In early November, the Columbus Blue Jackets embarked on their first West Coast road trip of the season, and dropped all three games in California (two in regulation). While out there, they placed a waiver claim on Nashville Predators defenseman Dante Fabbro. He joined the team in Seattle and made his debut there, and suddenly became the partner for Zach Werenski as Z put together the best season of his career, and earned a spot as a Norris Trophy finalist.
Fabbro had zero points in six games with Nashville, but set career highs in goals and points in just 62 games with Columbus. The question now is whether he stays here because he fits with Werenski, or whether he parlays this into a big payday elsewhere.
Fabbro reminds me a lot of Marc Methot, who was a solid player here but at best a second pair defenseman behind the likes of Jack Johnson, James Wisniewski, and Fedor Tyutin. The Jackets could deal from a position of strength to swap him for Nick Foligno. In Ottawa, however, Methot found a spot as a reliable partner for Erik Karlsson, as Karlsson put together some Norris Trophy seasons.
2024-25 Stats
With Nashville
Games: 6
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Points: 0
Plus/Minus: -3
PIM: 0
5v5 Corsi%: 52.1
5v5 Fenwick%: 51.5
5v5 O-Zone Start%: 58.0
With Columbus
Games: 62
Goals: 9
Assists: 17
Points: 26
Plus/Minus: 23
PIM: 40
5v5 Corsi%: 50.3
5v5 Fenwick%: 51.2
5v5 O-Zone Start%: 51.9
Contract
The Predators signed Fabbro to an early extension on March 8, 2024, for a one year deal in the amount of $2.5M. He is an unrestricted free agent this summer. Certainly the Jackets will try to re-sign him, but what is the right term and amount? Do you pay him as a first line defenseman, or do you pay him like a complementary piece? Is there a middle ground? What about the $10M already committed to fellow right-handed defensemen Damon Severson and Erik Gudbranson?
High Point
When Fabbro joined the Jackets, he earned points in six of his first nine games. Talk about making a good first impression! That included a game-winning goal against Chicago on December 1, one of three such deciders on the season (albeit all in multi-goal wins).
Low Point
Fabbro missed time to injury at three points in the season: a lower body injury in December, a concussion in early February, and an undisclosed injury in late March. He didn’t miss many games each time, but it nevertheless caused a shuffle in the defensive pairs that the team really didn’t have the depth to adapt to.
Report Card
A-
Since the departure of Seth Jones, the Jackets had struggled to find a steady partner for Zach Werenski. Fabbro finally seemed to fit the part.