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The Columbus Blue Jackets are making a move to shore up their roster ahead of the 2025-26 season. Columbus signed a one-year deal with defenseman Daemon Hunt, per NHL.com. He is the last restricted free agent the club had to sign, after getting acquired in a trade.
“Daemon Hunt is a good, young two-way defenseman that plays a smart and controlled game,” Columbus general manager Don Waddell said, per the official release. “His signing provides us important additional organizational depth on our blue line.”
Hunt has played in 13 total NHL games for the Minnesota Wild. Hunt was traded to Columbus from Minnesota. He has just one assist in his short career in the league. Hunt also appeared in just one game during the 2024-25 campaign.
Hunt has excelled in the AHL, though, playing for the Iowa Wild and Cleveland Monsters. The defenseman has posted eight goals and 51 assists in 173 career AHL games over four campaigns, per NHL.com. He has also posted 224 shots on goal during that period.
Hunt was selected in the third round of the 2020 NHL Draft by the Wild. He is coming off his three-year, entry-level contract. That deal had a league average annual value of $902,500. Hunt also had a minor-league salary of $80,000.
Blue Jackets hoping to make a push in Eastern Conference
The Blue Jackets haven't had much success as an NHL franchise. Columbus has yet to make a Stanley Cup Final. The club finished the 2024-25 season with 40 victories, missing the NHL playoffs despite exceeding expectations overall.
Columbus did finish the year having won seven of their final 10 games, however. The Blue Jackets were also on a six-game winning streak to end the campaign. The squad needed some help on defense, and the hope is that Hunt can make an impact in a bottom-pairing role. The team finished plus-five in goal differential this past season, after allowing 268 total goals on the year.
Blue Jackets fans are hoping that the roster can stay competitive in 2025-26, and ideally, make a run at one of the final eight playoff spots in the Eastern Conference.
