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Columbus Blue Jackets free agency glance: negotiations ongoing with July 1 looming
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- Columbus Blue Jackets free agency glance: negotiations ongoing with July 1 looming
The NHL's window for free agency opens July 1, which gives the Blue Jackets less than three weeks to reach contract agreements with any of their nine unrestricted free agents.
That's enough time to negotiate new deals with those who've been assigned "priority" status by Blue Jackets president of hockey operations/general manager Don Waddell , but the countdown clock is now ticking.
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More: 5 tasks on Columbus Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell's offseason 'to do' list
The good news for those hoping he retains key members of an upstart team that made a stunning surge into playoff contention is how much salary room Waddell has at his disposal. With the rise of the NHL's salary-cap ceiling from $88 million in 2024-25 to $95.5 million in 2025-26, the Blue Jackets are working with more than $42 million in cap space.
In other words, they have plenty of options to build off a surprising climb up the standings in the Metropolitan Division and Eastern Conference, whether it's re-signing their own free agents, tapping the open market or adding via trades.
"We've already had our pro meetings, so we've got a pretty good idea of what's out there (in UFAs)," Waddell said. "Some guys might get signed between now and then, because everybody's trying to do the same thing we are by signing some of their guys, so we'll just keep monitoring it daily."
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Here's a glance at the Blue Jackets' pending free agents:
Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Ivan Provorov (9) warms up prior to the NHL hockey game against the New York Islanders at Nationwide Arena in Columbus on April 17, 2025.
Columbus Blue Jackets free agents: defensemen
The Blue Jackets have three pending UFA defensemen in Ivan Provorov , Dante Fabbro and Jack Johnson . They also have one RFA defenseman, Jordan Harris , who was acquired in the trade Aug. 19, 2024 , that sent Patrik Laine to the Montreal Canadiens . Provorov and Fabbro had the biggest roles among the four.
Fabbro, a right-handed shooter, skated almost exclusively on the right side of the top defensive pairing with star Zach Werenski as his partner on the left. Provorov, a lefty, played much of the season skating on his "off" side on the right. He logged time early with Werenski on the first pairing, but Fabbro's addition off waivers in November moved him to the second pairing as a steady, reliable partner for veteran Damon Severson followed by rookie Denton Mateychuk .
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Provorov is 28 and Fabbro will turn 27 on June 20, and both are solidly in the prime of their NHL careers. Both were also picked in the first round of the NHL draft.
Provorov was selected by the Philadelphia Flyers seventh overall in 2015, just one pick ahead of Werenski, and was acquired June 6, 2023 in a three-team trade that included the Los Angeles Kings . Fabbro was taken 17thoverall in 2016 by the Nashville Predators , who had him for parts of seven seasons before making him available to the rest of the NHL via waivers Nov. 9, 2023.
Both carved out niche roles with the Blue Jackets, who now must decide whether to retain one or both before the NHL's free-agent market flings its doors open for business. Quality NHL defensemen at their ages tend to garner sizable long-term contracts as UFAs because they're available to negotiate with all 32 teams and are seen by virtually all GMs as valuable commodities.
Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Dante Fabbro (15) shoots at New York Islanders goaltender Marcus Hogberg (50) during the third period of the NHL hockey game at Nationwide Arena in Columbus on April 17, 2025. The Blue Jackets won 6-1.
What's tricky for Waddell and the Blue Jackets is determining the true value of retaining Provorov and/or Fabbro, which would likely include paying a premium in terms of salary or contract length – or both – to decline free agency. Waddell has spoken to agents for each player recently and said hashing out that situation is near the top of his offseason "to-do" list.
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"We know these guys," Waddell said. "We know what they bring. Sometimes the unknown (with signing new free agents) is they might be good players but don't fit really well in the locker room. ... I've talked about our defensemen before. We have some priority guys we're trying to see if we can get done and know where we are here in the next week or so, before free agency starts."
Harris, who's 24 and played just 33 games, is another interesting situation to monitor. He's a pending RFA, which means the Blue Jackets must tender him a qualifying offer to keep his exclusive negotiating rights.
In June 2024, Waddell, shortly after being hired, parted with several young defenseman. Among his early moves, he bought out the final year of Adam Boqvist 's contract and decided against extending a qualifying offer to Jake Bean . Harris, who didn't gain traction with first-year coach Dean Evason, may be headed down a similar path.
Johnson, 38, played just 41 games as a veteran depth defenseman and would almost certainly have the same role if re-signed to another low-cost, one-year deal. However, the Blue Jackets have multiple young defensemen ready to handle that role, including Jake Christiansen heading into his second full NHL season, so Johnson's return doesn't seem likely.
With the NHL's salary cap rising to $95.5 million, the Blue Jackets have space to sign restricted free agent forward Dimitri Voronkov to a new deal.
Columbus Blue Jackets free agents: forwards
There are six UFA forwards unsigned, including Sean Kuraly , Justin Danforth , James van Riemsdyk , Luke Kunin , Christian Fischer and Kevin Labanc . The Jackets also have pending RFA forwards Dmitri Voronkov and Mikael Pyyhtia unsigned.
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Pyyhtia finished the season with the AHL's Cleveland Monsters, so he's got an uphill climb to get back into the NHL mix, but re-signing Voronkov is a priority for Waddell. Voronkov made a good impression as a power forward during his first two seasons, compiling a combined 81 points on 41 goals and 40 assists in 148 games since coming over from Russia's KHL.
"We're talking to his agent," Waddell said. "I think we've made a lot of progress. We've had a lot of talks this week. There's no timeline on that, but we know that one way or another, we'll get a contract. It'll be negotiated or through other means (arbitration)."
Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Damon Severson (78) celebrates with left wing James van Riemsdyk (21) and center Sean Kuraly (7) after scoring a goal in the third period at Nationwide Arena on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024 in Columbus, Ohio.
As for the UFA forwards, the three most likely to stick around are Van Riemsdyk, Kuraly and Danforth. All provide veteran leadership that's tough to replace, plus versatility and quality depth in bottom-six roles. Van Riemsdyk, who had 16-20-36 in 71 games at age 36, also provided quality minutes in the top six after injuries sidelined captain Boone Jenner , center Sean Monahan and skilled winger Yegor Chinakhov .
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Losing Kuraly, who's from Dublin, and Danforth would also create a sting. Both are versatile, hard-working depth forwards who play a grinding "playoff" style of hockey.
Kunin has prior experience playing for Evason in Minnesota but couldn't keep a regular lineup role after being acquired in a deal with the San Jose Sharks at the trade deadline. Fischer, meanwhile, got into just one game with the Blue Jackets after Waddell claimed him off waivers from the Detroit Red Wings on March 6.
Labanc, who started the season with the Blue Jackets on a one-year contract, underwent mid-season back surgery and isn't expected to return.
Blue Jackets goaltender Daniil Tarasov (at right) hugs goaltender Jet Greaves following Columbus' 6-1 win over the Islanders in the 2024-25 season finale April 17.
Columbus Blue Jackets free agents: goalies
Daniil Tarasov , who struggled as Elvis Merzlikins' primary backup in 2024-25, is the Blue Jackets' only unsigned NHL goalie. He's an RFA and should be re-signed after the Blue Jackets refused to expose him to waivers during the season to get him playing time with the AHL's Cleveland Monsters.
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Tarasov initially refused an AHL conditioning assignment during a lengthy stretch without playing at the NHL level, which didn't appear to sit well with the Blue Jackets. Eventually, he agreed and gained a spark at the NHL level after playing two AHL games.
Rookie Jet Greaves' sterling play as the Jackets' starter to finish the season on a six-game winning streak felt like a message that he's ready for a full season in Columbus, but Tarasov getting a new contract would delay it again. Merzlikins also has two years left and Waddell still considers him the top option.
Short of Waddell finding a trade partner for Merzlikins or Tarasov, the Blue Jackets' goaltending is likely to remain the same.
Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets free agency: talks ongoing as July 1 looms
