The Blue Jackets’ forward depth has turned into one of the most interesting parts of the roster puzzle as the season approaches. They have 16 players who can make a legitimate NHL case, but only 23 roster spots to work with, and that math creates an immediate squeeze.
That squeeze gets tighter because the usual setup leaves room for 13 forwards, seven defensemen, and two goaltenders. So if Columbus goes with 13 up front, three forwards are going to be left out. And with Isac Lundestrom out to start the season and not expected back until November at the earliest, the group battling for those jobs is even more crowded.
Before getting to the fourth line, the top of the lineup gives a sense of how the rest might shake out. Barring injuries, the top nine projects as some combination of Kirill Marchenko, Adam Fantilli, Valeri Nichuskin, Kent Johnson, Sean Monahan, Conor Garland, Cole Sillinger, Charlie Coyle, and Mathieu Olivier. It’s not locked in, but that’s the early picture.
That leaves about six forwards fighting for the bottom of the lineup: Luca Del Bel Belluz, Mikael Pyyhtia, Ryan Lomberg, Dmitri Voronkov, Miles Wood, and Danton Heinen.
Del Bel Belluz feels like the most likely of that group to stick. He is one of the better prospects in the CBJ system, has done plenty in the AHL, and he also needs waiver clearance this season, which makes him a tough player to risk losing. The catch is that he doesn’t look like a natural fourth-line fit based on his skillset.
The better fit for him, at least in this projection, would be higher in the lineup. He could center the second line, which would push Monahan down to the fourth line.
Or he could play wing, and that might leave Sillinger as the fourth-line center. Either way, the idea here is that Del Bel Belluz makes the team and plays above the fourth line.
From the rest of the group, Lomberg, Voronkov, and Wood are the names most likely to survive the cut because of their contracts and their play. That would leave Pyyhtia and Heinen as the most likely to be sent to Cleveland, though both would need waiver clearance to go down, so Columbus would be taking a real risk in trying to sneak them through. That’s the cost of having quality depth.
My best guess is that Del Bel Belluz ends up on one of the top two lines, with Nichuskin sliding down to the third line alongside Coyle and Olivier. In that setup, Sillinger would center the fourth line, with Lomberg and Voronkov on his wings and Wood serving as the 13th forward.
Voronkov and Del Bel Belluz could easily trade places higher in the lineup. But Voronkov has not yet shown the consistency needed to hold down a top-six role. Last season, Coach Bowness looked frustrated with Voronkov’s game and used him on the fourth line or as a reserve most nights.
Until Lundestrom is back, that’s the shape of the forward group as it stands now. The real test will come once training camp opens and the lines start to take form.
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