In Other News...
Blue Jackets Suddenly Have A Dante Fabbro Concern To Watch
Preseason injuries are piling up around the league, and the Blue Jackets have their own situation to monitor after defenseman Dante Fabbro left a game with an upper-body injury. Columbus is already in the part of camp where every shift matters, and any interruption to a projected lineup piece gets attention fast, especially on the back end where depth and continuity can be tested in a hurry.
Fabbros exit now sits alongside a handful of other early-camp health concerns elsewhere, with Pittsburgh forward Benjamin Kindel and Rangers forward Adam Sykora both leaving preseason games after lower-body issues, while Penguins winger Ville Koivunen also missed action after taking a puck to the face in practice. For Columbus, the focus is less on the broader preseason churn and more on how quickly Fabbro can get back on the ice and whether this becomes a brief setback or something the Blue Jackets need to track more closely. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Suddenly Have An Opening Night Blue Line Concern
The Blue Jackets were already working through the usual late-preseason roster sorting when the back end took a hit in Mondays game against Detroit. Dante Fabbro, projected to open the regular season on Columbus third defensive pairing, went down with an upper-body injury and did not return, a development that adds a little more uncertainty to a group that was trying to settle into shape before opening night.
For a team that wants stability on the blue line, the timing is far from ideal, especially with the regular season looming. If Fabbro is forced to miss time, veteran Erik Gudbranson looms as the most likely next man up, giving the Jackets a familiar, sturdier option while they wait to see how serious the injury is and how the rest of the defensive picture sorts itself out. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Win Comes With An Early Dante Fabbro Concern
The Blue Jackets got through their first preseason game with a win on the board, but the more immediate takeaway had little to do with the shootout finish. Columbus and its coaching staff were left to monitor Dante Fabbro, who exited early with an upper-body injury after logging a little over 8 minutes and will be reevaluated Tuesday morning, a reminder that September results often matter less than simply getting everyone through healthy.
The game itself never produced a goal in regulation, so the outcome came down to the skills competition and a handful of small details that preseason often magnifies. Columbus will gladly take the victory, but the focus now shifts to Fabbros status and whether the Blue Jackets have to deal with an early defensive absence before the exhibition slate really gets moving. [Read more 🡒]