The Columbus Blue Jackets have high hopes for the 2025-26 campaign. This is coming off a surprising 2024-25 season, which was led by defenseman Zach Werenski. Werenski was the X-factor last year as the Blue Jackets missed the playoffs by just two points. This year, there will be a new X-factor in Columbus.
Werenski has become one of the best blue-liners in the NHL this year. He was the No. 8 overall pick of the team in the 2015 NHL Draft. He immediately started making an impact. In 2016-17, the defender played in 78 games as a rookie, scoring 11 times and adding 36 assists. The American scored 40 or more points in four of his next six seasons.
He took another step up in his play in 2023-24, lighting the lamp 11 times and adding 46 assists for a career-high 57 points. Then last season, he was unstoppable. Werenski found the back of the net 23 times while adding 59 helpers, both career highs. His 82 points also led the team. Now a new player will join him in making a massive impact on the team.
Jet Greaves could play a major role for Blue Jackets
With the Blue Jackets trading away Daniil Tarasov in the offseason, Jet Greaves is going to get a chance to prove his worth to the franchise. Greaves is primed for a breakout season. He was solid in his 11 starts in 2024-25. The netminder went 7-2-2 with a 1.91 goals against average and a .938 save percentage. For his career, he has a 2.62 goals against average and a .924 save percentage. Now he will be the backup goaltender to start the season.
Meanwhile, Elvis Merzlikins has struggled in goal in recent years. In 2023-24, he held a .897 save percentage with a 3.45 goals against average. Last season was just as bad for the Latvian goaltender. While he went 26-21-5, he had a 3.18 goals against average and an .892 save percentage. If Merzlikins cannot perform to the level the team needs, Greaves could be given the chance to start. When he gets that chance, he will perform. Still, he is not the X-factor for the Jackets this year.
Adam Fantilli is the X-factor this year
Last season, multiple players made huge strides for the team. Kent Johnson had scored just 59 total points in his career before this season. That was 22 goals and 37 assists in 130 games. In 2024-25, he beat the goaltender 24 times while adding 33 assists, good for 57 total points in just 68 games.
Kirill Marchenko is also coming off a career year. He set career highs in goals, assists, and points. He chipped in 31 goals while adding 43 assists, sitting second on the team in points with 74. For as much as these two did last season, it is Adam Fantilli who is the X-factor for the Blue Jackets.
Fantilli is projected to be the second-line center, joining Boone Jenner and Yegor Chinakhov. The Canadian was the third overall pick of the 2023 NHL Draft by the franchise. After spending a year at the University of Michigan, he played in 49 games with the team as a rookie, scoring 12 goals and handing out 15 assists.
He started his breakout in 2024-25. The former first-round pick played in all 82 games, scoring 31 times with 23 assists, good for 54 total points. His advanced statistics also took a major jump. His shooting percentage was nearly seven points higher than in his rookie season. Furthermore, high-danger scoring chances created and expected goals rate both took massive steps.
The center has shown to be a potent scorer in his NHL career. In his time in the USHL, he was phenomenal. He amassed 110 points in 103 games over two seasons, good for 1.07 points per game. He was even better at the University of Michigan. In just 36 games, he scored 30 times while adding 35 helpers. That was good for 1.81 points per game. His first NHL season saw Fantilli score .55 points per game, but that improved in 2024-25. He improved to .66 points per game.
If the forward jumps another .11 points per game, that places him on pace for 63 points in the regular season. A total of 63 points would have placed him third on the team in points in 2024-25.
Last year, three players took massive steps forward, led by Werenski. This took the team from eighth place in the Metropolitan Division to finishing fourth and nearly making the playoffs for the first time since 2019-20.
Another player making a jump will put them over the edge and into the playoffs in 2025-26. With a Fantilli becoming the X-Factor for the Blue Jackets, the team will have two solid lines of scoring options. Combining that with a potent top line and production from the blue line, the Jackets will be playing playoff hockey this year.
