Full disclosure: among the staff here at The Cannon, there aren’t fans of Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Erik Gudbranson. We were universally opposed to his signing two years ago, and the results since then haven’t changed our mind.
That being said, this season he was…fine? Not great, and still clearly overpaid, but he was a passable defense-first defenseman. In 2022-23, the absurd number of injuries meant that Gudbranson was forced into top pair minutes: a career-high 21:18 per game. This season, that was down to 19:40. Still too high, but at least a step into the right direction.