{"id":356469,"date":"2026-06-26T02:00:57","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T20:30:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/?p=356469"},"modified":"2026-06-26T02:00:57","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T20:30:57","slug":"columbus-gm-addresses-zach-werenski-trade-buzz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/26\/columbus-gm-addresses-zach-werenski-trade-buzz\/","title":{"rendered":"Columbus GM addresses Zach Werenski trade buzz"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Columbus Blue Jackets superstar defenseman Zach Werenski is fresh off winning the Norris Trophy for the primary time in his profession \u2014 but speculation about his future in Ohio continues to grow.<\/p>\n

Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman reported earlier this week that the Blue Jackets plan to fulfill with Werenski after the draft to debate his future with the franchise.<\/p>\n

The Olympic gold medallist has two years remaining on his current contract and may sign an extension as soon as July 1, 2027.<\/p>\n

General manager Don Waddell addressed the trade speculation<\/a> ahead of the 2026 NHL Draft on Thursday.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are some matters we\u2019re coping with that ought to probably stay internal,\u201d Waddell said, per Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers. \u201cMy plan remains to be to fulfill with Zach within the near future and see where he\u2019s at. We\u2019ve had some conversations along with his agent, but there\u2019s been no definitive plan.\u201d<\/p>\n

Waddell’s comments represent the primary public response from the organization since reports surfaced suggesting some across the league imagine Werenski could eventually seek a change of scenery.<\/p>\n

The chief added: \u201cIt really doesn\u2019t affect the draft in any respect, obviously. We\u2019re still attempting to make some deals to make our team higher. Which will include (the) draft pick that now we have at 14. But our goal hasn\u2019t modified from when the season ended. We all know we would like to attempt to be higher and we\u2019re going to proceed to work that. It will play itself out in time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Waddell was later asked if he was surprised by how public Werenski’s potential future has change into.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou say surprised. I\u2019m never surprised when anything happens on this league. But it surely\u2019s something that now we have to take care of and we\u2019ll take care of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Waddell confirmed that there was no formal trade request from Werenski, although recent reports have raised questions on his long-term commitment to the franchise. The Blue Jackets have missed the playoffs in six consecutive campaigns and have won just two postseason series in franchise history.<\/p>\n

It is a critical point for Waddell and Columbus, who’ve hung across the last couple of years but have been unable to seek out a option to be considered one of the last eight standing within the Eastern Conference.<\/p>\n

Werenski has been the face of the franchise for much of the last decade. Losing the Norris Trophy winner can be a large setback for a Blue Jackets team that’s trying and failing to ascertain itself as a consistent playoff contender.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Columbus Blue Jackets superstar defenseman Zach Werenski is fresh off winning the Norris Trophy for the primary time in his profession — but speculation about his future in Ohio continues to grow. Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman reported earlier this week that the Blue Jackets plan to fulfill with Werenski after the draft to debate his future with the franchise.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Columbus Blue Jackets superstar defenseman Zach Werenski is fresh off winning the Norris Trophy for the primary time in his profession \u2014 but speculation about his future in Ohio continues to grow. Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman reported earlier this week that the Blue Jackets plan to fulfill with Werenski after the draft to debate his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":356470,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[338],"tags":[720,8776,2314,3838,51461,7238],"class_list":["post-356469","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","tag-addresses","tag-buzz","tag-columbus","tag-trade","tag-werenski","tag-zach"],"aioseo_notices":[{"message":"The permalink for this post just changed! This could result in 404 errors for your site visitors.","status":"warning","options":{"id":"0a2ae5f84bc2c0423042ed7ec22d2e40","isDismissible":true,"actions":[{"url":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/wp-admin\/admin.php?page=aioseo-redirects","label":"Add Redirect to improve SEO","class":"aioseo-redirects-slug-changed"}]},"allowedContexts":["posts"]}],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t