Was The 2024 NHL Draft A Win For The Columbus Blue Jackets?

Was The 2024 NHL Draft A Win For The Columbus Blue Jackets?

another draft season has come and gone the Blue Jackets got their guy at Fourth overall but who else did they pick up in the draft we’re talking about all of the draft picks from the Blue Jackets in today’s lockd on Blue Jackets you’re locked on Blue Jackets your daily podcast on the Columbus Blue Jackets part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day hello and welcome to lock on Blue Jacket Part of the lockon podcast Network your team every day I am as always your host Jay Foster here to give you the Good the Bad and the Ugly about your favorite team and M the Columbus Blue Jacket before we get started I want to thank everyone for making this your first listen of the day every single day lock blue jacket is free and available on all podcast platforms and over on YouTube uh you can also find us on SiriusXM just go to the sxm app and type in lock on Blue Jacket you can find us there uh we talked earlier today about the uh RF the free agency coming uh today uh but now we’re talk about the draft which happened this weekend and again i’ got a lot to talk about so let’s uh let’s just get it rolling um although before I do that I do need to tell you that today’s episode is brought to you by FanDuel like every moment more playoffs are over uh so the sports aren’t sporting anymore but this summer FanDuel is hooking up all customers with a boost or a bonus every single day there’s something for everyone every day all summer long just visit fel.com logdon to get started um and we’ll get started with uh the BL jacket’s first round pick which uh they had their guy that they liked if he wasn’t available the pick was going uh somewhere else he was available they picked him um I really like this pick and I’ve talked you know I talked a little bit in the uh in the immediate aftermath about how much I like this pick H this this this was my guy basically since I started doing my draft prep and I was like okay if the Blue Jackets don’t get celebrini this feels like the guy for me um he is kind of fanti esque but not they’re different enough that I don’t feel like they have exactly the same player but 6 fo three Center um has that kind of edge to his game is a power forward he he gives me P duar Vibes but in a good way um you know so so that’s not me saying and like that’s not like in a derogatory fashion that’s very much like what P what I thought P duar was going to be is what I’m getting the same vibe off from Ken Lindstrom so like if he hits that’s going to be great um and I feel better about Lindstrom hitting than dub quite frankly um I I really love this pick again I’ve talked I don’t need to talk about it in in any super great detail because if you want to learn more about him you can go to the draft profile that I did with Tony Ferrari or you can go to the short clip that’s available on uh YouTube and uh down in the audio feed on uh the podcast version as well where I talk about you know why this pick was a win what’s next for Blue Jackets things like that um there’s a lot of conversation about was Kaden Lindstrom the best player available for the Blue Jackets um and you know I think there are some people that have said oh we should have gone with demidov and like I wouldn’t have been mad if they had picked demidov I think he’s gonna be a phenomenal talent and I think he’s gonna make he’s gonna burn every team that passed on him in the draft um and also every other team uh but the blue jacket have a lot of Wingers I think addressing the need at Center took priority for this team um and I don’t think that’s a bad thing you know the Blue Jackets probably need a goal scoring Winger um but not at the expense of drafting potentially like having the the the chance to have like a onew punch down the middle of FTI and Lindstrom for the next 10 to 15 years is just so so enticing you know um and that’s why you know I’m I’m more than happy with them taking lindstrm I was super interested to hear that if he wasn’t available um they were thinking of moving the pick uh there was conversations with Carolina about a trade surrounding martines for the fourth overall pick I assume other stuff in there like if it had been straight up the fourth overall for Martin nature I would have probably flown to uh flown to Columbus and and fought Don woodell in the streets uh but something else that was I thought was interesting um is the Chicago Blackhawks offered the Blue Jackets um NE their first round pick next year unprotected so a potential lottery pick there and another pick that they didn’t determine which again I would like to know was that another first round pick was that a second round pick was it a fourth round pick you know um the idea of having a potentially two lottery picks next season uh is is really enticing but the blue jacket really liked Lindstrom they they they really really did and I think uh I’m not mad on them passing on that deal because again we don’t know what the the Blackhawks might be good this season unlikely but they might be you know and I don’t think that what’ll happen they’ll do what the plan Florida Panthers did which they traded their first round pick did not Lottery protect it were garbage first three quarter of the season and then crawled into the playoffs and made the standing Cup Final so their unprotected first round pick that went to Montreal uh ended up being I think 31st overall which they then used to draft Logan Mayu which is a whole other thing um but that being said K lrs the was Columbus’s guy they got their guy um and I feel I feel pretty good about it like I said I wouldn’t have hated if the pick was demidov but I really really like Lindstrom as a player he was a guy that again since I started my draft prep in like early to mid January when I finally gave up the hope that the Blue Jackets might crawl into the playoffs and do something or you know at least not finish with that potential lottery pick I was like okay Lindstrom that’s that’s the guy that I think the blue jacket should focus on um and they did and they got the guy so you love to see it I’m really happy with this with this pick I’m not worried about the back injury at all it players get injured medicon has advanced massively even over the past like five years you know I do not think this is going to be another Ryan Murray I really genuinely don’t and like if you want to bookmark this and come back and dunk on me in five seasons fine but I genuinely don’t think that this is another Ryan marray situation as long as K lindstrm does not wear the number 27 on the blue jacket I think we are just fine um but who else did they take in this draft um we’re going to talk about that in just a second here on lock on Blue Jackets first though I’ve got to tell you about FanDuel not game time as the the initial overlay said FanDuel I love sports I love them so much I never want them to stop but the hockey is gone it’s it’s it’s not gone forever but it’s it’s done for the summer so there are no games the sports aren’t sporting like I want them to but FanDuel is going to let me keep the sports going whenever I want all I have to do is open the app I Can Dream up any bets anytime I’m in the mood the MLB is is playing right now so uh it’s not like the Zero sports and this summer FanDuel is hooking up all customers with a boost or a bonus every single day that’s that’s right there is something for everyone every day all summer long so head to fanduel.com lockon and start making the most out of your summer FanDuel official sports betting partner of Major League Baseball welcome back to lock on blue jacket thanks for making us your first listen of the day every single day uh even when it’s your second episode of the day it’s fine uh we talk about the draft we talked about Kad Lindstrom was he the best player available no was he the best player for the Blue Jackets yes um and now we’ll talk a little bit about the the rest of the draft picks and uh they all had something in common which is unusual for a Blue Jackets draft quite frankly and I think this was the the difference um between a calinan draft and a woodell draft um they were all big you know um the the Mantra of Blue Jackets drafting the last little while has been draft skill figure the rest out um the Mantra this season seems to have been draft size figure the rest out but Don woodell has something really interesting in the post-draft press conference that I thought was uh was worth kind of talking a little bit about which is okay they’re all big but he drafted them all because they are great skaters um and again from the little bit of of scouting chatter that I have kind of had since the draft obviously it’s still very uh very early days but um that seems to be true all of these guys are very good skaters and that’s important in this day and age if you are big but you can’t skate like you are basically useless you know um which I think is interesting that that wal kind of pointed out specifically that they went after good skaters as opposed to good something else like I think Kent Johnson is kind of the biggest um example of this of Ken Johnson is Elite at so many things his skating is only okay and I think his skating has come on you know a lot in the past couple of Seasons but when he was drafted his skating was definitely the thing that he needed to work on the most and skating I feel like is something that you you can quote unquote overcome in a way like Demetri ronar for example is never going to be the prettiest skater in the world he’s never going to be the best skater in the world but he has kind of made his game work despite the the average or Worse skating if you start from a base of having a good skater lots of other things you can figure out along the way so I uh I like that they went after specifically skaters I don’t there there are some there were some guys left on the board that that I was um fan of I I liked Andrew Basher for um the 36th overall pick Luke Misa somehow dropped all the way to the sixth or seventh round he was a guy that I I had looked at a lot as small energy guy but again the Blue Jackets have a lot of those guys you know James Malatesta LCA Del Bell Blues is not smaller but he kind of fits that same archetype Gavin Brindley for example Kent Johnson is again not small but is small ER I think he’s like 61 officially or something so not little but small ER you know um so you know they they left some guys out there that I personally would have would have taken but at the end of the day they probably know more than I do I like the blue jacket scouting Department a lot um V siren the the head of scouting I think is is one of the better heads of scouting in the game right now and yam Klan was involved in the draft and in The Scouting For The Blue Jackets because he’s still getting paid by them or he was as of yesterday I think his his contract ended or ends 1 of July so he’s no longer employed by the Blue Jackets but he did some work at the draft with them he was at the combine offering his insight and uh y k linan his strength was always drafting so you know it’s uh it’s not like it was a complete departure from from everything they had a lot of the same guys there but I think woodell has kind of added a little bit of insight to the Blue Jackets drafting strategy which I think is uh is interesting so they uh they had two guys in the second round they decided to keep the second round pick that they originally sent to the Flyers so next year’s second round pick will belong to the Philadelphia Flyers and I think they’re betting on the fact that it will be higher than 36th overall you know if the Blue Jackets run a lottery position again next year this people are going to be mad about it so I think they’re really betting on the fact that it’s going to be um significantly higher than um 36 overall maybe even like up in the 50s you know H but with this pick H they selected Charlie ellic who is a h big defenseman uh comes out of the Brandon weat Kings and uh has some snar in his game and I know there’s uh there one of my wonderful everyday is is like drink every time Jay talks about a player having snar but uh Charlie El definitely has it um he is uh again big pretty uh pretty solid skater um don’t hate this pick again there was a um a lot of conversation about guys that I would probably have picked at 36 but I don’t hate this pick he’s big he is uh fast which again for a bigger guy is uh is always important and he loves to uh he loves to throw the body around um which again is not something I necessarily would have taken with a second round pick but uh if he kind of finishes growing into that frame I uh I like it a lot he’s going to have to work on his positioning uh he’s going to have to learn that you don’t always have to make the big hit but physicality is still a part of this game and uh he’s probably you know two or three years away from being an NHL option and it’ll be interesting to see how his game develops and probably I would like him to take a little bit of that um physicality out of it and add a little bit of uh a little bit more defense and potentially a little bit more offense he had 27 points in 65 games for the Brandon week Kings um had three assists in seven games for Team Canada at the uh um AHF u8 World Championship in Finland this season he’s not a game breaker but he’s almost definitely a uh an NHL defenseman which for a second Grand draft pick if he makes it if he’s like a a middle to bottom pair defenseman I feel I feel okay about that like I think his ceiling is probably a number four uh but again like again 36th overall if you get a fourth defenseman out of that like I feel I feel fine about that um col Paro is kind of his NHL comparable um definitely has fallen off in recent years but if they get a c he’s he’s had you know almost a decade long NHL career and if you get that from from ellic I uh I like that a lot if I’m being honest um their second round their second second round pick uh was kind of a surprise in that uh they picked a goalie which of not a surprise the surprise was who it was um because I did not really have Evan Gardner on my radar and again I am not a uh a professional Scout in any means I know just enough to make me dangerous um he was ranked uh seventh among North American goalies by NHL Central scouting um he ended up taking the starting role uh with his uh with the the Saskatoon blades um ended up being the the starter for the rest of the season was one of the most reliable guys in the league uh recorded a 918 save percentage from September to the middle of November and uh not the highest ranked Prospect but he does have um good fundamentals again good starter H ended up taking the the starting role it’s a good skater excuse me not a good starter ended up taking the starting role for the blades in the uh in the playoffs and uh took them to the Eastern Conference Final where they last to the Mojo Warriors who ended up making the Memorial Cup so you know you can’t really uh I don’t know how much you can fault him for that he’s Mobile in the crease he’s got good movement he’s smaller as a goalie um he keeps being listed to six foot uh six foot even but he’s 6′ one and a half 6’2 so like right in that sweet spot for um goalie size you know between 62 and 64 I think is really where that sweet spot is any taller and you start you know opening up two big gaps any smaller and you really have trouble kind of filling the net so to speak um rebound control needs work uh he sometimes over adjusts which both of these things are pretty common in young goalies and is just something that you know more reps will figure that out um doesn’t necessarily have future starting goalie potential but if he becomes a serviceable NHL backup again I feel I feel like that’s pretty good and goalies are voodoo anyway is the thing goalies are mysterious and Wizardry and magical and no one understands them not even goalie experts will understand % of goalies you know so you really are just kind of I feel like every time you draft a goalie you’re kind of taking a risk you’re kind of just throwing a dart Gardner is a is a fine pick for a goalie I really like Ry and lindas who ended up going all the way in the seventh round um but again goalies they make no sense why not take a flyer on a guy like Gardner who shows flashes of potential um going to take another quick break and when we get back we’re going to talk about the Third third fourth and sixth round picks of the blue jacket in this entry level draft welcome back to lock on Blue Jackets talking all things draft uh we’ve talked about K lstm we’ve talked about Charlie ell we’ve talked about Evan Gardner and now we’re going to talk about the third round selection of the Blue Jackets uh who is uh defenseman Luca melli and the Blue Jackets uh for the Third third round in a row for the third draft in a row have drafted a uh a player named Luca last year they had Luca penelli the are before that they had Luca delbel bles um luuka mlli is a right shot defenseman for the oshaa generals was selected in the third round 86 overall um again has size is I believe 6 foot3 um which again follows the follows the pattern um is a uh a uh a offensive defenseman um big guy used on the power play a lot for the Osa generals had 18 power play assists of on the season which is uh which is pretty good above average skater uh likes to limit time and space uh he’s pretty mobile could be a little bit more physical um but for a third round pick I uh I feel pretty good about it uh Brock Aon of mck hockey who we had on the show about some uh some defenseman earlier on uh I believe in late March um has a little bit of everything lacks a standout quality that sets him apart but says that his hockey IQ is among the best of any CHL Defender this season and uh Craig Button of which who is the director of scou for TSN agrees with that uh has excellent hockey sense know exactly who he is again definitely a uh definitely a a project is probably going to be uh almost definitely should be going to be back with the generals this season they are expected to be an excellent team dominate the Eastern Conference they won the Eastern Conference uh lost in the HL finals to London Knight which again I feel like if you lose to the London Knight you can’t really you can’t really criticize that you know um he is uh he’s an interesting guy uh again I think he’s going to be a project I’m not expecting to see him anytime soon but for a third round pick I uh I like this pick a lot um and that’s kind of the end of the players that I have any kind of like Layman’s knowledge about um because by you get to the end of the third round I’m like okay like 96 or 98 or whatever it is prospects have gone now we’re getting into the now we’re getting into the weeds for guys for someone like me who again only knows enough about prospects to make them dangerous uh uh the B’s fourth round pick is is uh tner hris who is uh 17-year-old American uh defenseman 6’4 uh spent this season with the Lincoln stars of the US HL had nine assists in 59 games uh will be going to St Cloud State University in the 25 26 Season so I expect to see him back with the Lincoln Stars at the USHL the USHL is again I think a really fun League to draft from it’s really kind of growing and going from strength to strength every single year um for a fourth round pick you’re always going to kind of you have your guys that you liked um I will say he was ranked uh 96th overall uh by Craig Button uh was ranked 151st by FC hockey ended up going 101st overall to the blue jacket um it’s a it’s a fine it’s a fine pick he’s uh he’s big he’s again got good skating um he’s not super offensively minded but he has got th those kind of Puck moving skills he can draw pressure he can uh use those modern breakout principles that we’re starting to see more and more now which is always a good a good a good sign in a defenseman I feel like you want to be able to break the puck out of the Zone whether whether anything happens once it gets into the offensive zone I feel like is not necessarily your problem um but if you can take it out of the zone and are not a liability that feels pretty good to me this guy is maybe five years away from the NHL if at all you know if you get a bottom pairing guy out of the fourth round sure why not you know he might be one of those guys that has a a breakout and you know some guys that in their D plus1 years they just take off out of nowhere he’s on the younger side as well uh has a July birthday so won’t turn 17 won’t turn 18 until next month so uh again is is definitely a guy that is still growing into himself is still developing as a player and uh we’ll see we’ll check in on him uh probably through the season see how he’s uh see how he’s developing um the final pick for the Blue Jackets in uh in this draft is again another defenseman because they they really went high on the defenseman this year uh Luke Ashton uh who is uh committed to Minnesota State uh University in the NCAA spent the last three seasons with the bchl um was with the Langley Riverman this season had 36 points in 53 games uh was with the Vernon Vipers for the two years before that um the bchl again I feel like is is an underrated League uh Ashton another big big boy uh is six foot seven uh he’s an over Ager as well um but again with the sixth round it kind of it is what it is I’m if you get an NHL player out of out of a sixth round pick then you’re playing with house money you know um is from North Vancouver uh I believe is familiar with with both Lindstrom and uh I want to say el el um but again very very far off uh if he grows into himself then maybe we’ll uh maybe we’ll see that but he is right now I think is just a big big guy that is going to throw his body around scored in the uh in the bchl I’m interested to see what happens in the uh in the NCAA um he will be like I said going to Minnesota State University uh not the University of Minnesota the uh Minnesota State University which is uh slightly different and not as big of a uh not as big of a deal um but he uh we’ll see again and I don’t know a ton about this guy because once again once you start getting into guys that have ranked 100 or more I’m like have I heard of this guy no I don’t think I have but well uh kind of as the week progresses we’ll we’ll try and get Prospect experts in to talk about um especially guys like hrx guys like Ashton um guys like um Luca melli as well we’ll talk about all of those guys kind of been a little bit more detail with someone who knows much more than I do but just to kind of give you guys an overview um I like this draft fine I don’t think it’s as good as last year’s draft where they made out like literal Bandits but they got some good value there they got their guy at Fourth overall um they picked up a goalie with potential um Luka mlli I think is a really intriguing piece to take in the fourth round um or the third round excuse me lots of uh lots of pieces here uh no game Breakers necessarily barring Kaden lindström but some good supplemental pieces to the prospect pool um as the prospect pool kind of guys continue to graduate out of it they’ve added some more guys back in which are kind of uh kind of intriguing and exciting so um that’s kind of what I’ve got for today uh we might have one more episode up today uh depending on if they get to do anything gigantic at free agency which I’m not expecting uh but if not we’ll talk about free agency tomorrow and tomorrow we’re also talking to um talking to James tub who is a reporter who covers the Medicine Hat Tigers we’re going to talk to him in detail about Kaden lstr what kind of player he is what we can expect from him all that good stuff so that’s going to be coming tomorrow thank you for listening to this episode uh for making your first listen of the day or your second listen of the day even because it’s the second episode but uh I appreciate you either way uh you can find us anywhere you like on podcast we on YouTube we on SiriusXM you can find me on Twitter atore jaob Foster j k o b f r s t e r you can find the show at lore Bluejacket if you have comments questions criticisms you can email me at lockon bluejackets gmail.com and until tomorrow make sure you stay locked on

The Blue Jackets took six players in the 2024 NHL Draft: Cayden Lindstrom, Charlie Elick, Evan Gardner, Luca Marrelli, Tanner Hendricks and Luke Ashton. Was the draft a success? What do all the prospects have in common? Are there any hidden gems in the later rounds? All this and more!

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