Blue Jackets Sign Cole Sillinger to 3-Year Deal to Avoid Arbitration

Two down. One big RFA contract to go for the Columbus Blue Jackets. In the process, arbitration is now off the table for this season.

The Blue Jackets and RFA forward Cole Sillinger have agreed to a new three-year deal worth $13.875 million, an AAV of $4.625 million. The news was first reported by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

Like Jet Greaves, Sillinger gets a three-year deal that will see him reach UFA status when it expires in 2029. That leaves the biggest RFA yet, Adam Fantilli, left to sign.

Sillinger has played five full NHL seasons. While many have been waiting for more offense to show, he’s rounded into a dependable two-way forward. He did enjoy a career season in 2025-26 in assists (25) and tied his career high in points (33). He along with Charlie Coyle and Mathieu Olivier spent most of the season together as one of the more effective lines in the NHL in terms of expected goals for.

What remains to be seen with Sillinger is if he’ll eventually carve out a role at center or if he’ll remain on the wing. With Coyle, Fantilli and Sean Monahan presumably the Blue Jackets’ top-three centers, it seems reasonable to believe that Sillinger will start 2026-27 on the wing but could shift to the middle in event of injury or other need.

The Blue Jackets still very much believe Sillinger is a big part of their future. This new contract allows him the chance to show he can take his game to another level while getting more than double his salary from his last contract. This season is a big one for him to show that he can be a consistent middle-six contributor on an up and coming team.

The Sillinger contract being done paints a picture of what the Blue Jackets’ salary-cap situation looks like with Fantilli left to sign. The team has more than enough to not only get Fantilli signed, they could go out and make another move if the fit is there.

And now for 26 consecutive seasons since entering the NHL, no Blue Jacket has ever reached the arbitration hearing nor has GM Don Waddell.