Training camp is nearly upon us.
It's a time for prospects, lesser-known players, and even veterans to establish themselves and stand out a little bit. Cole Sillinger used last year's camp and preseason to make an impression and he enjoyed a full rookie season in the NHL.
Who might be the players to stand out this year?
Joona Luoto signed with the Blue Jackets on a one-year, two-way deal in June. Having primarily played with Tappara of Liiga, Luoto has brief NHL experience with the Winnipeg Jets in 2019-20 and Manitoba Moose of the AHL in parts of 2019-20 and 2020-21.
The hands are soft and the deflection is sweet, Joona Luoto. pic.twitter.com/5y7ixJizrw
— NHL (@NHL) September 23, 2019
Luoto is among those players likely to start out with the Cleveland Monsters but could he shine early or earn an extended look in the NHL?
He showed his scoring promise in the playoffs for Tappara, when he led the team with 17 points and co-led the team with eight goals and nine assists en route to winning the Jarri Kurri Award for being the top playoff performer.
There's certainly the Finnish connection between Luoto, Jarmo Kekalainen, and Patrik Laine so perhaps a gem was unearthed for the Blue Jackets.
Liam Foudy is a tricky one because he's a player with something to prove. Yet as Dan Dukart mentioned, Foudy is no longer waivers exempt so the team risks losing him for nothing if they try stashing him in Cleveland. The top six is essentially set in stone for the Blue Jackets, and Foudy represents a number of former top prospects still looking to stick with the big club, yet probably doesn't identify as a bottom-six player for the team long term.
It's similar to Emil Bemstrom, who Kekalainen expressed faith in, both with a two-year one-way contract and then verbally, referencing how they see him as a part of the club for the future. You get the sense Bemstrom is probably on the opening night roster based on all this, especially since the nature of the one-way contract means the team also risks losing him for nothing on waivers.
This also brings to mind Alexandre Texier.
Darryl Belfry is a leading expert in uncovering new pathways of performance excellence for hockey players, having worked with players including Sidney Crosby, Auston Matthews, Nathan MacKinnon, and more.
On his podcast, Belfry Hockey Podcast, he had an episode on Texier, identifying the strong areas of Texier's game like penalty killing, and then the ways in which he can improve his game at the NHL level such as skating and forechecking.
ALEXANDRE TEXIER, HE DID IT AGAIN. pic.twitter.com/2WgcGzPJJs
— NHL (@NHL) December 31, 2021
Now we've mentioned quite a few times that Texier was in the middle of having one of his better seasons for the Blue Jackets last season before his leave of absence from the team. It's fair to wonder how a full season would have played out had he been in Columbus all season.
Belfry talks about Texier's upside but identifies Texier's risk of potentially being a tweener. What can he do on a consistent basis to justify a top-six role? And his play doesn't identify him as a bottom-six player for the Blue Jackets.
That feels like the common issue for some of these players as they all look to establish themselves as being more than just part-time contributors for the Blue Jackets and more than just tweeners on bottom-six minutes.
Perhaps Tyler Angle is one to make his NHL debut in 2022-23.
TYLER ANGLE JUST HIT THE MICHIGAN #CBJ
— CBJ Center (@CBJcenter) January 19, 2022
pic.twitter.com/ruKe4SpWjd
Angle has bided his time with the Monsters in recent years, leading forwards and finishing second on the team with 37 points and second with 26 assists last season to go with 11 goals. Angle was a seventh-round pick in 2019 and is still just 21 years old so time certainly feels like it's more on his side.
On Monday, Ed Francis looked at Kirill Marchenko, and given the potential impact Marchenko looks to make on the team this season, that will also make it that much tougher for players who have had opportunities before to make an impact of their own with the club going forward.
Without knowing the expected line combos, you can still paint a picture of what's solidified and how many spots players are vying for.
| Johnny Gaudreau | Boone Jenner | Patrik Laine |
| Kent Johnson | Jack Roslovic | Jake Voracek |
| Alexandre Texier | Cole Sillinger | Gus Nyquist |
| Eric Robinson | Sean Kuraly | Yegor Chinakhov |
| Zach Werenski | Andrew Peeke |
| Vladislav Gavrikov | Adam Boqvist |
| Andrew Peeke | Nick Blankenburg |
This doesn’t even include Bemstrom, Marchenko, and even Justin Danforth who carved out a role last season. You can add Trey Fix-Wolansky and Carson Meyer to the mix of those looking to extend the cups of coffee they had with the team last season and new names on the way soon like Mikael Pyyhtia, Dmitry Voronkov, and many more.
Like any year with any team, injuries will be a factor as well as slumps and players in Cleveland playing well.
The depth of the Blue Jackets was tested last year culminating in a franchise-tying high 10 rookies making their debuts with the club last season.
We'll see how everything shakes out and which players could become long-term contributors.
