Columbus Blue Jackets Top Prospects: 2023 Edition

For those wondering, the cut-off for what is or isn’t a prospect is typically about 50 NHL games played (including playoff games) or is 25 years old. These are not hard or fast rules though, and we may make some exceptions depending on the circumstances.

2023 Columbus Blue Jackets Top Prospects

1.) Adam Fantilli

The 3rd overall pick in the 2023 Draft, Fantilli had a dominant freshman season at the University of Michigan. Fantilli has the size and skating to be the type of powerful, two-way centre that every NHL team covets in their top six. He drives through the dirty areas of the ice both with and without the net. Fantilli puts pressure on the defence by taking the puck to the net, getting to the net without the puck, and forechecking effectively when the opponent has the puck. He is a threat to score goals and make plays for teammates, as he has a good shot and is a strong passer. Fantilli also plays a responsible defensive game.

2.) David Jiricek

Due to their struggles over the last few seasons, many of the top Blue Jackets prospects are high draft picks. Jiricek was taken sixth overall in the 2022 NHL Draft. Jiricek shows strong offensive skills. He marries his strong skating with good stickhandling. This allows him to carry the puck through the neutral zone and generate efficient zone entries. He also has the poise to control the puck at the point and make plays in the offensive zone with his good vision and passing skill. Jiricek starts the transition game with a good first pass. He shows smart decision-making and often makes a smart play. Jiricek can also be a weapon from the point. He has an excellent slapshot and one-timer, generating a lot of power on his shots.

3.) Denton Mateychuk

Drafted 12th overall in 2022, Mateychuk is an elite skater who loves to push the pace and join in the offensive attack. His excellent puckhandling ability allows him to create offence. Mateychuk uses his natural elusiveness to generate effective zone entries. He also does a really good job of protecting the puck and moving around the offensive zone. He creates passing and shooting lanes with his lateral mobility. Mateychuk’s vision and passing skill is high-end. He can start the rush with a good first pass. Mateychuk is also an excellent power-play quarterback. He controls the puck in the zone and uses his vision and passing skills to set up scoring chances for teammates. Mateychuk has a very good wrist shot and an excellent release. His shot is powerful and accurate. Mateychuk loves to sneak down from the point and let his shot go from the circles.

4.) Gavin Brindley

Drafted early in the second round this year, Brindley is a potential draft steal and was Fantilli’s teammate at the University of Michigan. Brindley plays a high-energy game. His strong skating allows him to get in quickly on the forecheck and create issues for opposing defenders. He also uses his balance and strong stride to play in the dirty areas of the ice. Brindley loves to go to the front of the net, both with and without the puck. When he gets there he can score goals with his soft hands. Brindley can bang in rebounds, tip in teammates’ shots, as well as score quick one-timers. Brindley’s hard work and excellent work ethic also extend to his play in his own end.

5.) Stanislav Svozil

Another Czech defenceman whom the Blue Jackets selected in 2022, Svozil had 78 points in 56 games with the Regina Pats this year. Svozil is a smart player who reads the play well and picks the right pass. He can do this in transition, moving the puck to create offensive opportunities. This is true whether it is a quick pass up the boards or a long breakaway pass. He can also skate the puck up the ice with strong stickhandling. He protects the puck well and generates successful zone entries. Svozil improved his shot power this past season but needs to continue to take strides there. He has excellent defensive ability for his age. His strong lateral movements allow him to maintain good gap control as well as force opponents to the outside.

6.) Jordan Dumais

Taken 96th overall in the 2022 NHL Draft, Dumais was one of the best offensive players in the QMJHL. He put up 140 points in 64 games for the Halifax Mooseheads and leading the QMJHL in scoring. He also finished just three points behind Connor Bedard for the CHL lead. Dumais is extremely smart. He reads the play well and anticipates where the puck is going in the offensive zone. He is also an outstanding playmaker, using his vision and passing skills to set up teammates with prime scoring chances. Dumais also has a good shot and a quick release. He is undersized though and lacks the dynamic skating ability that usually accompanies undersized players who succeed in the NHL.

7.) Corson Ceulemans

Drafted in the first round of the 2021 NHL Draft, Ceulemans combines good size with excellent skating ability. Ceulemans strong skating gives him the ability to play a two-way game. Good lateral mobility and backward skating should allow him to maintain good gap control. He is also willing to play a physical game. Ceulemans is an excellent playmaker. On the rush, he has excellent vision and passing skills, head-manning the puck quickly and creating offence with speed. He can avoid attackers on the forecheck and move the puck up the ice. Ceulemans uses his playmaking skills to create offensive chances for teammates. He is able to protect the puck and control it at the blue line, allowing teammates to get open. Ceulemans good lateral movement allows him to move laterally opening up passing and shooting lanes.

8.) Luca Del Bel Belluz

A 2022 second-round pick, Del Bel Belluz can be a playmaker as well as a goal scorer. He has very good hands. He combines this with his ability to move laterally and make quick cuts, creating space in the offensive zone. A smart player, he takes advantage of the shooting and passing lanes he creates. Del Bel Belluz can also hesitate and slow down the play, waiting for a teammate to get open. He then makes a quick move on a defender and a tape-to-tape pass to set up a scoring chance. He is especially effective at quarterbacking the play from the half-wall/face-off circle on the power play. His wrist shot is powerful and accurate. He also uses those quick hands to change the angle of his shot just before his release. Del Bel Belluz can also score when working off the half-boards.

9.) Dmitri Voronkov

Voronkov plays a power forward’s game. He gets to the dirty areas of the ice, both with and without the puck. Voronkov drives the net and creates havoc in front of the goalie. He has the hands and skills to score in tight, with quick hands and the ability to elevate the puck into tight spaces. Voronkov also has the hand-eye coordination to pounce on rebounds and get deflections. He also has a good shot and decent release to score from further out. Voronkov is a decent passer as well. He finds the open man and keeps the puck moving in the cycle game. He loves to work the give-and-go, making a short pass to a teammate and then finding open ice.

10.) Daniil Tarasov

The Blue Jackets goalie of the future split time between the AHL and NHL this season. At 6-foot-5, Tarasov has excellent size. He takes up a ton of net and gives shooters little room to shoot at. He takes advantage of this by getting far out of his net to cut down angles. With his strong backwards movement, he is able to get back to his net and avoid being deked when cutting down those angles. He also has a strong lateral push and gets side-to-side quickly. Tarasov is also very athletic. When he does get caught out of position he can recover quickly and make highlight-reel saves. When down in his butterfly, Tarasov’s long and powerful legs take away the bottom of the net effectively.

HM (4th round or Later): James Malatesta

Malatesta is an undersized forward but he does not play like one. He is extremely fast, aggressive, and physical. Malatesta would rather skate through his opponents than around them. He goes hard to the net both with and without the puck. Malatesta has a very good arsenal of shots. He has an excellent wrist shot as well as a very good slapshot. Malatesta’s wrist shot is powerful and he has very good accuracy.  He also has the quick hands to change the angle on his shot just before releasing it. His slapshot is powerful as well. He gets off an effective one-timer. Malatesta quickly adjusts his feet to get his shot off even if the pass isn’t perfect.

Blue Jackets Prospects – In the system

The Blue Jackets have a deep system full of excellent prospects. A couple of tough seasons have led to the accumulation of Blue Jackets picks and prospects in recent years. This has helped them to build up their system after going “all-in” at the 2019 trade deadline.  The rebuild is well underway and Columbus should climb back up the standings if they can stay healthy. Other players worth mentioning include Guillaume Richard, Mikael Pyyhtia, Hunter McKown, Kirill Dolzhenkov, William Whitelaw, Luca Pinelli, Cameron Butler, and Aidan Hreschuk.