Jackets did Bjorkstrand dirty by trading him when they did. Here's why.
The life of an NHL player is one that most of us dream of, the money, the fame, playing hockey every single day, its a great life. There is a flip side though, being an NHL player without a full no trade clause means that you can be traded to anyone at any time. Its not often an NHL player has complete control over where they play. When Johnny Gaudreau had the opportunity, he chose to sign in Columbus, unfortunately, thanks to the NHL's salary cap, that meant the end of Oliver Bjorkstrand's time with the Blue Jackets.
Bjorkstrand signed a 5 year extension with the Blue Jackets that started in the 2021-2022 season. Starting in 2022-23, he had negotiated a limited no trade clause that allowed him to submit a list of 10 teams he could not be traded to. Bjorkstrand was shocked to receive a call from Jackets GM Jarmo Kelalainen informing him of the trade. A shock made much worse by the timing of it. When the phone rang, Bjorkstrand was on his honeymoon, having just gotten married to his wife, Jill. The couple had also recently bought a house in Ohio.
Its clear that Bjorkstrand had planned to play out his contract in Columbus, and happily so. Its ironic that a "family decision" by Johnny Gaudreau will now uproot Bjorkstrand's family. Even more ironic, when Bjorkstrand signed his extension, shortly after the departure of both Sergei Bobrovsky and Artemi Panarin in free agency, the Jackets spent the next season using "Loyalty" as a marketing tagline.
Its no wonder players rarely take hometown discounts or put the team ahead of themselves during negotiations. The Bjorkstrand trade is a prime example of loyalty in the NHL being a one way street. If the Blue Jackets aren't careful, they'll end up in a similar situation to the Vegas Golden Knights, with players refusing to sign with them for fear of being traded without warning.
Bjorkstrand liked a tweet from NHL gaming personality and Blue Jackets fan, Nasher, criticizing the trade. In truth, the return of a 3rd and a 4th round pick was extremely underwhelming for a player of Bjorkstrand's caliber. Such is life in the salary cap era I suppose. One thing is for sure, when the puck drops next time the Jackets play the Kraken, I'll be watching.
