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Brandon Saad has put pen to paper on a six-year contract with the Blue Jackets.
I'll have more on that once the dust settles.
In the meantime you can read what Saad will bring to the table after the jump.
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The Blue Jackets recently shocked the hockey world
by acquiring Brandon Saad from the Blackhawks in exchange for a package that included Artem Anisimov, Marko Dano and Jeremy Morin, among others.
That's a steep price to pay but the Blue Jackets feel they have added another rising star in Brandon Saad.
So what does he bring to the table?
A lot of offense, for starters. Over the last two seasons Saad is 31st among forwards in 5 vs 5 points per 60 minutes (minimum 2,000 minutes).
Here are his closest comparables.
Saad has also produced at a better rate than Anze Kopitar, Ryan Johansen, Zach Parise and Alex Ovechkin, among others, at full strength.
That's a good bunch of players to be grouped with. What's most encouraging is that Saad is only 22 and still has room to grow.
Now I'd be ignorant if I didn't bring up that Saad's most frequent linemates were Jonathan Toews and Marian Hossa. That certainly helps, however, he's expected to play on Johansen's wing in Columbus so it's not as if he'll no longer have quality linemates.
On top of his excellent rate scoring he's also good in terms of possession and has a positive impact on his teammates in that regard.
Saad is a very well rounded player and, again, at 22 years of age there is still plenty of room to grow.
The Blue Jackets paid a big price to get him and are certainly banking on that being the case.
Note: 5 vs 5 numbers via Stats.HockeyAnalysis.com.
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