The Columbus Blue Jackets have struck a deal with their RFA winger. Patrik Laine, 24, has been on the Blue Jackets for about 1 1/2 seasons after being traded from the Winnipeg Jets. Laine was drafted second overall by the Jets in 2016, but then was traded in January of 2021. Laine and forward Jack Roslovic were traded to the Blue Jackets, and in return the Jets received Pierre-Luc Dubois, and a third round pick in the 2022 NHL draft. Dubois is trying to force a move out of Winnipeg, a very bad trade in the end for the Jets.
Patrick Laine signed a four-year contract with the Blue Jackets, coming in at an AAV of $8.7M. The Blue Jackets still have two RFAs unsigned, in Bemstrom and Fix-Wolansky, but are currently over $6M above the cap, according to CapFriendly.
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Patrick Laine played in 56 regular season games in the 2021-2022 season, scoring 26 goals and picking up 30 assists for a total of 56 points. Laine was third in scoring on the Blue Jackets this season, despite only 56 games compared to Bjorkstrand, who played 80 games and had 57 points, and Jakub Voracek who played 79 games and had 62 points. Laine was by far the best player on the Jackets for point production last season. He did lead the team in giveaways, which is very bad considering he only played 56 of the 82 games. His offensive ability is where his value is, he had the second highest on-ice goal differential for the Blue Jackets, with 15, He had the second highest amount of rebounds created(17), the second highest created xGoals(19.9), the highest shooting talent above average, at 25.7%, and was second in the team in goals with 26. Stats via MoneyPuck.com
Is this a good deal for the Blue Jackets, who just signed Johnny Gaudreau in free agency?
