Players who play and live in Columbus have grown to understand that it's a very underrated city. Columbusites have always known this and will defend Columbus tooth and nail. But now it seems the stigma of 6 years ago may finally be wearing off. First Johnny Gaudreau, then Sean Monahan, who's next? Stay tuned this summer for that answer. 

But it's not just players who sign here, it's also free agents who have expressed an interest in staying. In this case, it's Ivan Provorov. 

Both Ivan Provorov and Don Waddell have said publicly that they would like to get a deal done this summer, so the sturdy defenseman can stay in Columbus long-term. Contract experts put his next deal at 7-years, and $7 million per season, which is a slight raise from the contract that's expiring. Seems like a no-brainer for the Blue Jackets. 

Ivan's wife, Madison, appeared on the Breaking The Ice Podcast in May to discuss a variety of topics. Other than their dog Drake, who, let's be honest, is always the hot topic of conversation, the thing they talked about, which should be of interest to CBJ fans, is the way she talked about Columbus and whether or not they want to stay here. 

The host asked Madison if she hoped to stay in Columbus, to which she responded, "Sadly, I think Columbus has a type of bad rap in terms of there's nothing out here, and who would want to come move out to Ohio. Especially coming from growing up in New Jersey, and being next to New York, and then living in Philly, I don't know how long I was there, at least 5 or 6 years too. So, it's definitely different being landlocked, but we loved it so much coming here. It's so easy to live here. There's no traffic. They play downtown, which is 20, 25 minutes from our house. I think our organization is really great! In terms of that, I don't want to go anywhere else. I think anyone's gonna say they love to be in the warm weather. I mean, Drake loves to go swimming, so it would be a bonus for him, too. But, no, we're super happy here and have plenty of time in the off-season to enjoy their warmer weather. So, we'd love to sign here." 

It sure does sound like Provorov and the Blue Jackets want to get that deal done this summer. Most players significant others don't make their plans public, so this is definitely something positive for both the CBJ and Provorov. 

You can listen to the full podcast below.

Hockey Life, IVF and Drake the Pup Star with Madison Provorov Listen to your favorite podcasts online, in your browser. Discover the world's most powerful podcast player.

Of course, the star of the show is Drake, and you can follow him here.

Let us know below if you think the CBJ should re-sign Ivan Provorov. 

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