The Columbus Blue Jackets and GM Don Waddell need to get center Adam Fantilli signed, but with the threat of an offer sheet out there, can they do it without having to match another team's offer?
With the Philadelphia Flyers creating a firestorm last week when they gave an offer sheet to Leo Carlsson, CBJ fans everywhere have been speculating what the Blue Jackets would do if confronted with having to match an offer sheet from another team. Many Flyers fans, and even us at THN, have wondered if the Flyers would look towards Columbus if Leo Carlsson was off the table.
If the CBJ and Adam Fantilli were presented with an offer sheet, should the Blue Jackets match any offer given? The answer should be a resounding YES!
And to be quite honest, the price of the offer shouldn't matter.
Many fans and the media have wondered whether the price is too high and at what point the CBJ should just let Fantilli walk and take the four first-round picks.
In my opinion, the CBJ should sign him no matter what. If they consider him the future of this franchise, then they must match ANY offer that comes in. Whether it be $15, 18, or even $20 million, they must match to prove that they're willing to do anything to win.
People complain constantly that the Blue Jackets are not aggressive enough, and they're probably right. But if you want to kill that notion, then you match any offer sheet that comes in, even if that means you need to make changes to the roster to make it work.
The four first-round picks would most likely be in the 15-20 range anyway, which is where they've been picking the last few years. Sure, they could flip those, but if the last two drafts have been any indication, it's hard to flip those mid-first-round picks for anything that matters.
The hope is that Adam Fantilli really wants to be in Columbus and wouldn't sign an offer sheet sent his way. We don't really know how negotiations between Fantilli and the CBJ are going, but there's no doubt in anyone's mind that the Carlsson offer sheet threw a huge wrench into them.
Fantilli and Carlsson have similar numbers, and both are projected to be long-term top line centers in the NHL, so with Carlsson set to be the highest paid player in the league soon, would Fantilli want the same?
$18 million per season is a shock to many fans who are not used to seeing these types of numbers in the NHL, but get used to it, because with the rising cap, and teams having to spend it, these salaries are going to start skyrocketing.
Someone on the Blue Jackets is going to cross the $10-15 million mark in the next few years. Whether it's Fantilli this season or Zach Werenski in two years, the CBJ's next big salary is going to blow some people away.
Is Fantilli worth it? I think so, and I'm sure he thinks so too. But do the Columbus Blue Jackets think he is? I guess we'll find out soon enough.
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