The Columbus Blue Jackets have spent this offseason putting out fires that weren’t even clearly burning. First it was Zach Werenski, the star defenseman who had to issue a joint statement with the team just to kill rumors he wanted out. Now it’s Kirill Marchenko’s turn.
Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell made it pretty clear this week that Marchenko isn’t going anywhere. Not now. Not before the season starts. Not unless something changes dramatically.
“First, different circumstances,” Waddell told the Columbus Post Dispatch. “I don’t lump the two together. I’ve had discussions with [Marchenko’s] agent, which we won’t discuss right now, but Marchenko’s going to be a Blue Jacket once the season starts.”
That’s about as direct as a GM gets in late August. Waddell didn’t hedge. He didn’t say “we’ll see what offers come in.” He said the guy is going to be here.
Why the rumors even started
Marchenko has been Columbus’s leading scorer for three straight seasons. That’s not nothing. But the Blue Jackets haven’t made the playoffs in any of those years, and when a team keeps losing with a core player putting up points, the speculation machine cranks up. People assume the player wants out. Or that the front office wants to shake things up by moving the most tradeable asset.
Neither seems to be true here. At least not yet.
Marchenko is heading into the final season of his three-year, $11.55 million contract signed back in 2024. He turns 25 this week and has 102 goals and 106 assists in his first 292 games. That’s 208 points with 82 penalty minutes mixed in. He’s not a rental. He’s not a problem. He’s just a good player on a team that hasn’t figured out how to win yet.
Waddell has another year to work out an extension before Marchenko hits restricted free agency next summer. He’s not ignoring it either.
“That’s one of the goals on my plate,” Waddell said. “But we’ve got three more pressing ones right now in front of us [with unsigned RFAs]. So, there’s lots of time to work on that before the season starts.”
That’s the reality of the situation. Columbus has three young restricted free agents they need to lock up first. Marchenko’s deal can wait a few months. And it probably will.
But here’s the thing about these kinds of denials in sports. They usually hold until they don’t. A GM saying a guy is staying doesn’t always mean the guy stays. It just means the price isn’t right yet. If someone calls with a massive offer in October, Waddell’s phone still rings.
For now though, Marchenko is a Blue Jacket. And the team seems fine with that.
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