Zach Werenski's latest comments on his future should excite Blue Jackets fans

Werenski acknowledged that because he isn’t yet eligible to put pen to paper on a new deal, questions about his commitment to a future with the Blue Jackets will “always be out there until an extension is signed.” He told Rosen that he’s “ready for that” and stressed that his focus is on returning the team to the playoffs in the first full season under head coach Rick Bowness.

If the Blue Jackets are serious about returning to the playoffs and even competing for Stanley Cups in the near future, they must ensure Werenski’s thinking on this matter doesn’t change. They need to ensure nothing happens to shake his current open desire to remain in the Blue Jackets before he can actually officially ink a new contract.

The easiest way to do that is by winning, and avoiding the kind of collapse the team suffered late last season, which cost them a playoff spot that had been theirs for most of the regular season.

Bowness made headlines late last season with his comments about the challenges the Blue Jackets had, going so far as to be critical of the team’s leadership amidst their downward spiral. He told the media “These guys, they don’t care. Losing is not important enough to them. It doesn’t bother them,” and added that if he ended up re-signing with the team, Bowness would be “changing this culture.”

The Blue Jackets did end up signing Bowness to an extension, and now he’ll be tasked with changing that culture and creating a winning team that Werenski continues to want to be a part of. In the aftermath of Bowness’ comments, Werenski said he has “a ton of respect” for Bowness and said the players “love him as a coach.”

The Blue Jackets have gone six seasons without reaching the playoffs, and have won just one playoff series in franchise history. (Or two, if one counts their qualifying-round victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2020 playoff bubble) As arguably the greatest player in franchise history, the burden falls to Werenski to try to reverse the organization’s historic trend of trying, and failing, to play playoff hockey.

It seems that through these comments, Werenski is trying to remove, as much as possible, the distraction posed by any lingering uncertainty about his commitment to a future in Columbus. While he acknowledged he can’t fully remove the speculation surrounding his future until next summer, Werenski repeatedly told Rosen that his only interest is committing to the Blue Jackets on a long-term contract extension.

If the Blue Jackets are to be successful in their attempt to return to the playoffs in 2026-27, Werenski will need to lead the way. The 29-year-old is among the game’s very best defenseman, turning aside all rivals to win the first Norris Trophy of his career in 2025-26. He scored 22 goals and 81 points in just 75 games, marking his second consecutive season with at least 80 points.

Werenski soaks up a massive workload for the Blue Jackets, averaging 26:36 time on ice per game. He’s the team’s quarterback for its No. 1 power play unit, and also plays a rotational role on the penalty kill. Just one defenseman averages more ice time per game than Werenski: fellow Norris Trophy winner Quinn Hughes.

With the departure of veteran Boone Jenner in free agency, Columbus now lacks a captain for the first time in more than a decade. The Blue Jackets had four alternate captains last season, and all four (Sean Monahan, Charlie Coyle, Erik Gudbranson and Werenski) remain with the team. Werenski would appear to be a legitimate contender for the captaincy, but it’s unlikely the Blue Jackets would sanction giving him that kind of honor and responsibility if they still have any lingering doubt about his commitment to remaining with the team on a long-term basis.

If, at some point this season, Werenski does end up named captain in Columbus, that should be seen as another firm indication — beyond just his comments on Tuesday — that Werenski is firm in his intent to re-sign in Columbus and put the trade rumors that dominated the summer of 2026 behind him.