How the Blue Jackets Helped Fantilli, Sillinger Make the Jump to the NHL

Hockey tradition dictates that during NHL All-Star Weekend, players should decamp to sunny destinations to relax on the beach, swing the clubs or, in the case of Alex Ovechkin, ride a camel.

Midway through his first NHL season, 19-year-old Adam Fantilli said he planned to stay closer to home. His older brother and former teammate, Luca, who’s now a sophomore at the University of Michigan, was headed to Columbus for a pair of games against archrival Ohio State. 

“That’s, like, two minutes from my house,” Fantilli said. “Hopefully, I can get my brother and a few other guys to stay the Saturday night with me so we can hang out a little bit. I never really get to see the guys anymore, so hopefully, the coach allows that.”

He has the space to host. After being selected third overall by the Blue Jackets last June, Fantilli briefly roomed with Patrik Laine when he first arrived in Columbus, then moved into his own two-bedroom suite in the same building.

One of just four players from the 2023 draft class to have made the jump straight to the NHL – along with Chicago’s Connor Bedard, Anaheim’s Leo Carlsson and Buffalo’s Zach Benson – Fantilli is happy to be living on his own but appreciates his parents making regular trips down from southern Ontario.

A generation ago, Rick Nash went through a similar experience when he was drafted first overall by Columbus in 2002. 

“That was almost the tougher part of moving to a new city and a new country as an 18-year-old to play hockey,” Nash said.

Nash subleased his first apartment from a teammate who ended up being unexpectedly assigned to the AHL. And his family was there for him. Every weekend, his parents made the seven-hour drive from Toronto down to Columbus to support Nash as he made the adjustment to living alone.

After Sidney Crosby moved in with Pittsburgh Penguins co-owner Mario Lemieux in the fall of 2005, the mindset around rookie accommodations started to change, especially for young players coming straight out of the draft.

Now the Jackets’ director of player development, Nash is sensitive to the off-ice challenges prospects face. 

“We try to help our young guys and see if we can get them to live with a family in the area or a teammate or one of the staff,” he said. “Just so they have some help.”

In 2021-22, 18-year-old Cole Sillinger was the youngest player in the NHL after being drafted 12th overall by the Blue Jackets. He had a leg up on most of his peers when it came to acclimation. His father, Mike Sillinger, played more than 1,000 NHL games for 12 different teams. Mike’s two seasons in Columbus overlapped with Nash’s rookie year, and Cole was born there in May 2003.

After the Sillingers moved on, they maintained connections in the Columbus community. When Cole returned to start his pro career, family friends took him in. Now 20 and in his third NHL season, he’s still there. 

“It’s super fun, and it makes life easier, just hanging out,” he said. “You still have the opportunity to kind of be a kid when you want. I’ve learned a lot from the people that I stay with.”

Even after he made the Blue Jackets’ opening-night roster, Sillinger was unsure if he’d stick at the NHL level. He became the only member of his draft class to log a full season, with 16 goals and 31 points in 79 games. Sillinger’s development dipped in his second year. This season, though, his ice time has increased by more than two minutes a game. He’s playing in all situations, centering the Blue Jackets’ first line and logging big minutes on the penalty kill. 

“I feel like I’ve taken that step ahead in that 200-foot game,” he said.

This is an excerpt from Carol Schram's feature in The Hockey News' Future Watch edition, which broke down the Blue Jackets' philosophy about helping elite young prospects transition to the NHL. 

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