Cam Atkinson’s place in Blue Jackets history is already secure, but one of his records may not last much longer. The former Columbus winger still sits atop two franchise categories: short-handed goals with 16 and hat tricks with six. Of those two marks, the hat-trick total looks far more vulnerable.
That’s because Kirill Marchenko is already right there. In only three seasons, he has climbed to third on the club’s all-time hat trick list with four, sitting one behind Rick Nash and just three shy of Atkinson. For a franchise that has struggled to pile up goals over the last 25 years, that number says something about the team’s scoring history - and something else about Marchenko’s ceiling.
Marchenko has a real shot to catch Atkinson next season if he keeps doing what he’s done so well so far: score goals. Through his first four years, he has 102 goals and 208 points. If he keeps firing the puck the way he has, a 40-goal season is in play, and with that kind of output, multiple hat tricks would not be a surprise.
The power play could be the swing factor. If Marchenko takes another step there, the climb up the record book gets even faster.
For now, though, the Blue Jackets don’t have to rush anything. Don Waddell has Marchenko under contract for one more season before he becomes an RFA, so there’s no immediate need to move him. He can arrive at camp, open the season, and then the situation will sort itself out from there.
That’s where the uncertainty comes in. Plenty of people around the team expect him to show up and play, but what that looks like is the question.
Will he go through the motions? Will he be the same skilled, goofy player fans know?
Or will he be a quiet recluse who wants out of Columbus?
Either way, the numbers are staring everybody in the face. After just three-plus seasons, Marchenko could push toward the top of the Blue Jackets’ record books. If he scores 40 next season, he could also crack the franchise’s all-time top five in goals.
Kirill Marchenko was on his way to becoming an all-time Jacket, so it's a shame he's decided to take the easy way out.
In Other News...
Jet Greaves Just Brought Back A Familiar Blue Jackets Anxiety
Jet Greaves has already given the Blue Jackets a reminder of how quickly a goalie story can turn. The Cambridge, Ontario native went undrafted in 2019, worked his way into pro hockey with the Cleveland Monsters in 2021, and eventually earned a three-year entry-level deal from Columbus. Since then, he has moved between the AHL and NHL, and his brief April 2025 call-up gave the organization a glimpse of what he can do when everything clicks.
Now the next step is less about whether Greaves fits in Columbus and more about how the sides handle the business side of his rise. He is expected to remain with the Blue Jackets for the upcoming season, but the contract conversation has picked up a different edge after his World Championships showing, which may have made an easy agreement harder to find. For a team that has spent years trying to stabilize its crease, even a promising young goalie can bring back a familiar kind of anxiety. [Read more 🡒]
Former Blue Jackets Forward Just Landed The Chance Columbus Never Gave Him
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For Columbus, it is another reminder of how thin the margin can be for young forwards trying to stick. McKown has not appeared in the NHL since the 2022-23 season, and this latest contract gives him a fresh opportunity to push for more than depth duty in Montreal while the Blue Jackets can only watch a player they once had in the system try to turn a new opening into something bigger. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jackets Fans Wont Love Why Marchenko Rumors Are Heating Up
Kirill Marchenkos name is already back in the rumor mill, and that is not the kind of background noise Blue Jackets fans were hoping to hear after a summer that seemed to settle things down. Montreal had shown interest earlier in the offseason when reports surfaced that Marchenko might not be headed for a long-term extension, but Columbus general manager Don Waddell said the winger would be staying put as the team headed into the season.
Still, NHL analyst Marco DAmico suggested the door may not be shut for good, pointing to how quickly circumstances can change once the season starts and pressure builds on front offices. For Columbus, the concern is obvious: if the Blue Jackets stumble or the organizational direction shifts, a player the club wants to keep could become a name that gets dragged back into trade chatter before long. [Read more 🡒]