By Connor Moriarty
The Jackets made their biggest in season splash since GM Moriarty took over, acquiring stud D Jaccob Slavin. With his eyes on a strong playoff run, GM Moriarty decided it was time to move some prospects and futures to help this team in their window while also securing one of the best defensive defensemen in the league for the next 2+ seasons.
Cole Sillinger, Zachary L'Heureux, Mackie Samoskevich, Isiah Saville, Ben Lovejoy and CBJ 1st were all moved for Slavin, signaling the cup aspirations for GM Moriarty.
"As most GMs know, I've been tough to deal with when it came to futures and prospects but this was the first time I've truly opened up the chest and its because I believe in this team and what we can accomplish. I also see our youth that stepped up this year and confident in their future, especially Fabian Lysell who continues to impress alongside Hischier on the top line."
Lysell has 42 points in 43 games and has been on a hot streak with 8 points in his last 4 games as he continues to show he belongs on the big club. Matthew Tkachuk is currently tied with Lysell for points lead on the team with Hischier rounding out the top 3.
"We continue to get production from top to bottom of the lineup, and on the backend where Dahlin, Schneider and Sanheim all have more than 21 points on the season. We expect Slavin to contribute on the offensive side of the puck, as we know he has the skillset but most importantly he will be 1/2 of a formidable top pairing D alongside Dahlin.
Columbus has Friday off where Slavin will look to recover from a minor elbow injury.
11/2/2023 - 288 words
