In the Eastern Conference, the playoff picture has looked set in stone for quite some time. Even now, with the Columbus Blue Jackets on an 8-2 run in their last ten, they’re still nine points behind the Boston Bruins for the last wild card position. That’s an impressive feat after struggling to find any consistency through the first half but it still might end up in a missed postseason, regardless of what they do in the coming weeks.
You can understand then, why teams may be calling the Blue Jackets to inquire about some of their players. Today, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports that the team has been taking calls on Alexandre Texier for the last little while, though the asking price is still quite high. Seravalli notes that to pry Texier out of Columbus, it would take a first-round pick and a roster player.
Selected 45th overall in 2017, Texier is something of an enigma. After lighting up the Finnish league as a teenager, the French forward made the jump to North America and quickly forced his way into the Blue Jackets lineup. In 2019, he played in eight of the team’s ten playoff games at age-19, including the entire four-game sweep of the powerhouse Tampa Bay Lightning. In that deciding game four, Texier opened the scoring on the powerplay and added an empty-net goal to help seal it. He was still 19 at the time.
Since then, things haven’t gone quite as smoothly. Since the start of the 2019-20 season, Texier has ended up on injured reserve three times and has just 48 points in 121 games. There is so much obvious skill in his 6’1″ frame, but his play has been inconsistent even when he’s healthy enough to contribute.
This season, he has doubled his career goal total with 11 tallies in 36 games, but once again finds himself on the shelf due to injury. He has been out since January 26 with a broken finger, and even before that had been held scoreless in his last five games.
The key to any team’s interest in Texier–to go along with oodles of potential–is that he’s also signed for next season at a very reasonable $1.525MM cap hit. If you could add him to a talented lineup and keep him healthy, there’s a very good chance that the 22-year-old vastly outperforms that number. After this contract is finished, Texier will still be an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent, meaning it’s not anywhere near the kind of trade that will see rentals swap teams at the deadline.
Again though, the Blue Jackets are in no rush here. Just as they don’t have to make a decision about Patrik Laine until the offseason–the star sniper is a restricted free agent just one year away from the open market–they also won’t be pressured into a deal for the even-younger Texier. If the asking price is actually as high as Seravalli reports, Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen is making it very clear that he isn’t desperate to move the young forward.
The Canes will do Kotkaniemi and a 2nd! But after the season because they cannot trade Kotkaniemi till then. LOL
No way, baby. You broke it, you bought it.
Kotkanirmi can be traded. It is only if a team matches the offer that the player cannot be traded.
OK, thanks for the clarification!
A first rounder AND a roster player? For Texier? Ahahahahhahaha!!! The guy’s only ever managed second-line production THIS year, while doubling his career shooting percentage.
Now maybe he improves — he’s young enough — but I wouldn’t hand over a 1st rounder for wishful thinking.
It just means they have no desire, let alone a need, to trade him. He was finally starting to show some consistency in his role when he got hurt. Plus, the Fire Poker shootout move is worth a 1st by itself. : )
I understand Jarmo’s stance that he should ask high and settle a bit lower (ex. 2nd rounder and maybe a middle six guy) but lord I hope he isn’t serious about that ask. A first rounder and a roster player for a former second rounder who hasn’t panned out? That’s mental. I can imagine the Habs will be interested though. They have an abundance of picks. Maybe a second rounder and a guy like Armia gets it done?
Other than his size and being a Finn, I don’t see the upside on Armia. The reason Tex is potentially moveable is because of a glut of wingers in the Columbus organization.
As a Jackets fan and full season ticket holder, I would not want to see Texier go. He was forced out of the lineup by Covid protocol and the a broken finger. He has been a beast all season long on the penalty kill and has created numerous scoring chances on the PK. They really need to send Chinakhov to Cleveland for a while. Chinakhov has a high upside, but he’s a turnover looking for a place to happen. He needs more time to adjust to the North American game. The next three weeks are critical for the Jackets as they will play 9 of 11 at home leading up to the deadline. To read the article, you’d think Texier went out and broke his finger on purpose.