The Columbus Blue Jackets and defenseman Ivan Provorov have hit a snag in contract extension talks for the upcoming unrestricted free agent. While both sides have expressed a desire to continue the partnership,

The NHL is going to have some tight races when it comes to the end-of-season awards, and the Columbus Blue Jackets might have a surprise entrant for a key one.

This is a team coming out of its rebuild and into its build phase. It has the potential to contend as it matures and as the roster is further tweaked.

If no extension is reached by the trade deadline on March 7, the Blue Jackets would likely be in the market to receive a first-round pick offer for Provorov. He is listed as TSN's No. 21 trade-bait player, which is the sixth-overall defenseman and second-overall left-side defenseman.

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The Columbus Blue Jackets are currently battling for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and the future of Ivan Provorov is unclear.

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Coming off a memorable win Wednesday night in Toronto, Columbus has another chance at two points against a division rival

Add the Hurricanes and Devils to the list of a handful of teams that have had talks with the Canucks about a J.T. Miller trade.

The Jackets visit Lenovo Center for the second and final time this season as the two teams will finish off a four-game season series on Thursday. Head Coach Dean Evason will try to get his team to win three of four games against the Canes on the season.

From an EDGE stats standpoint, Marchenko checks many boxes that explain his full-fledged breakout season after leading Columbus in goals last season (23 in 78 games); he’s their best in the category again and on pace for 32 goals (18 in first 45 games). He is among the forward leaders in the following categories: