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Blue Jackets trade Oliver Bjorkstrand to Kraken for draft picks
Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Oliver Bjorkstrand Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports

Blue Jackets trade F Oliver Bjorkstrand to Kraken for two draft picks

The Columbus Blue Jackets have traded forward Oliver Bjorkstrand to the Seattle Kraken for 2023 third and fourth-round draft picks, the team announced on Friday. 

The move comes just hours after the Blue Jackets locked up all-star forward Patrik Laine to a four-year, $34.8 million deal. 

Columbus will save $5.25 million in cap space with the trade. 

Bjorkstrand has four years remaining on a five-year, $27 million contract

The 27-year-old finished with career highs in goals (28), assists (29), and points (57) in 80 regular-season games for the Blue Jackets last season. 

A third-round pick by the Blue Jackets in 2013, Bjorkstrand made his NHL debut in 2015-16. 

Over seven seasons in Columbus, Bjorkstrand posted 234 points (111 goals, 123 assists) in 382 games. 

After missing the playoffs last season for the seventh-straight year, the Blue Jackets have been one of the more active teams this offseason. 

On top of retaining Laine, Columbus shocked the hockey world by inking all-star Johnny Gaudreau to a seven-year, $68.25 million deal earlier this month. 

Mike Santa Barbara

Mike Santa Barbara is a Wilmington, Delaware native (Yes, it's a real place) with over a decade of sports writing experience. A diehard Philadelphia sports fan, he has two dogs named after Flyers and cried real tears when the Eagles won Super Bowl LII. You can follow him on Twitter at @mike__sb

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