NHL Preview 2024-25 43 SportsForecaster.com

Forwards

Gavin Brindley [RW]

  • Age: 20
  • Ht: 5-8
  • Wt: 173
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 1 0 0 0 0 0 0.00
Career 19 4 3 7 3 6 0.37
Forecast 58 7 9 16 - - 0.28

Columbus wanted Brindley bad enough to sign him and burn a year of his entry-level contract this past April, which kept him from returning to the University of Michigan. He also helped USA win gold at the 2024 WJC. He is a dynamic player who might excel in all situations and has the speed, shot, physicality and work ethic to succeed.

Yegor Chinakhov [RW/LW]

  • Age: 23
  • Ht: 6-0
  • Wt: 178
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 53 16 13 29 -3 6 0.55
Career 198 36 39 75 -48 40 0.38
Forecast 81 21 22 43 - - 0.53

The 23-year-old Russian displayed increased production in '23-24, despite yet another injury-riddled season that saw him appear in just 53 games. Chinakhov boasts an elite wrist shot and he is not afraid to use it, making him a threat to score every time he finds space inside the offensive zone. The challenge here is staying healthy.

Justin Danforth [W/C]

  • Age: 31
  • Ht: 5-8
  • Wt: 193
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 71 10 16 26 -10 26 0.37
Career 187 31 33 64 -26 60 0.34
Forecast 79 9 13 22 - - 0.28

The versatile forward brings speed, energy and some skill every night, mostly in a depth role. The well-traveled Danforth is coming off his best offensive season by far, setting career highs in points and average ice time (14:16) in '23-24–despite getting very little power-play time. He has the ability to play anywhere in the lineup.

Adam Fantilli [C/LW]

  • Age: 20
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 195
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 49 12 15 27 -21 16 0.55
Career 160 54 47 101 -24 47 0.63
Forecast 82 23 30 53 - - 0.65

The No. 3 pick in the 2023 draft stepped right into the NHL and was impressing everyone until a severe skate laceration to his calf at the end of January ended his campaign. Before the injury, he was everything the Jackets could have hoped for: a highly skilled, intelligent and versatile forward with good size, mobility and gumption.

Boone Jenner [LW/C]

  • Age: 31
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 207
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 58 22 13 35 -8 28 0.60
Career 757 202 191 393 -71 427 0.52
Forecast 74 24 20 44 - - 0.59

Ideally, the Columbus captain would play lower down in the lineup. On an injury-riddled Blue Jackets team that struggles to score, however, Jenner was the No. 1 pivot playing in all situations and doing everything that was asked of him last season–despite missing nearly a third of the campaign due to a broken jaw and personal issues.

Kent Johnson [RW/LW]

  • Age: 21
  • Ht: 6-1
  • Wt: 167
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 42 6 10 16 -2 10 0.38
Career 226 49 73 122 -31 44 0.54
Forecast 80 17 20 37 - - 0.46

After an awful sophomore campaign that ended in late February because of shoulder labrum surgery, Johnson will try to rebound in 2024-25. He still has the hands and playmaking skills that made him so coveted three years ago (No. 5 overall draft pick in 2021), but he must get stronger and prove he is worthy of becoming a core forward.

Sean Kuraly [C]

  • Age: 31
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 213
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 62 9 9 18 -5 40 0.29
Career 592 66 93 159 -48 363 0.27
Forecast 70 7 8 15 - - 0.21

The 31-year-old Kuraly is a classic fourth-line center: he works hard, is physical (156 hits in '23-24), can kill penalties and can chip in a few points here and there. His scoring numbers dropped a bit in '23-24, mostly because he missed 20 games with injuries. At this stage of his professional career, Kuraly is not about to change.

Kirill Marchenko [RW]

  • Age: 24
  • Ht: 6-3
  • Wt: 187
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 78 23 19 42 -5 14 0.54
Career 241 85 80 165 10 62 0.68
Forecast 80 25 22 47 - - 0.59

The 24-year-old Russian has to work on his consistency: he scored 12 goals in 18 games during a pair of hot streaks last campaign but notched only 11 in his other 60 games. Aside from his second straight 20-goal season, Marchenko also bumped up his assists total from four in 2022-23 to 19 last year and improved his plus/minus rating.

Sean Monahan [C]

  • Age: 30
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 200
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Mtl/Wpg 83 26 33 59 -1 12 0.71
Career 847 268 343 611 -31 209 0.72
Forecast 76 18 28 46 - - 0.61

He had a career revival last season, staying healthy and putting up his best numbers since 2018-19. The veteran center is slow by NHL standards but has great hands, is positionally sound and knows how to find openings in the offensive zone. He is also very good on face-offs and excels at playing the bumper position on the power play.

Mathieu Olivier [RW]

  • Age: 27
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 210
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 54 5 7 12 -4 70 0.22
Career 273 34 41 75 -29 422 0.27
Forecast 62 4 8 12 - - 0.19

A prototypical fourth-line winger, Olivier has plenty of grit (163 hits in 2023-24), toughness (70 PIM) and a dash of offense (54 GP, 5-7-12)–all in less than 12 minutes of ice time per game. The only player in NHL history born in Mississippi has posted his two best offensive seasons in Columbus; he has carved out a pretty good role.

Cole Sillinger [W/C]

  • Age: 21
  • Ht: 6-0
  • Wt: 197
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 77 13 19 32 -4 46 0.42
Career 314 46 74 120 -55 152 0.38
Forecast 80 15 20 35 - - 0.44

The Columbus native will try to build off of a rebound 2023-24 season that mirrored his impressive rookie performance–rather than a dreadful sophomore campaign. Sillinger boasts the shot and offensive chops to become a 25-goal scorer, but he is also learning how to use his body effectively on the forecheck and improving on face-offs.

Dmitri Voronkov [LW]

  • Age: 24
  • Ht: 6-5
  • Wt: 227
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 75 18 16 34 -6 52 0.45
Career 177 51 50 101 18 147 0.57
Forecast 81 20 20 40 - - 0.49

At 6'5'' and 240 pounds, it is hard to miss Voronkov on the ice. His soft hands, quick feet, anticipation and willingness to play a physical game helped him work his way up the lineup in '23-24–his first year in North America. He must build on a good rookie season that saw him finish third on the Jackets in goals and fifth in points.

Defensemen

Goaltenders

Erik Gudbranson

  • Age: 32
  • Ht: 6-5
  • Wt: 222
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 78 6 20 26 -14 74 0.33
Career 809 34 103 137 -126 851 0.17
Forecast 69 2 10 12 - - 0.17

Coming off by far his best offensive season, Gudbranson exceeded 20 points for the first time ever last season. The veteran defenseman has made his living for 13 seasons in the NHL mostly because of his play in his own zone, where he is a willing shot-blocker (170 last season). He has the strength to move opponents away from the net.

Jordan Harris

  • Age: 24
  • Ht: 6-0
  • Wt: 189
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
Mtl 56 3 11 14 -5 22 0.25
Career 169 10 29 39 -6 62 0.23
Forecast 82 4 15 19 - - 0.23

The 24-year-old Harris was not used consistently for much of '23-24 but still produced decent underlying numbers on a squad that struggled defensively. His skills do not jump off the page when he is on the ice, but he has a well-rounded profile. His offensive stats would be helped by averaging more minutes per game on the power play.

David Jiricek

  • Age: 20
  • Ht: 6-3
  • Wt: 189
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 43 1 9 10 -4 22 0.23
Career 71 2 11 13 -11 38 0.18
Forecast 80 5 18 23 - - 0.29

The 20-year-old from Czechia has all the tools to grow into an elite NHL defenseman: size, speed, a big shot and the smarts to put everything together. He was an AHL All-Star as a 19-year-old and was OK in a sheltered role in 43 games with the Jackets in 2023-24. He must improve his gap control and skating to fulfill his vast upside.

Ivan Provorov

  • Age: 27
  • Ht: 6-1
  • Wt: 213
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 82 5 27 32 -11 20 0.39
Career 725 81 212 293 -23 259 0.40
Forecast 82 4 24 28 - - 0.34

The 27-year-old Russian has never lived up to his first couple of seasons, when it looked like he might become an elite NHL defenseman. Instead, Provorov is an every-game minute muncher who can score a few goals, produce 25-35 points and play in all situations. Provorov also willingly gives up his body (155 blocked shots in 2023-24).

Damon Severson

  • Age: 30
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 205
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 67 9 19 28 -10 51 0.42
Career 813 75 250 325 -122 500 0.40
Forecast 72 8 22 30 - - 0.42

Columbus made Severson a centerpiece of the defense corps in the summer of 2023 by signing him to an eight-year contract as an unrestricted free agent. Year one was not a roaring success: he played 14 fewer games than the previous campaign, saw his offense and plus/minus rating decline, and was asked to do more than he is capable of.

Zach Werenski

  • Age: 27
  • Ht: 6-2
  • Wt: 218
'23-24 GP G A P +/- PIM P/GP
CBJ 70 11 46 57 0 22 0.81
Career 596 122 292 414 13 150 0.69
Forecast 71 10 48 58 - - 0.82

Rebounding from a shoulder injury–shortened season in 2022-23, Werenski put up a career high in points last season (and his best plus/minus rating since 2019-20). He is a legit No. 1 defenseman, one who can effectively play big minutes in all situations. He makes the offense go, plays well in transition and is adept on special teams.

Elvis Merzlikins

  • Age: 30
  • Ht: 6-3
  • Wt: 185
'23-24 GP W L OT SO GAA Sv%
CBJ 41 13 17 8 1 3.45 0.897
Career 256 100 105 36 11 3.23 0.901
Forecast 42 14 - - 0 3.39 0.89

Merzlikins' numbers improved last season, but they are still below par for a starting NHL goaltender. Although his defense did him no favors for most of the campaign–and he battled through some injuries–the 30-year-old rarely showed the game-stealing ability that squads expect from a No. 1 netminder. His playing time also diminished.

Daniil Tarasov

  • Age: 25
  • Ht: 6-5
  • Wt: 203
'23-24 GP W L OT SO GAA Sv%
CBJ 24 8 11 3 0 3.18 0.908
Career 74 22 38 7 1 3.32 0.899
Forecast 43 17 - - 1 3.12 0.905

The 25-year-old Russian comes into this season with the opportunity to grab an increased role, after his improved goals-against average and save percentage earned him added playing time down the stretch last season–following a knee injury early on. Good health, a solid training camp and a hot start may earn Tarasov the starter's gig.