Tuesday night at Nationwide Arena will mark a milestone for one of the franchise’s best players. In the process, this player becomes just the fourth player to reach this milestone for the Blue Jackets after Boone Jenner, Rick Nash and Cam Atkinson.
Zach Werenski is set to skate in his 600th NHL game when the Blue Jackets host the Anaheim Ducks. As he crosses over this milestone, he’s playing the best hockey in his NHL career.
As much as this kind of milestone is worth celebrating for the Blue Jackets, Werenski has more important things to worry about. His team is simply looking for a win to break their five-game losing streak including their last four in regulation.
This perfectly describes Werenski’s mindset. He has never been about individual accolades as a player no matter what the occasion is. His focus is helping the Blue Jackets win games and eventually get to the playoffs with a chance to win the Stanley Cup.
That’s certainly not changing here for his 600th game. His milestone game will be memorable if they get a win.
Werenski’s Rise
We will handle the honors of talking about the impact Werenski has had on the Blue Jackets. He’s been everything and then some on and off the ice.
The Blue Jackets selected Werenski eighth overall in 2015. After spending the following season at Michigan, he came to the Lake Erie Monsters and helped them win the Calder Cup in 2016.
Then in 2016-17, he made an impression on the NHL in his rookie season scoring 11 goals and 47 points while helping the Blue Jackets return to the postseason. This was the season John Tortorella led them to 108 points and an unfortunate first-round exit from the playoffs.
Werenski has done nothing but get better throughout his career, although there were some injury concerns in the middle that forced him to miss significant time.
His next goal this season will be his 10th. That would mark his eighth season of double-digit goals in his career.
In his first 599 games, Werenski has amassed 122 goals and 417 points. He’s on a current 10-game point streak at home and continues to be one of the best defensemen in the NHL. He finished second in the Norris Trophy voting in 2024-25.
What has really stood out about Werenski’s Blue Jackets’ career was one particular decision he made in the midst of a lot of change around the team.
When other players left, Werenski made a long-term commitment and stayed with the Blue Jackets. He showed that Columbus is a desirable place to play. His community involvement also deserves a lot of recognition.
Werenski is already considered the best defensemen to play for the Blue Jackets. Every new accomplishment from here will only solidify that. But there remains one thing he craves more than anything right now.
Werenski wants to win. He wants to win in Columbus. He said as much before training camp when he admitted his time at the Men’s Worlds helping Team USA to a gold medal made him realize how much he missed winning. The Blue Jackets haven’t participated in postseason since the Covid bubble.
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The Blue Jackets enter Tuesday’s game in last place in the Eastern Conference with a record of 13-13-6. That’s why this milestone is far down Werenski’s priority list. They need to focus on getting back into the playoff race as we approach the Christmas break.
Make no mistake. What Werenski has done with the Blue Jackets in his first 600 games is worthy of praise especially his play since the start of last season. Maybe one day he will sit back and reflect on all the good he’s done both on and off the ice.
Tuesday night is not that night though. Milestones take a back seat to team and performance.
This is who Werenski always has been; A team first player who leads by example. 600 games is a nice accomplishment. But he has more important things to think about right now.
