Blue Jackets Draft Review

[Virtual Jarmo]

An interesting offseason for the Blue Jackets leading up to the draft helped give the team some sense of the direction that they wanted to take. After squeaking past the Dallas Stars and getting taken to the woodshed by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Phoenix Coyotes, two things were clear for the Blue Jackets. They needed to get stronger and they needed to clear cap space. The Blue Jackets tried to get stronger in the draft by taking big bodies and focusing on secondary intangibles above skill.

1st round, 28th pick: Connor Murphy comes to Blue Jackets as a hometown kid raised in nearby Dublin, OH, a suburb of Columbus. "We like Connor's makeup the most," GM Adam Burke stated to the Columbus Dispatch. "He has a hockey bloodline and a body that he can grow in to." The 6-foot-3 Murphy is the son of former NHL defenseman Gord Murphy. The Blue Jackets pick did raise some eyebrows as there were some players who were projected to go higher, but Burke is happy with the pick. "Sure, we could have settled for the 'safe' player, but we like what Connor will be able to bring. He's a well-rounded player with a lot of potential. To us, he profiles to be like John Moore."

The Blue Jackets would make waves again, trading Fedor Tyutin to the Minnesota Wild for Jeff Halpern and the 32nd overall pick. "Toots played well here, but there was a numbers game in play and the fact that we really wanted to get in to the top of the second round," Coach Ken Hitchcock said via text to the Dispatch. Burke agreed. "Halpern's a guy we've looked at for a while and there was a high-risk, high-reward player at 32 we wanted."

2nd round, 32nd pick: Phillip Danault was not high on too many draft boards, but the Blue Jackets traded away a bona fide NHL piece to get him. Danault is a project. He is very rough around the edges and has a lot of development to do before he could make an impact at the NHL level. "Danault's the kind of kid you wait on," Burke said of the forward. "He's a smallish guy, but has tremendous upside, the ability to win faceoffs and should give a consistent effort."

3rd round, 68th pick: The Blue Jackets received this pick in the Jiri Hudler deal from the then Atlanta Thrashers and they again opted to take a project player in Heikki Liedes. "Liedes is a mountain of a man who has a chance to be a difference maker on an energy line," Burke said of the Finnish-born winger. "He's strong as an ox, has a will to win, and should be able to mold in to a power forward type." When asked about taking two long shot type players in the first half of the draft, Burke acknowledged that it was a stretch, but that "we're in a position to do that".

3rd round, 72nd pick: If big bodies was what the Jackets were looking for, they found one in Anton Saveliev. Already 6-foot-4 and just shy of 200 pounds, Saveliev has the chance to develop in to a mean presence on the back end. "He has no offensive skill to speak of," reported a rival scout, "but he will put you on your ass". Saveliev is a questionable skater, but has an uncanny ability to play a physical game without taking many penalties. The Jackets acquired this pick when they traded Ryan Smyth to Edmonton.

5th round, 123rd pick: Burke again made a trade to move in to a round, this time shipping a 2012 4th rounder to Colorado in order to draft Barclay Goodrow. Outside of having one of the best names in the draft, Goodrow fits the big bodied project demographic that the Blue Jackets were drawn to in the 2011 Draft. "Goodrow is a bum," one rival scout said. Burke had other thoughts. "I like him a lot. Like Liedes, he can morph in to a power forward role and be somebody we can count on from an energy point of view."

6th round, 178th pick The Blue Jackets were able to pick up a starting goaltender for the American Hockey League's Springfield Falcons with their late 6th rounder, taking third-rated North American CSB goalie Jordan Binnington. "We wanted to get a better option for the farm, as well as a kid who could step in if we had an injury. He's good enough to do that, but probably not consistently play in the NHL."

7th round, 208th pick: Burke was thrilled to find a high upside player so late in the draft in Czech-born winger Adam Rehak. Rehak has the tools to be a dynamic offensive player, but may lack the discipline needed in the other two zones to be a consistent threat. "If nothing else, we got an exciting player for the farm. But, with a little luck, Adam may develop in to a useful piece. That would be quite an accomplishment if our scouting staff could find an NHL-caliber player with one of the last three picks in the draft."

The Blue Jackets will not get immediate help from anybody in this year's draft class, but there are a lot of names to watch for the future.