Columbus Blue Jackets sign forward Josh Dunne to one-year extension

The Columbus Blue Jackets have officially announced that forward Josh Dunne has signed a one-year, two-way contract extension.

The 6-foot-4 forward will have a cap hit of $775,000, with a minors salary of $125,000.

The 24-year-old comes from a big hockey family, which includes Jincy Dunne, who won silver at the women’s World Championship and Winter Olympics with USA back in 2022.

Dunne played eight games with the Blue Jackets this year, recording no points and six penalty minutes. The rough-and-tumble forward had 20 goals and 37 points with the Cleveland Monsters this year to go along with 71 penalty minutes. Dunne played in six NHL games in 2020-21 after leaving Clarkson University, also failing to score.

In 109 games over four AHL seasons, Dunne has 34 goals and 58 points. Before turning pro, Dunne spent three years with the NCAA’s Clarkson University, winning the 2019 ECAC title. The year after, he took home the ECAC’s best defensive forward honors and was captain for the partial 2020-21 season.

Dunne is likely to spend next year in the AHL, but could be used for spot duty again in 2023-24. The Blue Jackets have $5.854 million in projected cap space, with just depth forward Lane Pederson and defenseman Gavin Bayreuther becoming UFAs. Mathieu Olivier and Tim Berni are the team’s two RFAs, with the rest of the pending free agents coming from the minors.

The move is yet another in a busy offseason for the Blue Jackets, who acquired Ivan Provorov and Damon Severson for the blueline. They’re also expected to name Mike Babcock coach in a prelude to a summer that has seen the Blue Jackets looking to make a big step next year. The club signed Johnny Gaudreau to a deal last summer but proceeded to finish near the bottom of the standings. Injuries played a big part in that, but the team is hoping its moves this summer can push it closer to playoff contention.