The Blue Jackets’ handling (mishandling?) of rookie defenseman David Jiricek has raised eyebrows all season, and it reached a boiling point this week.
Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekäläinen and coach Pascal Vincent don’t believe that Jiricek is, at present, one of the club’s top six defensemen, which is why the 20-year-old has been sent back to AHL Cleveland for the fourth time this season.
But Jiricek, the No. 6 pick in the 2022 NHL draft, believes he’s
NHL-ready after spending last season in the AHL. That’s why the relationship has become strained, and it’s why Jiricek bears watching over the next few days and weeks.
“I played good hockey in the NHL,” Jiricek told
The Athletic Friday. “I’m an NHL player right now. That’s my opinion, that I should be in the NHL right now.
“I see guys from the same draft, like
Simon Nemec (in New Jersey) and (Kevin) Korchinski (in Chicago) … they get a chance on the power play. They play a ton of minutes in the NHL. Those are different teams, so different situations, but I can compare with them. I just want a chance to play like that.”
Jiricek last played an NHL game on Jan. 9 when the Blue Jackets lost 5-0 in Winnipeg. He played only 15:45 in that game, with two shots on goal, no points and an even rating. After that, he was scratched in three straight games before being sent back to Cleveland.
“They told me the last game was not good enough for me,” Jiricek said. “I told them I don’t think so, but that’s your opinion. I was out of the lineup after that. A whole month now, it feels like I haven’t played.”
Jiricek was recalled to Columbus last Sunday before the Jackets left on a five-game road trip, but he was a healthy scratch against
Edmonton on Tuesday and sent back to Cleveland before Thursday’s game in Calgary.
There was concern that Jiricek might consider not reporting to Cleveland, but he arrived on Friday and played for the Monsters on Saturday. What’s next, however, is unclear.
“It’s been most of the month without hockey, so I will play (Saturday),” Jiricek said after sitting out Friday’s game. “After that, we’ll see.”
The Blue Jackets, meanwhile, say they’re handling Jiricek as they would (and have) handled any other prospect, by making decisions that will benefit him in the long run.
“Our feeling has been that even if he doesn’t play in all of the roles he’s likely to play in the future, it’s best for his development to play against NHL players and practice against NHL players,” Kekäläinen said. “He’s already proved that he’s a very good player in that league.
“He does a lot of good things with the puck, but he’s got to learn to defend better. He needs to learn that on an NHL level, but if he’s not playing here, he needs to play in the American League because he needs to play.”
Jiricek’s skating is fine in straight lines and predictable bursts, but he doesn’t get his feet tangled when the play changes abruptly. That’s an issue in the defensive zone, especially against the NHL’s quicker and more agile players.
But it’s absolutely correctable, through repetition and experience.
Vincent, the first-year head coach, has opted to play
Andrew Peeke ahead of Jiricek in recent games. And even when Jiricek has played, Vincent has sheltered him severely. He’s averaged only 14:47 per game. That’s 19th among NHL rookie defensemen who’ve played in 10 or more games this season.
In 36 games, Jiricek has 1-8-9 and a minus-1 rating.
“We see huge potential,” Vincent said. “This young man has to play minutes. He has to be put on the ice. He has to be on the power play. He has to play at the end of each period. He’s got tremendous skills, just skills that are hard to teach.
“Having said that, we’re trying to build a 200-foot defenseman, an elite defenseman who will play heavy minutes against top opponents. In order to do that, he needs reps. For him to develop those skills, the best way to do it right now — having been in the NHL for 36 games — this (the AHL) is the best route for him.”
When Jiricek was with the Blue Jackets, he did special session work with skating coach Lee Harris as well as video work with assistant coaches Steve McCarthy and Josef Boumedienne. “So even when he wasn’t playing here, time wasn’t wasted,” Kekäläinen said.
The Blue Jackets “have had a plan for Jiricek right from the start of the season,” Kekäläinen said, but there have been mixed signals along the way.
Jiricek was sent to AHL Cleveland at the end of training camp but was recalled to Columbus after the season opener. In November, he was pulled aside by Kekäläinen and told to “get a place” in Columbus, which is always a big moment for a young player.
Less than a week later, however, Jiricek was sent back to the AHL to play for a weekend before he was quickly recalled to Columbus.
It appeared that the same path was being followed earlier this month when Jiricek was sent to Cleveland after his three healthy scratches in Columbus. But after flying with the club to Edmonton for the start of their road trip, he was again a healthy scratch.
“In November, I started looking for an apartment in Columbus,” Jiricek said. “The dream was coming true.”
Now he’s living in a Cleveland hotel while his Columbus apartment sits empty, he said.
“The guys here in Cleveland are awesome. The coaches are awesome,” Jiricek said. “It’s fun to be here now, because there’s a lot of winning. There’s a good energy. But still … this is not what I want, right?”
The Blue Jackets have not said how long they plan to keep Jiricek in Cleveland. That’s hard to predict with injuries, of course.
But Vincent and Kekäläinen both made it sound like it could be a while, perhaps through the end of the season. And Kekäläinen made it clear to Jiricek, he said, that he would join AHL Cleveland for their playoff push after the Blue Jackets’ regular season ends.
“Who knows how long it’s going to be?” Vincent said. “I think he needs a little bit of stability. The good thing about it is he’s going to a good team. They’re winning. They’re aspiring. They’re going to make the (AHL) playoffs and hopefully have a long run in the playoffs. I don’t see a downside to it, myself.”
As for Jiricek’s impatience toward starting his NHL career, Vincent said he gets it. He actually likes it, too.
“I told him, don’t lose that,” Vincent said. “We want that from you. That part of his game, his confidence, is a reflection of how he plays. He has some swagger about him.
“I get it. My daughter wants her own car. She’s 13 years old. It’s the Amazon effect. Everybody wants it now.”
If Jiricek dominates in the AHL, Kekäläinen said, a recall would only make sense. But the Blue Jackets, after Tuesday’s game in St, Louis, don’t play again until Feb. 10. The trade deadline is still six weeks away.
Kekäläinen said he has no problem “putting players on waivers” to clear a spot for Jiricek if he deserves it.
“Hopefully, a month from now, he’s playing so good that we just can’t keep him out of our lineup,” Kekäläinen said.
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