It’s surprising to see that Columbus hasn’t locked up Ivan Provorov yet

With just one week before NHL Free Agency opens, a few notable names have yet to sign extensions with their respective teams.

In Central Ohio, the Columbus Blue Jackets have yet to make a deal with defenseman Ivan Provorov.

Despite playing on a couple of teams that have been rough to watch in Columbus, Provorov has been a solid presence on the back end, posting more than 30 points in each of his two seasons with the Blue Jackets, registering a plus/minus of +11 this past season that ties his second-best rating of his NHL career.

Provorov is at the end of a six-year contract that he signed with the Philadelphia Flyers in September 2019. The Russian blueliner had an AAV of $6.75 million as part of the deal, with some believing he might be get a significant pay bump if he goes to market.

According to CapWages, general manager Don Waddell has plenty of money to play with, as the Blue Jackets are projected to have close to $43 million to spend next season.

On Tuesday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk discuss the current situation between Provorov and the Blue Jackets.

Frank Seravalli: I’m still kind of shocked that the Blue Jackets haven’t re-signed him yet, that he’s potentially going to market. I would have thought for a guy that wanted to be there, that had played reasonably well, that they’d be ready and willing to commit to. Particularly because, think about their system. They also traded a way a player last year in David Jiricek, and they’ve got Denton Mateychuk on the way, and Werenski’s been great. If you’re the Blue Jackets, you need to stack as many quality defensemen as you can. Provorov is a relatively young UFA, make a commitment to him. I’m just surprised that it hasn’t happened. So, that part leaves me wondering what the market for him looks like. 

You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…