The Columbus Blue Jackets are fast becoming one of the best young organizations in the NHL, boasting both young talent on their big league roster and organizational depth that probably makes them the envy of many other franchises.
Their prospect pool is ascendant. The Blue Jackets moved from the 16th spot in 2021 to sixth overall one in the span of a season, with the addition of two top-end prospects (David Jiříček and Denton Mateychuk) at last July’s draft and the development of some key contributors already in their ranks pushing this group to new heights.
Another strong draft next June could very well push this group into the top five if not the top three of our rankings by the time we conduct this exercise ahead of next season. That’s conditional, of course, on the deployment of some of their current top prospects. Something tells us that Kent Johnson and maybe even Jiříček could have a part to play in Columbus, and any more than 25 games would make them ineligible for this series.
Below, you will find a breakdown of the team’s top-15 Calder Trophy-eligible prospects and an evaluation of their skills, weaknesses, and projection.
