Columbus Blue Jackets re-sign Kirill Marchenko to three-year, $3.85 million AAV extension
The Columbus Blue Jackets announced they’ve come to terms with restricted free-agent forward Kirill Marchenko on the three-year contract extension worth $3.85 million average annual value.
SIGNING: #CBJ have signed forward Kirill Marchenko to a 3-year contract through the 2026-27 NHL season.
He has posted 44-23-67 in 137 career games with the Blue Jackets.https://t.co/qtJbn2uXz3
Marchenko, 24, will make $11.55 million total on his new deal. The former 2018 second-round pick recorded a career-high 23 goals and 42 points in 78 games last season for the Blue Jackets. It was his sophomore season in Columbus, after joining the Blue Jackets in 2022-23 from St. Petersburg SKA of the KHL.
The native of Barnaul, Russia finished third on the team in points and will once again be relied up to provide offense for the Blue Jackets. Marchenko was used mostly on the wing last season and should be a lock for their top six. In 2023-24 he averaged 16:24 of ice-time per game, which included over two minutes per game on the power play. Marchenko finished the year tallying 193 shots on goal, landing 55 hits, and blocking 39 shots. The future is very bright for the Russia forward in Columbus.
Blue Jackets general manger Don Waddell commented on Marchenko’s new deal via a team statement and thinks the world of his young forward.
“Kirill Marchenko has been an important player for the Blue Jackets during his first two NHL seasons and reaching an agreement to keep him in Columbus was important to us,” said Waddell. “He has size, skill and the ability to score goals and will continue to be a big part of our core group moving forward.”
This is the second contract extension in two days for Waddell and the Blue Jackets as the team announced Saturday they came to terms with Kent Johnson on a three-year deal. Johnson and Marchenko will be a big part of the core moving forward and it’s smart business for Waddell to lock both forwards up on multi-year extensions.
With both Johnson and Marchenko signed, the Blue Jackets continue their offseason with just Cole Sillinger left without a contract for next season. At this rate it shouldn’t be long before Waddell announces the new deal, he currently has $10.8 million left in cap space.
Columbus finished dead last in the Eastern Conference last season and averaged only 2.85 goals per game, good for 27th overall.