Blue Jackets sign Cole Sillinger to three-year deal

The Columbus Blue Jackets signed forward Cole Sillinger to a three-year, $13.875 million contract on July 25, avoiding a scheduled arbitration hearing. The deal carries a $4.625 million cap hit and keeps the 23-year-old forward under contract through the 2028-29 season, according to nhl.com. It more than doubles his previous two-year deal, which carried a $2.25 million cap hit.

Sillinger was one of 15 players who filed for salary arbitration on July 5, and he was the last of them to sign. His hearing had been set for July 27 in Toronto, but the sides reached agreement two days before that date. The Columbus native becomes the second Blue Jackets player to settle an arbitration case this summer, following goalie Jet Greaves, who agreed to a three-year deal on July 23.

Selected 12th overall in 2021, Sillinger has played 367 games for Columbus over five seasons, the most of any player from that draft class. He posted eight goals and 25 assists in 81 games last season, missing only one game due to illness. In his NHL career, he has 51 goals and 89 assists for 140 points. He moved from center to left wing last season.

The signing comes as general manager Don Waddell works to lock up core pieces. "Cole is a hard-working, reliable two-way forward who plays the game the right way, has outstanding character and continues to grow and improve," Waddell said. Sillinger played on one of the team's most effective lines last season alongside Charlie Coyle and Mathieu Olivier. The deal walks him to unrestricted free agency; he can hit the open market after the 2028-29 season.

Columbus still has forward Adam Fantilli, the club's other notable restricted free agent, unsigned. The Sillinger signing leaves the Blue Jackets with approximately $14.495 million in cap space.