Patrik Laine comments on his future in Columbus and seems prepared to commit to the team
The 2020-21 season was probably the toughest year for Columbus Blue Jackets forward Patrik Laine. He started out by playing one game with the Winnipeg Jets before being shipped off to Columbus with Jack Roslovic for Pierre-Luc Dubois.
Being dealt to the Blue Jackets was supposed to mean a fresh start for the Tampere native, but his first season with his club didn't go as planned.
Laine found himself benched a handful of times throughout the season and his inconsistent play led to a career-low in goals (12) and points (24). Columbus would go on to miss the playoffs and in his final interview of the season, Laine told reporters that he would not be representing Finland at the World Championship because he couldn't stand a game of hockey.
It was an absolutely miserable experience team-wise and personally. Only good thing is that the season is over. Everything that could've gone wrong, went wrong."
Flash forward to now, Laine has enjoyed a bit of a resurgence. His confidence is back and he's producing consistently once again, tallying 33 points (16 G, 17 A) in 30 games. Ten of those sixteen goals have come in his last nine games.
The 23-year-old will become a restricted free agent at the end of the season, but in a recent interview with Aaron Portzline of The Athletic, Laine said he loves Columbus and that he would consider signing a long-term contract.
"I don't think about (the contract). It's pretty much up to them. What are they thinking? I do what I do on the ice, and the rest is in their hands."
He added, "I kind of like everything (about) Columbus. It's big enough but, at the same time, small enough. No traffic. It's such a nice, family-friendly city and sports town. I like everything about this place. I've enjoyed being here."
It's nice to see Laine have his confidence back and it seems like he's happy to play hockey once again. When he's at the top of his game, he can be one of the best scorers in the NHL, reaching the 25+ goal mark in four of his six seasons in the league, with a career-high of 44 coming in 2017-18.
Source: Aaron Portzline - The Athletic
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Kyle Connor | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Alex Tuch | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Owen Power | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Michael Bunting | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Drew Helleson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jirí Kulich | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Isac Lundestrom | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Vladislav Namestnikov | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nino Niederreiter | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Gabriel Vilardi | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jason Zucker | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Leo Carlsson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nikolaj Ehlers | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ross Johnston | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Evgeni Malkin | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Josh Morrissey | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Cole Perfetti | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Bryan Rust | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Mark Scheifele | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Trevor Zegras | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 20 | 17 | 3 | - | 34 | |
Wild | 19 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 29 | |
Hurricanes | 19 | 14 | 5 | - | 28 | |
Devils | 22 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 28 | |
Capitals | 19 | 13 | 5 | 1 | 27 | |
Golden Knights | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 26 | |
Maple Leafs | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 26 | |
Rangers | 18 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 25 | |
Panthers | 20 | 12 | 7 | 1 | 25 | |
Flames | 20 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 25 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||