Saturday night, the Columbus Blue Jackets former third overall pick Adam Fantilli was the hero once again after scoring an astounding overtime winner against his boyhood club. Fantilli was drafted third overall out of the University of Michigan in 2023, and is still continuing to grow into his role in Columbus. As one of the many young and exciting rookies expecting to sign a big deal next summer, Fantilli is likely going to be one of the players who has the season to prove his worth, and if things continue to improve, he will meet that value with no issue whatsoever.
Already this season, the likes of Logan Cooley and Lane Hutson have already signed their massive deals, and along with those such as Connor Bedard, for Fantilli, his next big contract is probably set to come next summer. After joining Columbus during the 2023/24 season, Fantilli already became a very useful and valuable asset for the Blue Jackets, registering 27 points in his rookie year, but his sophomore year was everything the Jackets would have expected.
54 points, with 31 goals, becoming a 30 goal scorer in only his second year was a massive boost for the Blue Jackets and Fantilli's development, and although his name hasn't been one which is massive within the media, the promise is still there, and Fantilli looks the full package for Columbus. Currently with 8 goals and 8 assists in 21 games, Fantilli is slowly finding his groove again, and that scoring touch which wasn't too prevelant at the start of the year is finally budding. We have seen at the start of the year that fellow rookies notably like Connor Bedard will have the season to determine his next deal, making sure no dollar amount is lost, and this seems the case with Fantilli.
After seeing Logan Cooley's $10 million AAV extension, and Lane Hutson's $8 million plus AAV deal, Fantilli will have some serious work to put in in order for him to earn that respective dollar amount, however anywhere within the six to eight million range isn't ruled out yet. With a lot of season left to play, and a lot of improvement still promised for Fantilli as the season goes on, it wouldn't be crazy to suggest that the Blue Jackets could lock down their former top three pick for anywhere in that range, especially for a longer term. With how much the cap is increasing next season, and with how much money the Blue Jackets have to spend, that salary range is definitely reasonable for a guy who will be a massive part of the future, and anywhere under $6 million just looks unrealistic.