According to team beat writer Brian Hedger, the Columbus Blue Jackets have signed Alexandre Texier to his three-year entry-level contract today. Texier recently suited up for France at the IIHF World Championship, and was recently confirmed to be staying overseas for at least one more year. The 18-year old forward prospect spent 2017-18 in Finland, where he registered 22 points in 53 games with KalPa.
Texier was the Blue Jackets’ second-round pick in 2017, and was something of an unknown. Though we’d seen him play in various international tournaments, France was usually in the lower level tournament and his club play was hard to compare. The French league, while improving, isn’t at the level of the NLA, SHL or Liiga. Texier then was scouted on his raw ability, which for him was enough to intrigue the Blue Jackets’ front office. GM Jarmo Kekalainen had this to say:
Alexandre is a very smart, skilled player with a very good shot and extraordinary vision to make plays all over the ice. He is a young player who had a very good rookie season with KalPa and we are excited to watch his continued development as he gets bigger and stronger physically.
The 6’1″ forward has the ability to carry the puck through and around defenders while at top speed, and can score in a variety of different ways. Though there is a long road ahead of him before he will be suiting up in the NHL, his first year at a higher level of competition went about as well as it could have. Columbus will be keeping a close eye on him this season to see if his strength and poise improve for KalPa, after which he could come to North America in 2019-20.