July 24, 2018 Columbus Blue Jackets PAGE 02
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Columbus Blue Jackets News Clips July 20 - July 24, 2018 Columbus Blue Jackets PAGE 02: Columbus Dispatch: Agent says Artemi Panarin doesn't want contract talks affecting next season PAGE 03: The Athletic: Artemi Panarin gives Blue Jackets a Sept. 13 deadline PAGE 05: Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets spotlight: Riley Nash Cleveland Monsters/Prospects PAGE 07: Columbus Dispatch: Defenseman prospect Andrew Peeke making strides in developing his game NHL/Websites PAGE 09: The Athletic: Inside the discussions on marijuana use in the NHL PAGE 13: The Athletic: Bourne: How important is the role of assistant coaches and what do they really do? PAGE 17: Sportsnet.ca: NHL's 15 most intriguing unsigned RFAs: Latest buzz PAGE 23: Sportsnet.ca: Down Goes Brown: What to make of 6 confusing teams 1 http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20180719/blue-jackets--agent-says-artemi-panarin-doesnt-want- contract-talks-affecting-next-season Blue Jackets | Agent says Artemi Panarin doesn't want contract talks affecting next season By Steve Gorten – July 20, 2018 Forward Artemi Panarin informed Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen during their meeting this week in France that he doesn’t want to deal with his unresolved contract situation once training camp starts Sept. 13. Panarin’s agent, Daniel Milstein, confirmed the player’s stance — first reported in the Russian website SovSport.ru’s interview with Milstein and also by The Athletic — to the Dispatch on Thursday. “Artemi wants to concentrate on playing hockey, and be in the season,” Milstein told The Dispatch. “During the season (he) only wants to concentrate on playing his best hockey and helping the team to win. That’s all.” Milstein did not deem Sept. 13 a firm deadline, noting, “I’m not saying he won’t negotiate (after).” Asked if there was a chance Panarin would be willing to start negotiating with the Jackets between now and then, Milstein declined to comment. After Panarin met with Kekalainen on Monday, Milstein told The Dispatch that the two parties had “a good conversation” but that there was “no contract progress at this time.” Milstein added Thursday that Panarin initially made his feelings public regarding his contract situation — Panarin, like teammate and goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2018-19 season — “out of respect for the fans and the team, because they’ve been nothing but great to him.” “He wanted to be up front and truthful with the team and let them know that he wasn’t ready to discuss a long-term commitment,” Milstein said. Panarin, he added, “does not want to cause the issues that some other teams might have experienced in the past couple of years with free agency stuff. He wanted to do a good, kind thing, and unfortunately, it’s gotten blown out of proportion a little bit.” Kekalainen has declined to comment on what he described as “a private meeting” Monday but said at the NHL draft last month that the Jackets would listen to other teams’ trade offers for Panarin. In return for Panarin, he said, the Jackets would want players who can make an immediate return as opposed to draft picks or prospects. Any team willing to provide the former would want assurance that it can re-sign Panarin to a long-term contract. Otherwise, it would be surrendering assets for a one-year rental who’d be free to leave as an unrestricted free agent next July 1. 2 https://theathletic.com/437746/2018/07/19/artemi-panarin-gives-blue-jackets-a-sept-13-deadline/ Artemi Panarin gives Blue Jackets a Sept. 13 deadline By Aaron Portzline - July 20, 2018 Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen insisted that his meeting on Sunday in Nice, France, with forward Artemi Panarin wouldn’t include a contract offer and it wouldn’t find him begging or pleading for Panarin to stay long-term in Columbus. Even in the intoxicating breezes of the French Riviera, Kekalainen stayed true to his word during a 45- minute meeting, which was said to be cordial and professional. But the meeting wasn’t without developments. Panarin informed Kekalainen that he wants all business matters pushed aside as of Sept. 13, the day training camp opens in Columbus and across the NHL. Panarin’s agent confirmed this to The Athletic on Thursday. “Artemi loves hockey,” his agent, Daniel Milstein said. “He hates the business side of hockey. “When the season starts, the focus can only be on playing. He’s going to play his best and give his best to the hockey club.” The Sept. 13 ultimatum — first reported in a Milstein interview with sovsports.ru, a Russian website — requires some explanation. Panarin, an unrestricted free agent after the 2018-19 season, is not currently willing to negotiate a contract extension with the Blue Jackets. So, in this respect, the Sept. 13 deadline is meaningless. Where it carries more weight — significantly more weight — is on the trade front, should the Blue Jackets opt to trade their best forward rather than risk losing him for nothing as a UFA next summer. It is logical to assume the Blue Jackets will get a much larger return in trade for Panarin if he’s being traded to a team that knows it can sign him to a long-term contract. Otherwise, the acquiring team would also inherit the Blue Jackets’ current crisis. The consensus around the NHL — speaking with GMs, management types, etc. — is that Panarin’s willingness to sign an extension with his new club would be the difference between a trade that provides the Blue Jackets an immediate roster impact and a trade that involves only future commodities, such as high-end prospects and early-round draft picks. Kekalainen has said he expects Panarin to be with the Blue Jackets when the season starts, perhaps all the way to the NHL trade deadline and beyond. But if Panarin insists upon the Sept. 13 deadline, the Blue Jackets could have less than two months to make their best trade, or at least the trade that helps them most in the short term. Kekalainen, reached in Finland on Thursday, declined to comment. Sources told The Athletic that Kekalainen had had several trade offers for Panarin, some of which have been deemed “legitimate.” But all of them involve future assets. As of yet, the Blue Jackets don’t have a list of preferred destinations from Panarin or Milstein. 3 Panarin, through Milstein, has portrayed his stance this summer as a benevolent act toward the Blue Jackets, informing them of his plans — “as of today” — far in advance of his final days with the club. The Blue Jackets won’t be strung along and left at the altar by Panarin, like the New York Islanders were this summer when John Tavares signed with Toronto. But there is great concern on Panarin’s part, Milstein has said, that he’ll be seen as some kind of pariah in Columbus now that his long-term plans are known. Panarin has never disparaged the city, Milstein notes, and he’s simply exercising his right as a UFA to pick where he lives. He’s spoken glowingly of Blue Jackets’ management, coaches and his teammates. But such finer points are often lost on a passionate fanbase, and Panarin seems concerned about the response he’ll get in Nationwide Arena, both this season — should he remain — or when he returns with a visiting team. Perhaps the Sept. 13 ultimatum is an attempt to prod the Blue Jackets into action this summer, to end this ordeal sooner rather than later. 4 http://www.dispatch.com/sports/20180723/blue-jackets-spotlight-riley-nash Blue Jackets spotlight: Riley Nash By Steve Gorten – July 24, 2018 The Blue Jackets have 24 players under contract on their current 2018-19 roster. With the start of training camp less than two months away, The Dispatch will profile those players with a series of spotlight features. RILEY NASH Position: Center Age: 29 Birthdate: May 9, 1989 Height/weight: 6 feet 1/190 pounds Jersey number: 20 Background: The former first-round draft pick (21st overall, 2007) of Edmonton spent the first five years of his NHL career in Carolina, and signed with Boston as an unrestricted free agent two years ago. He signed a three-year, $8.25 million free-agent contract with Columbus on July 1. 2018-19 salary cap hit: $2.75 million 2017-18 stats: 76 GP, 15 G, 26 A, 41 pts, plus-16 Career NHL stats: 399 GP, 53 G, 86 A, 139 pts, minus-3 Best NHL season: 2017-18: 76 GP, 15 G, 26 A, 41 pts, plus-16 Need to know: Thirteen of Nash’s 15 goals and 38 of his 41 points in 2017-18 came at even strength. 2017-18 recap: Nash’s breakout year included career highs in goals, assists, points, plus-minus and shooting percentage (15.5). While primarily playing on the Bruins’ third line with wingers Danton Heinen and David Backes, he also saw some time on the top line between Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak. “This (past) year, I didn’t have those lulls in my season. ... It comes with maturity, confidence,” Nash said. “Just being in the league for a couple of years, you feel you know what you can do.” Said Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen: “I’m not so sure he’s going to get 40 points every year in the league. He might. ... It’s not like he’s not had any offensive production before, but he was mostly down the lineup in other years of his career.