Plain and simple, the time is now for Sonny Milano to take the next step in his development and become a counted-upon player for the Columbus Blue Jackets.
This past season, Milano racked up 14-8-22 in 55 games. Extrapolated over 82 games, that's a 21-12-33 season, not all that dissimilar to that of captain Nick Foligno (15-18-33 in 72). To be fair, a fair amount of those missed games were due to a torn oblique and not a coaches decision, but he was a healthy scratch to begin the Stanley Cup playoffs. Those numbers are clearly NHL caliber, and he's talented enough to do perhaps the hardest thing there is to do in professional hockey: create offense.
Creating offense may be an understatement. Among qualifying players (those who played 15 or more games), only Auston Matthews and William Karlsson (ever heard of him?) had more even-strength goals/60 minutes. The below video shows how he can create a goal out of a completely innocuous play.
It's always in Columbus when Sonny Milano scores a goal. pic.twitter.com/Kecr7HzATm
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) February 27, 2018
But it's not his offense that's kept him from becoming a staple in John Tortorella's lineup. His inconsistent and unstructured game has been dissected for years, and this website has been vocal that he needs to play more and that his offensive upside outweighs his defensive lapses. But we're not Tortorella, and I completely understand why an NHL coach doesn't want to trade scoring chances.
The Blue Jackets have 15 forwards under NHL contracts for the upcoming season, to say nothing of a few prospects that could make noise at camp (Vitalii Abramov, Jonathan Davidsson come to mind, or even an AHL long-shot like Eric Robinson).
Corsica Hockey ranks Milano the 90th best left winger in the league, squarely an NHLer but far from elite. The 22-year-old is on the last year of his entry-level contract and is set to become a restricted free-agent (RFA) on July 1, 2019.
The question, then, becomes: where does Milano fit in the lineup?
Assuming the roster stays intact and the club enters the season with no new injuries (both are quite large assumptions), there will be two winger spots up for grabs. Artemi Panarin, Cam Atkinson, Josh Anderson, Nick Foligno, Boone Jenner, and Oliver Bjorkstrand all have homes on the team.
Two spots for: Anthony Duclair, Lukas Sedlak (I'm assuming Dubinsky is the 4C), Markus Hannikainen, Alex Broadhurst, and the aforementioned prospects looking to make the jump.
To me, Milano should absolutely not just make the team, but play higher in the lineup. The below tableau from CJ Turtoro shows that, in many ways, Milano and Foligno were comparable players a season ago.
If Panarin is traded, that would obviously open up a huge gap in the lineup, and regardless of return would allow Milano an opportunity to try to fill the void in offense.
An old coach of mine used to say that a player that can't play power play or penalty kill can't play 5-on-5 either. With Matt Calvert out of the picture, does Hannikainen have an inside track to replace him on the PK? Does that hurt Milano? Further, is Milano guaranteed a spot on the second power play unit? I would imagine so, but if the answer is no, then it could be an uphill battle for him.
If Milano fails to solidify his place in the lineup this season, the Blue Jackets may not see him in their long-term plans. Heading into a contract season, Milano should be more than motivated to ensure that he is.
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