Instant analysis: Laine signing puts another piece in place for CBJ

29 is a unique number in the math world. It's the 10th prime number, the sum of three consecutive squares, and smallest positive whole number that cannot be made from the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, using each exactly once and using only addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
OK, that's a mouthful, but if you think about it, it starts to make sense. There's a uniqueness to the number, one befitting one of the most unique players in the NHL in Patrik Laine.

Simply put, there aren't many players in the league who can make the hardest thing in hockey -- scoring goals -- look so easy. He filled up the net like Steph Curry at times this season, including a 22-game stretch in which he tallied 19 times.
It's why he's one of the most exciting players in the game, and it's why Blue Jackets fans have made #PayLaine one of the trending topics of the summer. And it's why Columbus did just that, signing the restricted free agent to a
four-year, $34.8 million extension
announced Friday afternoon.
The offseason isn't over for the Blue Jackets -- there's the tricky business of getting under the salary cap -- but the major pieces are now in place. There's Zach Werenski, the All-Star defenseman who is signed for the next six seasons. There's Johnny Gaudreau, the franchise-altering free agent whose seven-year deal gives Columbus one of the best playmakers in hockey.
And now Laine is locked up for four more years, and it's not hard to imagine how much the Finnish sniper is licking his chops to play with someone like Gaudreau, who has developed a reputation as one of the best passers in the league.

Even without Gaudreau, Laine had a bounce-back season a year ago, going from acknowledging at the end of the 2021 campaign that he had to be better to proving it on the ice with the first point-per-game season (26-30-56 in 56 games) of his career, not to mention seven game-winning goals and three OT winners. He did it all while battling adversity, including a pair of injuries that cost him significant time as well as the passing of his father, Harri, with whom he was close.
More than that, he went from a player who looked as though he was trying to find his way during that disappointing post-trade 2021 season to someone who embraced what it meant to be in Columbus. It was clear on the ice, where he immediately started scoring big goals, and off of it, where his trademark fashion sense and interactions with fans and teammates showed off his unique personality.
The Blue Jackets found out a lot about Laine this past season, and it became clear as the year went on that there was a mutual affinity between the two parties. Laine left the season talking about how much he wanted to stay in Columbus, and the Blue Jackets talked about how much they wanted to keep him.
"We have a great group of guys, guys I got to be really close with," Laine said on exit day. "And I'm excited about the youth we have and the opportunities we're going to have in a couple of years. I definitely want to be a part of it and playing here, playing in front of these great fans. I love the city. I love everything about being here. It's that simple."
And in the end, it proved to be exactly that simple. Patrik Laine will remain a Blue Jacket for years to come, and one of the biggest offseasons in team history keeps rolling on.