Blue Jackets' Kekalainen says Bjorkstrand trade 'had to be done'

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Going into the offseason, the Blue Jackets weren’t plotting trades to create respiratory room beneath the NHL’s $82.5 million wage cap.

Jarmo Kekalainen, the group’s basic supervisor, had loads of house to re-sign a prolonged record of restricted free brokers topped by star winger Patrik Laine, who on Friday agreed to a four-year extension price $8.7 million per 12 months. Laine’s deal pushed Columbus over the cap by about $4.5 to $5 million, however solely due to a seven-year, $68.25 million deal signed by famous person Johnny Gaudreau on July 13, a surprising determination that even caught the Blue Jackets without warning.

“We had not deliberate or counted on getting Johnny Gaudreau, in order that modified every thing,” Kekalainen mentioned Saturday, a day after signing Laine and buying and selling Oliver Bjorkstrand for cap functions. “If we’d been capable of rely on it and plan it, we might have been in a greater place to make a few of these (cap) strikes forward of time, in order that we didn’t get squeezed. However as soon as a chance like that got here up in entrance of us and we knew it was actual … you simply can’t go on a participant like that.”

Gaudreau wasn’t Kekalainen’s solely addition when the NHL’s free-agent window opened. He additionally signed grisly defenseman Erik Gudbranson – Gaudreau’s teammate final season with the Calgary Flames – to a four-year, $16 million deal that prices the Jackets $4 million a 12 months in cap prices.

Mixed, these two contracts ate up a mixed $13.75 million in cap house ($9.75 million for Gaudreau), and the Jackets’ wage flexibility was gone. Laine’s deal occurred 9 days later, forcing Kekalainen to commerce Bjorkstrand two hours later to the Seattle Kraken for a pair of 2023 draft picks within the third and fourth rounds.

It was a whirlwind flip of occasions.

“Undoubtedly blended feelings,” Kekalainen mentioned. “In all probability the toughest determination I ever needed to make as GM of the Blue Jackets is to commerce Oliver Bjorkstrand away. I feel very extremely of him, not simply as a hockey participant however as an individual.”

Blue Jackets took greatest ‘no good’ possibility with Oliver Bjorkstrand commerce

Bjorkstrand, 27, is within the prime of his profession, carries a manageable contract with a $5.4 million cap cost and has 4 years left on it.

He’d additionally professed a want to keep in Columbus long-term, led the Blue Jackets in targets the previous three years, wore an alternate captain’s ‘A’ final season and was the primary in a string of “core” gamers to signal multi-year extensions within the wake of a number of big-name departures by way of commerce or free company.

“He’s been a part of us, our group, for 9 years,” mentioned Kekalainen, who chosen Bjorkstrand within the third spherical (No. 89) of his first draft as Blue Jackets GM in 2013. “Having seen him develop and win a championship with (AHL) Cleveland and turn out to be an actual good participant within the NHL, it was so laborious to make that call. It’s the ugly a part of the enterprise. That’s what it’s important to name it.”

One other ugly a part of the deal was the timing, which couldn’t have been a lot worse for Bjorkstrand. He’d simply gotten married in Cleveland and was on his honeymoon when Kekalainen known as.

“We had a quick dialog,” Kekalainen mentioned. “(We had) some extra exchanges (Saturday), and I can’t emphasize (sufficient) what individual he’s, what a category act he’s, even in the midst of all this, with him being on his honeymoon. There have been quite a lot of ‘thank-yous.’ It’s a tough determination we needed to make.”

Jarmo Kekalainen is taking a beating on-line.

Bjorkstrand mentioned he’ll communicate in regards to the commerce when he returns from his honeymoon, however followers have already observed that he “appreciated” a social media submit criticizing the deal from the Columbus facet. The submit was created by a high-profile Blue Jackets fan who goes by “Nasher,” who mentioned Columbus was “fleeced” within the deal.

Kekalainen argues in any other case and factors to a harsh commerce market to again it up.

“The choice needed to be made,” he mentioned. “You may simply calculate the cap house round the entire league and there have been no good choices actually obtainable for us. This was the very best of the ‘no-good’ choices for us to turn out to be cap compliant. This needed to be accomplished.”

Blue Jackets might’ve been left with no choices in the event that they make Oliver Bjorkstrand commerce

Previous to the commerce, 25 of the NHL’s 32 groups wanted to dump wage for cap compliance causes. That put the remaining seven groups with sufficient house obtainable within the catbird seat. They’ve been capable of sift by a number of presents and solely settle for people who closely tilt of their favor.

That being the state of affairs, the Blue Jackets are in all probability lucky for get what they did within the Bjorkstrand deal. Had Kekalainen waited to see how the market shakes out this summer season, hoping to hold onto Bjorkstrand, that commerce possibility possible would’ve disappeared and compelled the Blue Jackets into a good tighter jam.

Different commerce choices included veterans Jakub Voracek and Gustav Nyquist, however each are older than Bjorkstrand and carry miniscule worth to rebuilding groups with cap house to suit their cap costs. Offloading costly veterans within the present commerce market would possible require offers spiced with low-cost, worthwhile belongings hooked up to the gamers dealt, similar to excessive draft picks or prospects.

Not eager to half with these roster-building instruments, the Blue Jackets swallowed laborious and dealt Bjorkstrand, who would possibly’ve struggled to remain in a top-six ahead group that now has Gaudreau, Laine, Voracek, Nyquist, Alexandre Texier plus rookies Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko, who can play wing.

“The humorous factor about cap house is that after it’s gone, it’s gone,”Kekalainen mentioned. “You take a look at it league vast and also you see it sinking on a regular basis. When you get your self right into a state of affairs the place the league-wide cap house is just about gone, then you don’t have any alternative to do something. … We had quite a lot of not-so-good choices in entrance of us, and this was the very best of them.”

It’s the one one the Jackets wanted to make, too. Kekalainen mentioned the group’s cap quantity will now be authorized following cuts in coaching camp.

“To attend would have been an enormous threat for us to not turn out to be cap compliant,” he mentioned. “You may’t be non-compliant. It’s important to begin the 12 months as a compliant group, and also you don’t need to be squeezing right into a gap the place it’s important to play quick as a result of you may’t name anyone up and be beneath the cap. We’ve seen that across the league and we didn’t need to get into that state of affairs.”