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Artemi Panarin of the New York Rangers celebrates after scoring the game-winning goal during overtime in Game Three of the Second Round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs (Photo by Josh Lavallee/NHLI via Getty Images)

Blue Jackets Reuniting With Artemi Panarin Makes Sense

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Wesley Minke | Last updated Jan 17, 2026 10:25 AM ET

The Blue Jackets have gone through this song and dance before with the potential ability to go for it at the trade deadline, and so often we have seen Columbus pull back the reins and sit back for another season.

However, this season, general manager Don Waddell and newly acquired head coach Rick Bowness seem primed to try and make this a one-year-wonder type of season for the Blue Jackets.

Bowness has talked about how good this team really is and how much he wants to give them a chance to really compete this season.

You have to wonder if just a few more additions could bring that chance some real life.

Why Panarin Should Come Back

I think Columbus has a very real argument to try to be a part of the discussions with New York Rangers general manager Chris Drury for star forward Artemi Panarin. The Blue Jackets will have the salary cap space to try and make it happen, with roughly $19 million in cap space on the current roster, according to PuckPedia.

Panarin also makes sense because he fills a huge immediate need for the Blue Jackets: more top-six scoring. Their top scorer right now is defenseman Zach Werenski, who, in his own right, deserves definite hype for the Norris Trophy, but the forwards for Columbus just haven’t produced enough.

Panarin would come to Columbus and immediately solidify a top-line spot, and comes in tied with Werenski in the points race with 51 points. The Blue Jackets have not had a point-per-game forward since Panarin left Columbus in 2019. Panarin has done it every season since 2017.

The Blue Jackets badly need a shot of life and a top-end player on offense to elevate this team, and Panarin fits the bill. Just two seasons ago, he had 120 points with 49 goals and 71 assists, and at 34 years old, Panarin is in the back end of his prime years.

This would be a big splash for Waddell and Bowness, and one that could show the fans in Columbus that they are for real.

Why Panarin Will Likely Land Elsewhere

It is going to be tough to convince Panarin to leave New York, the current last-place team in the Eastern Conference, for the team just one spot ahead of them in the standings. He will have his pick of the litter for whatever trade he would like, considering his full no-movement clause.

Panarin is one of the premier talents in the league, and leaving a market like New York is going to require him to head somewhere with status that is close to it.

Also, don’t forget, the reason that Panarin left Columbus the first time was that he wanted an extension that Columbus couldn’t afford, to be in the spotlight of a big market, and to chase a Stanley Cup. Now with the Rangers essentially out of the Cup race, and Drury conceding the season, Panarin will likely want to chase it elsewhere.

A Message from Chris Drury to Our Fans pic.twitter.com/JVimBJ59B7
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 16, 2026

It may seem to some as a long shot in the odds, but the Blue Jackets could land their former star. Don’t rule out a possible reunion until he is headed elsewhere.

Waddell has wanted to make a splash, and here is his chance. Give the man they call “Bones” a chance to chase a Cup with some big-time pieces and a team hungry to prove who they are.