Thanks to the 79 readers who submitted ballots in this year’s ranking of Columbus Blue Jackets players under the age of 25. Stay tuned over the next six weeks as we count down the top 25.
#20 Trey Fix-Wolansky
Voting
20th out of 45 eligible players
Writer Rank: 19
Reader Rank: 21
Highest placement: 6th (1 vote)
Most common placement: 22 (6 votes)
2022 Rank: 19th
Biography
Birthdate: May 26, 1999
Birthplace: Edmonton, Alberta
Height: 5’7″
Weight: 179 lbs
Position: Right wing
Shoots: Right
Acquired: Drafted by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2018 NHL Entry Draft (7th round, 204th overall)
2022-23 Season
With his small frame, TFW has always been an underdog. Despite that, he has proven himself to be a productive player at multiple levels. By his final season with the Edmonton Oil-Kings, he was team captain and a WHL All-Star. What is notable is how his scoring improved each year:
2016-17: 70 GP; 54 P
2017-18: 71 GP; 89 P
2018-19: 65 GP; 102 P
He also improved defensively, from a -16 rating his rookie year to +36 in the final season. He’s a feisty player but his PIM dropped from 69 and 81 to just 52, as his focused turned to scoring and leading his team.
We’ve seen a similar progression over his four seasons with the Cleveland Monsters:
2019-20: 43 GP; 26 P; 32 PIM, -11
2020-21: 9 GP; 9 P; 2 PIM, -6
2021-22: 53 GP; 33 P; 59 PIM, -8
2022-23: 61 GP; 71 P; 40 PIM, -5
In this latest season, he led the Monsters in scoring, with nearly double the production of the second place player (Justin Richards, with 39 points in 61 games). Of course, the Monsters saw a revolving-door roster as the Blue Jackets suffered injury after injury. 43 different skaters saw the ice. So why wasn’t TFW one of those to get a longer look in Columbus?
His first action last season was a 4 game spell in late November. He barely saw action, with fewer than 10 minutes of ice time in 3 of those 4 games. That began to change in his second call-up late in the season, including 20:12 on April 11 in Philadelphia. He also scored his sole NHL point of the season that night, a first period goal.
2023-24 Outlook
TFW played this season on a two-way contract with an NHL cap hit of $750,000 but an AHL salary of $80,000. As an RFA with arbitration rights, he signed an extension in June for two more seasons. It is still a two-way deal but with a slight NHL raise to $775,000 and a large AHL raise, to $350,000 this season and $375,000 in 2024-25. He will again be an RFA with arb rights in summer 2025. Most importantly, he is waiver eligible. He was last season too, but cleared the one time he was placed on waivers, at the start of the season. His high AHL salary could help to protect him from being picked up.
But, if the Jackets don’t want to risk that, could he make the opening night roster? Perhaps, like Liam Foudy last season, he could be the spare forward and work his way into the bottom 6 rotation. He certainly has the grit to play that role, but with his size I worry about longevity there. It also seems a waste of his hockey skill, which clearly has translated to the pro game from juniors. Can Mike Babcock find a way to get him offensive reps, and with other offensive-minded linemates (i.e. not Robinson or Olivier)?
It’s too bad there aren’t more opportunities in the top 6, but he is clearly behind Johnny Gaudreau, Kirill Marchenko, and likely Yegor Chinakhov at RW.
Highlights
A power play snipe, with an assist from David Jiricek:
And another one: