In a summer where the Jackets’ prime objective was to shed the roster of players, Scott Harrington was one of the few that was brought in to the organization, in a trade with Toronto for Kerby Rychel.
Fans were underwhelmed by the trade, thinking that Rychel’s status as a former first rounder and recent Calder Cup champion would garner a hefty return. The Jackets weren’t trading from a position of strength however, given Rychel’s public trade request earlier in the season.
With Harrington the Jackets are getting a positionally sound, shutdown defender. A second round pick of the Penguins in 2011, he was traded to the Maple Leafs in the Phil Kessel deal, but spent a bulk of last season on the injured list. When healthy, he split his time between the Leafs and the Toronto Marlies of the AHL.
Harrington wore a letter for Team Canada at the 2013 World Juniors, a team that also featured Boone Jenner.
Statistics
Outlook for 2016 / 2017
With Seth Jones, Ryan Murray, David Savard and Jack Johnson locking down four of the starting six defense positions, and Zach Werenski looking to make the team out of camp, Harrington will be battling Dalton Prout, Cody Goloubef and Dean Kukan for a job on the final pairing. The guess here is that Harrington will start the season playing an important role for the Cleveland Monsters, but will be among the first callups when injuries or poor play occur on the Columbus blueline.