To be honest, the noise around two Columbus Blue Jackets superstars, Zach Werenski and Kirill Marchenko, is kind of getting out of hand. 

Yesterday, in what was supposed to be a pre-draft press conference, was high-jacked, and instead Don Waddell was forced to talk about the constant rumors surrounding Norris-winner Werenski, and leading goal scorer Marchenko. 

Today, we're not going to talk about Werenski, and instead talk about Kirill Marchenko. 

Yesterday, GM Don Waddell appeared on 97.1's Rothman & Ice Show and addressed the Kirill Marchenko "situation."

"I'll ask you point blank, is Marchenko available for the right deal?" asked host Anthony Rothman.

"I've gotten calls; I've not made any calls on Marchy. I've gotten calls, and my job as a GM is to listen to offers, and we've had a few that are not even close to what he means to our hockey club. He's an important player to us also, our leading goal scorer the last few years. If we have a chance to make our team better, we have to look at it. But, in his case, I think it's going to be fine. It would be hard for somebody to come up with something better than what he is. You can get a lot of pieces in deals like that, but when you trade the best player in the deal, you never win the deal." 

Sure sounds like he's keeping his leading goal scorer, and that everything else is just noise. 

During yesterday's press conference, Werenski was the topic of conversation, with little about Marchenko. So, hearing him talk about the Russian winger will make his fans happy. 

Also, yesterday, Dave Pagnotta of The Fourth Period put out a post on X saying that the Montreal Canadiens, and maybe some others, have been "curious" about Marchenko. Chances are, the Canadiens are one of those teams that made Waddell laugh at whatever they offered.

Other teams and fans around the league tend to undervalue players in Columbus, figuring they're willing to part with anyone for pennies on the dollar. 

The Blue Jackets traded for big Russian forward Val Nichushkin yesterday, too. This could be the perfect thing for a struggling Dmitri Voronkov. Getting the big man going has to be a top priority. It might not work, but it's worth a shot. 

Stay tuned, this summer is going to a wild one, potentially. 

Next Up For Columbus: The NHL Draft is on June 26 and 27 in Buffalo, where the CBJ will own pick #14.    

Stay updated with the most interesting Blue Jackets stories, analysis, breaking news, and more!

Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News and never miss a story.

Let us know what you think below.

For action-packed issues, access to the entire magazine archive and a free issue, subscribe to The Hockey News at THN.com/free. Get the latest news and trending stories by subscribing to our newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or creating your own post in our community forum.