Blue Jackets Sign Jack Williams To Two-Year Deal

According to the team over at PuckPedia, the Columbus Blue Jackets have signed depth forward Jack Williams to a two-year, $1.75MM ($875K AAV) contract through the 2027-28 season. It’ll be a two-way contract for both years of the deal.

Williams, 24, was expected to become a restricted free agent in a few days. The Biddeford, ME native spent three years with the NCAA’s Northeastern University before signing with the Blue Jackets toward the end of the 2024-25 campaign. He finished his time with the Huskies scoring 39 goals and 94 points in 106 games with a +11 rating.

Despite debuting for Columbus after he signed his entry-level contract, Williams spent the entire 2025-26 campaign with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters. He made a fairly seamless jump to the professional ranks, scoring 15 goals and 38 points in 72 games with a net-zero rating.

He certainly wasn’t the highest-scoring player on the team, nor was he the highest-scoring rookie, but Williams offered quality secondary scoring almost immediately. He may not become that at the NHL level, but Williams has at least shown he’s ready for competitive hockey in the professional circuit.

At this point, it’s hard to see Williams earning a spot over any of Columbus’ other options for their bottom-six, but he could become an in-season injury replacement should he continue producing well with Cleveland. However, even if he does that, there are others above him on the team’s depth chart, and Williams will likely need another full season in the AHL before he’s truly ready for NHL minutes.