Report: Blue Jackets listening to offers on 2022 first-rounder Jiricek
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The Columbus Blue Jackets are listening to trade offers for 2022 first-round pick David Jiricek, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports.
Portzline adds that Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell is not in a hurry to trade the defenceman and has yet to receive a formal offer. Portzline believes the Blue Jackets will be looking for another former high draft pick back in a deal for Jiricek, pointing to Flyers' return for Cutter Gauthier last year and the Winnipeg Jets' return for Rutger McGroarty in the summer as potential templates.
Jiricek was sent to the AHL last week after posting has one assist in six games with the Blue Jackets to start the season, while often serving as a healthy scratch. He has one goal and one assist in two games since joining the Cleveland Monsters.
Selected sixth overall in the 2022 draft, Jiricek appeared in 43 games with the Blue Jackets last season, posting one goal and 10 points. He went without a point in four games with the team in 2022-23.
The 20-year-old blueliner was given a B grade in TSN's Core 4 U-24 Ranking last week, coming in at the Blue Jackets' seventh-best under-24 player, behind Adam Fantilli, Cayden Lindstrom, Denton Mateychuk, Kent Johnson, Yegor Chinakhov, Luca Marrelli.
The Blue Jackets have started the season 9-9-2, sitting three points back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with two games in hand on the Boston Bruins. The team has missed the playoffs in each of the past four seasons.