The Columbus Blue Jackets’ 2023-24 season did not turn out how they had hoped. Their 66-point 27-43-12 season put them in last place in the Metropolitan Division and 29th overall. The team was not able to break its four-season playoff drought, but this season showed some improvement compared to previous seasons.
While they did not make the playoffs, multiple young guns continued to sharpen their skills as players. In this post, Here, we’ll review a few of these young players who are looking to become pivotal pieces for the Blue Jackets in the future.
Kirill Marchenko
Kirill Marchenko, the 23-year-old winger from Barnaul, Russia, continued to prove that he deserves a place on the main roster this season, as he finished the season with a team-leading 23 goals and 19 assists for 42 in 78 games, breaking his personal goal record. Marchenko became quite familiar with creating new records, as he also set a new career high in assists and previously broke the Blue Jackets’ franchise record of the most goals by a rookie.
While he lead the team in goals, he still had his goalless streaks. He started the first seven games with no goals and had a nine-game goalless streak between February and March. He was able to double his shooting percentage from his rookie season and was only second behind Zach Werenski in shots. So, if Marchenko wants to keep his momentum up from the past two seasons and continue to improve, he needs to make sure he takes every opportunity that comes up.
Dmitri Voronkov
Dmitri Voronkov, the 23-year-old winger from Angarsk, Russia, had a fantastic rookie season, ending his season with 18 goals and 16 assists for 34 points in 75 games. He was fifth in the league for goals scored by a rookie. Voronkov also ended third in goals for the team, behind only Marchenko and Boone Jenner.
Related: Prospect Dmitri Voronkov Becoming a Beast for the Blue Jackets
Voronkov had a great season in regards to scoring and getting points. For the next season, he needs to work on his defense. Being a rookie, or just a player in general, who can pass and shoot well is a great thing, but being able to flip the switch and play defense is also necessary to keep opposing teams from scoring.
Yegor Chinakhov
Yegor Chinakhov had his best season with the Blue Jackets, despite suffering multiple injuries. The 23-year-old winger from Omsk, Russia, ended the season with 16 goals and 13 assists for 29 points in 53 games after signing a one-year $800,000 contract extension in April,…
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