COLUMBUS, Ohio —It’s not as if Adam Fantilli isn’t playing well. It’s no small feat for a 20-year-old to play as a second-line center in the NHL, and veteran coach Dean Evason twice used the word “great” on Monday to describe aspects of his play so far this season.
But Fantilli said he feels like he should be doing more, especially given the current banged-up state of the Columbus Blue Jackets.
“I’m in a position where there’s a lot more opportunity, and with that opportunity comes responsibility,” Fantilli said. “I like having that responsibility. But with that extra ice time, I have to be better.
“I have to be a guy who can help his club offensively, and, in my opinion, I haven’t been doing that a whole lot.”
Fantilli has two goals and a minus-1 rating, settling outside the early-season spotlight that has beamed brightest on fellow young forwards Yegor Chinakhov (3-4-7), Kirill Marchenko (2-4-6) and Kent Johnson (2-3-5 in four games) before he was injured.
It’s not that Fantilli craves the spotlight. But the Blue Jackets are without top-six wingers Boone Jenner, Dmitri Voronkov and now Johnson, forcing Evason to scramble and get creative just to put together four legitimate forward lines.
The scramble was extreme on Monday when the Blue Jackets practiced in advance of Tuesday’s game vs. the Toronto Maple Leafs in Nationwide Arena.
Evason didn’t want to bust up his No. 1 line — veteran center Sean Monahan between Chinakhov and Marchenko — because it’s been one of the best lines in the league in the early going this season.
“Obviously we really liked them together; they’ve been real good,” Evason said. “But yeah, we’re looking to get some more balance in our entire group.”
The boldest move was moving third-line center Cole Sillinger up to the top line replacing Chinakhov, while Chinakhov slid to Fantilli’s line with Mikael Pyyhtiä. Taking Sillinger’s center spot on the third line is Justin Danforth.
“I spoke to (Sillinger) today,” Evason said. “We want him to play center. He’s played extremely well. He’s done everything for us. And as you guys know, probably more than me, he’s completely a team-first guy. Whatever we need him to do, where to play, he’ll commit and play there.”
Adam Fantilli scores off the rebound!
It’s the second goal of the season for Mo! 🔥🔥#CBJ pic.twitter.com/S7TqyUAWQx
— FanDuel Sports Network Columbus (@BallySportsCBUS) October 18, 2024
Chinakhov’s move off the top line is in no way a demotion. It’s an attempt to create two scoring lines, Evason said, by giving Fantilli an offensive weapon on his line. That hasn’t been the case so far this season, mostly because of all the injuries.
Fantilli started the season playing with wingers James van Riemsdyk and Kevin Labanc for the first three games. Last Thursday vs. the Buffalo Sabres, Johnson moved up to Fantilli’s line but was injured on the first shift of the second period.
On Saturday in the Jackets’ worst performance this season (a 3-1 loss to the Minnesota Wild), Fantilli played with Zach Aston-Reese and Danforth, two bottom-six wingers. It wasn’t a fit, even though Fantilli played a career-high 22:04 of ice time. He’s now on the power play and penalty kill.
“I see great things from (Fantilli’s) game,” Evason said. “He’s playing hard every night. He’s driving the offense. And I’ll be honest with you … that’s why we shifted some people around, to give (Fantilli) some offensive people to play with. Hopefully he and Chinny and Tuna (Pyyhtiä) will mesh really quickly, and we’ll see a line that can produce and keep the puck out of our net.”
Fantilli is tied for second on the team with two goals, tied for third among forwards with 12 shots on goal and he’s winning 47.5 percent of his faceoffs, up from 43.6 percent during his rookie season. It’s not like he’s been a disappointment.
“I know I’m working as hard as I can,” Fantilli said. “I’m not leaving every game upset with how I played. I just feel like I can have more of an impact than I’ve had. And to me, my age and my experience don’t change the fact that I still have to make a difference.
“I’m excited about (playing with) Chinny. He’s had a great start. He’s done a lot offensively for us, so hopefully I can help him continue to do what he’s doing, and maybe I can get on the scoresheet with him a little bit.”
Fantilli came into the NHL with high expectations. He was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2023 draft, viewed by most as a physical, skilled two-way center. Most scouts believe he’ll develop into one of the rarest commodities in the league: a No. 1 center.
Evason saw it briefly last summer in Czechia while coaching with Team Canada at the IIHF World Championships, where Fantilli was a roster extra who played in a tuneup game. This was before Evason was hired by the Blue Jackets in June.
Since watching him up close in Columbus, Evason has had his eyes opened.
“Obviously, there’s a skill set there offensively, but his competitiveness is as high as I’ve seen with a skilled guy like that,” Evason said. “He competes hard. He’s got bite to his game. Does he have some deficiencies in the defensive zone like every young player? Yeah. But his commitment to learn and get better has been fantastic.”
On Monday, Fantilli was asked if measuring his impact simply by goals and points was an unfair critique. Hockey is a fluky game and production for many players is streaky, especially in their early seasons in the league.
He wasn’t buying it.
“I’m not going to say it comes and it goes, no,” Fantilli said. “There are guys like (Tampa Bay’s Nikita) Kucherov and guys like (Toronto’s Auston) Matthews — and I’m not whatsoever comparing myself to those guys — but they’ve found a way to be consistent and make it happen every single night, so it can be done.
“It’s not an excuse to just say, ‘Oh, the puck didn’t find me tonight.’ No. That’s no excuse.”
(Photo: Samantha Mada / Imagn Images)
