5. Columbus Blue Jackets – 86.2 Overall

Top 15 Prospects

Individual Breakdown:

We have arrived at the top five and the Columbus Blue Jackets occupy this spot. They pretty much have it all, a top line forward (Fantilli), top pairing defender (Jiricek), and starting goaltender (Tarasov). What’s not to like? I suppose you could quibble with just how elite each of those pieces will be or how certain they are to hit, but just about any other team is envious of this prospect pool.

If future top pair Jiricek isn’t enough, they also have Denton Mateychuk, who is currently leading the OHL in scoring as a defenseman. If he’s not a top pair defender, he might be one of the better middle pairing defensemen in the league if it all translates. There are also Stanislav Svozil, Corson Ceulemans, and to a lesser extent Andrew Strathmann and Jake Christiansen on the back end. The defense seems to be in good hands.

Gavin Brindley and Jordan Dumais both have small guy problems, but could hit big if they are able to channel their inner Johnny Gaudreau and figure out how to thrive in the NHL. Though lower in the ranks, we’ve already seen Dmitri Voronkov in the NHL and perhaps Peter and Ben didn’t rank him because of his NHL success to date.

Of note, I am extremely high on Sergei Ivanov, and by the looks of it, the only one. Both Aaron and Ben ranked him, but much lower. Sure, he’s only 5-foot-11, but he’s already playing in the KHL and has a .928 save percentage in 33 games for Admiral Vladivostok. The team is not very good, but he is outperforming his expected goals by a wide margin. He could be worth a flier in your leagues.

Team Breakdown:

The Blue Jackets have all the pieces to crawl their way out of the cellar, but haven’t been able to. The hiring mishap with Mike Babcock didn’t help. This season, they also parted ways with Jarmo Kekalainen after 11 years. It seems the team needs a new direction and the hope is that John Davidson can provide that. If he can, they seem like a team that could be close to competing for a playoff spot.

One of the issues with a prospect pool this deep is that there will not be room for everyone. As always in these situations, the cream rises to the top. I can’t see any issues with Fantill, Jiricek, and even Mateychuk, but the rest might be in direct competition with each other and it’s hard to say who will win. Some of the lower prospects on this list might leapfrog others. It will be fascinating to watch.