Nearly a month into the beginning of free agency, Adam Fantilli of the Columbus Blue Jackets remains one of the most prominent restricted free agents without a contract for the 2026-27 season. There’s no concern of Fantilli not having a contract for the 2026-27 campaign, but the Blue Jackets’ framework may have changed after Leo Carlsson and Connor Bedard, the two players drafted ahead of Fantilli in the 2023 NHL Draft, signed big-ticket extensions in their opening trip through restricted free agency.
With that in mind, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic predicted a similar deal for Fantilli a few days ago on the Jason Gregor Show. In his appearance, Portzline speculated that Fantilli would sign a five-year extension with Columbus, with an average annual salary between $13MM and $13.5MM.
A deal with the price tag would quickly become the highest cap hit the Blue Jackets have ever had on their roster, and would eat up the remainder of their cap space heading into the 2026-27 season. As nice as it would be from a fan perspective to see a small-market team spend as close to the cap as they can, Columbus isn’t necessarily competitive enough to warrant that.
Still, that’s not to say Fantilli isn’t worth that, especially in the changing landscape of NHL contracts. Although he doesn’t have the same stardom in the national media, Fantilli has had nearly identical production to Carlsson, scoring 67 goals and 140 points in 213 games, compared to Carlsson’s 61 goals and 141 points in 201 games. If the Blue Jackets could extend Fantilli for nearly $5MM less than Carlsson, it stands to reason that they would take that as a win.
Now, despite their comparable outputs since being drafted, comparing Fantilli’s experience in restricted free agency is not one-to-one with Carlsson’s. The second overall pick of the 2023 NHL Draft signed a five-year, $90MM ($18MM AAV) offer sheet with the Philadelphia Flyers before the Anaheim Ducks matched it. Fantilli is also eligible for an offer sheet, but no team has been bold enough to sign him to one.
Additionally, there’s no indication that Fantilli is interested in signing one. Take it for what it’s worth, but Bedard told the media that no amount of money could have dissuaded him from remaining with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Regardless, it appears that the Blue Jackets will focus on building around Fantilli. Neither Zach Werenski nor Kirill Marchenko is expected to re-sign with Columbus after their current contracts expire. As the team’s next best player behind those two, Fantilli is the obvious choice to become the face of the Blue Jackets’ franchise.