The Blue Jackets are a team to watch on the trade market this season

The Columbus Blue Jackets have gotten off to a surprisingly strong start, going 5-3-1 for 11 points through their first nine games, and as of Nov. 1, holding onto the No. 2 Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.

It’s a refreshing change of pace from last season, where the club finished with the fourth-worst record in the NHL and wound up with another lottery selection. While it may be difficult for the club to earn their first Stanley Cup Playoff birth since 2020, they may be able to stay competitive throughout the 2024-25 campaign.

On Friday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk discuss what General Manager Don Waddell may try to do as the season continues.

Tyler Yaremchuk: I want to go out East and discuss the Blue Jackets. They’ve been one of the best stories in the league, what could Don Waddell be looking to get up to in his first season as general manager?

Frank Seravalli: It’s not going to be adding in the short term, which isn’t a surprise to Blue Jackets’ fans. However, he has let teams know that he’s interested in taking on contracts that may be viewed as undesirable, in exchange for assets.

They’ve got cap space, and everyone knows it’s use it or lose it. In fact, the number of teams that have cap space that are willing to take on contracts, that number has dwindled a bit, and we’re in a year with increased cap space where there probably won’t be a need for third-party brokers at the trade deadline.

Columbus is aware of that. They want to use their cap space to take on deals, but at this point, the ones that have been floated to Don Waddell are guys that have three-to-five years left on their deal, which is fascinating to think about; teams that have made long-term commitments that they’re already unhappy with.

You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…