Blue Jackets News & Rumors: Provorov, TV Update & More

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Welcome to the last Columbus Blue Jackets News & Rumors before the Christmas holiday. Is 2024 seriously over in 13 days? Where has the year gone?

The Blue Jackets are hoping to find some wins before the holiday gets here. They have three games left before Christmas Thursday night against the New Jersey Devils, Saturday night against the Philadelphia Flyers and then Monday night against the Montreal Canadiens.

We start this edition of News & Rumors with an update on one of the Blue Jackets’ top defenseman.

Provorov Open to Staying?

An interesting piece of news dropped on Monday regarding Vladimir Provorov, the brother of Blue Jackets’ defenseman Ivan. Vladimir has committed to play hockey at Ohio State. (From NHL rumblings: Latest on Provorov, Canucks trade needs, Hurricanes goalies and why Avs jumped on Blackwood; Pierre LeBrun, the Athletic, 12/17/24)

Talk about interesting timing, right? Ivan is in the last year of his current contract with the Blue Jackets and set to become an unrestricted free agent. Given the number of minutes he plays, his services will be in high demand both at the trade deadline and in free agency.

But seeing this news about Vladimir, could this be a sign that Ivan is open to staying in Columbus? LeBrun spoke to Mark Gandler in his piece about the topic.

Gandler told LeBrun “Absolutely” when asked about being open to sign an extension. They believe the Blue Jackets are going to go places coupled with the confidence they have in the job Don Waddell will do.

Ivan Provorov Columbus Blue Jackets
Ivan Provorov is open to an extension with the Blue Jackets. (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

One of the biggest storylines leading up to the deadline is what will the Blue Jackets do with Ivan. He is widely considered one of the top available rentals for this deadline. It’s going to force the team into a decision. There are a couple of factors to consider.

First, how far is Denton Mateychuk away from the NHL? He’s off to a tremendous start in Cleveland. The Blue Jackets will want to make sure there is a clear path to the top-4 for him. He could be ready as soon as next season if he keeps his current pace up.

Signing Provorov to an extension would lock down the left side for the foreseeable future with Zach Werenski. Provorov has yet to miss a game with the Blue Jackets and continues to play big minutes averaging 23:20/game this season.

The other thing to consider is that this might be Provorov’s best chance to cash in on a major contract. Would the Blue Jackets be willing to meet a lofty contract should it come to that? Would they be comfortable going to eight years if that’s the ask?

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Playoff contenders would love to add a top-four defenseman who can play every situation. The price is going to be high to acquire him. At what point does it make more sense to keep him over taking a potential trade offer with a first-round pick included?

That’s the decision the Blue Jackets will have to make. If they slip out of the wildcard race, they’ll have to strongly consider a trade. But with Vladimir’s presence in Columbus, perhaps the chances of Ivan staying are higher than we first thought.

If the term and dollars fit to which it doesn’t hinder Mateychuk, then the Blue Jackets should look at an extension. Just because Vladimir is going to Ohio State doesn’t guarantee Ivan signs an extension. He could always come back in free agency after a trade also. Stay tuned.

Blue Jackets Going Over the Air

The Blue Jackets and Sinclair Broadcast Group announced some major news on Thursday morning. Five games will be shown over the air in the region.

According to the release, FanDuel Sports Network’s game productions will be simulcast locally on ABC 6 and CW Columbus (Ch. 53), both of which are available to viewers via antenna, as well as through popular cable and streaming providers, including Spectrum, DirecTV, DirecTV Stream, YouTubeTV, Dish, and Breezeline. Fans in West Virginia and Kentucky will be able to tune in as well. Fans from Huntington and Charleston, WV as well as Louisville and Lexington, KY will be able to pick up the games on a local Sinclair station.

The five games are as follows:

  • 1/2/25 vs. Detroit.
  • 1/11/25 at St. Louis.
  • 1/23/25 at Carolina.
  • 2/27/25 at Detroit.
  • 3/17/25 vs. New Jersey.

This is a great step in helping grow the game around the Blue Jackets by having more fans be able to tune in to select games. It remains to be seen what the aftermath of the Diamond Bankruptcy will have. But this could give us a glimpse of what future coverage of the team might look like if FanDuel doesn’t hold.

Side Dishes

  • The Blue Jackets sent Jet Greaves back to Cleveland and called James Malatesta up. Malatesta will replace Kevin Labanc in the lineup on Thursday against the Devils.
  • Sending Greaves back now was not because of his play. The Blue Jackets needed the roster spot at this time. They hope Malatesta will bring some much-needed energy to the lineup.
  • The Blue Jackets did avoid the worst on Dante Fabbro. He won’t play Thursday and is considered day-to-day. Dean Evason said “I truly believe we are fortunate that there’s not more of a serious injury.” If it’s similar to the hit Werenski took in the opener last season, that was a Charley Horse and it cost him about a week. Jack Johnson is good to go and will replace Fabbro in the lineup.
  • Elvis Merzlikins gets the net again with Greaves back in Cleveland. The Devils are going with Jake Allen.
  • The Devils will not have Curtis Lazar against the Blue Jackets. Head coach Sheldon Keefe said there was some swelling that came up. Lazar will likely be shut down until after Christmas as a result. There was no structural damage and it’s not a new injury. They’re just being extra cautious.
  • Caught up with Cole Sillinger in the aftermath of the Lightning game. He loves the fact Evason has their backs when something like that happens in the heat of a moment. Here’s Sillinger: “It’s nice that (Evason) has that opinion and that he has our backs when things get heated like that. You don’t ever want to be out for 17 minutes and you definitely don’t want to put your team on a five-minute kill. So there is a fine line. Maybe it could have been done a little smarter in my opinion. But just the fact that he has our back. It was just an overall heated play and a decision made based on being hot and not really having a lot of mental clarity at the time just reacting.”