Blue Jackets winger Jakob Lilja’s stay in North America was a short one. After one season in their system, he is heading back overseas as Barys Nur-Sultan of the KHL announced that they’ve signed him to a one-year contract.
The 26-year-old signed with Columbus last June after a strong season with Djurgarden of the SHL. He actually made the NHL roster out of training camp and while he spent some time in the minors in November and December, he was basically up with the big club the rest of the way after they were hit with a rash of injuries.
Lilja wound up playing in 37 games with the Blue Jackets, picking up two goals and three assists while averaging 9:54 per night in ice time. He was much more productive with AHL Cleveland, however, notching five goals and eight helpers in 22 games.
While he is eligible to be part of their extended roster for their upcoming play-in series against Toronto, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Lilja will not be on it. Instead, he noted that the team gave him permission to seek a new deal overseas which suggests that it’s unlikely that he’ll be tendered a qualifying offer this offseason since he is only a year away from UFA eligibility anyway.