Thanks to the 79 readers who submitted ballots in this year’s ranking of Columbus Blue Jackets players under the age of 25. And now, the final post.
#1 – Adam Fantilli
Voting
1st out of 45 eligible players
Writer Rank: 1st
Reader Rank: 1st
Highest Placement: 1st (50)
Most Common Placement: 1st (50 votes)
2022 Rank: New
Biography
Birthdate: October 12, 2004
Birthplace: Toronto, Ontario
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 194 lbs.
Position: C/W
Shoots: Left
Acquired: 2023 1st Round Pick, 3rd Overall
2022-23 Season:
It would be the understatement of the year to simply say that Fantilli had an excellent season. The more appropriate term would be “historic.” Fantilli became just the third Freshman to win the Hobey Baker, joining the elite company of Jack Eichel and Paul Kariya. He also won gold medals in both the World Juniors and World Championship with Team Canada. He was the first ever to do accomplish all three of those feats in the same year. Pretty impressive for an 18 year old.
Fantilli proved he could have success at multiple levels of play and in varying roles. At Michigan, he paced the team in scoring as his squad’s #1 center. He dominated in that role, scoring 30 goals to go along with 35 assists in just 36 games.
For team Canada, he played quite a different role, skating on checking lines en route to a pair of gold medals. It really highlighted the all-around game as well as maturity that Fantilli possesses as an 18-year-old. He truly has the “anything to help the team” mentality.
Heading into the summer, everything pointed towards Fantilli going second overall after Connor Bedard in the NHL Entry Draft. Thankfully (for him and the Blue Jackets), that didn’t happen.
2023-24 Outlook:
I think Fantilli hits the ground running with the Blue Jackets. He’s going to have every chance to jump right into a top six role with the team, and skate with some pretty good players. Will new head coach Mike Babcock ease Fantilli into the league, or give him big minutes and let him learn on the job?
It won’t be long until we see Fantilli in some game action with the Traverse City Tournament kicking off this week. Columbus is sending an insane amount of talent up to Michigan, so there is no excuse for the team to not run through the tournament with Fantilli looking like a man amongst boys. From there, its right to training camp where his performance will go a long way in determining what type of role he will play to begin his NHL career.
Currently, Fantilli is anywhere from +1000 to +1400 to win the Calder Trophy, and while most assume the trophy is Bedard’s to lose, those odds seem almost insulting considering the big role he should play on a much better team than Chicago. Needless to say, I am expecting big things from the Jackets third overall pick this year.
Highlights: