Cayden Lindstrom turned 19 in February, so to call him an “older guy” would be a bit of a stretch.
But when it comes to Blue Jackets development camp presented by Bread Financial, he is one of the veterans of the process. The Jackets’ first-round pick in the 2024 draft, Lindstrom first arrived in Columbus last summer for the camp and then spent much of this past season rehabbing in the capital city, so when it comes to local knowledge, he’s near the top of the list.
As a result, he’s already taken such players as Jackson Smith, the 14th overall pick in the draft Friday who first arrived in the 614 over the weekend, under his wing.
“Obviously I’ve been here for a year, so I feel like a leader for these guys, and even some of the older guys that are maybe new here,” Lindstrom said. “Just showing them around and showing them Columbus because I’ve been here for a year, so I kind of know the little nooks and crannies of the town – maybe not everything, but I can show them what I know. We went out for dinner last night, just showing them the main strip there, just showing them around.”
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If it sounds like Lindstrom is mature beyond those 19 years, it’s true, in part because he’s had to be. That’s the case for any Canadian junior hockey player who has to leave home at a young age to chase his dream, but Lindstrom also has learned from facing the adversity of missing most of the past season as he rehabbed a back injury.
After undergoing surgery late in 2024, he finally got back on the ice May 9, notching an assist on his first shift while playing for Medicine Hat in the Western Hockey League championship series. He then scored in each of his next two games, helping the Tigers beat Spokane to win the league and advance to the Memorial Cup.
It was a triumphant return for Lindstrom, whom the Blue Jackets took fourth overall in the 2024 draft thanks to an imposing combination of skill, size and grit in his game. But as good as it felt to contribute on the score sheet, the bigger accomplishment for Lindstrom was simply being back on the ice with his teammates and close friends.
“Obviously I didn’t know how I was going to play, missing a year,” he said. “Those points and stuff were good, but in all honesty, just being back and playing with the team again, that’s what really made me feel good and upped my spirits a bit more. When you’re out for a year, all you want to do is play. You’re playing your whole life, and all of a sudden you’re hit with an injury like that for a year. Being out there with the boys and just a tight-knit group like that, it really made me feel at home. It was good.”
As Lindstrom said, the return to the ice was a long time coming, and it was a significant step for a player who is a huge part of the CBJ future. His on-ice journey is continuing this week, as Lindstrom skated on the first day of development camp with the rest of the CBJ prospects on hand.
Having Lindstrom on the ice was a pleasant sight for Blue Jackets director of hockey operations Rick Nash.
“It’s very important,” Nash said. “It was nice to see him go back for the playoffs and the Memorial Cup. With Cayden’s situation, just being away from the game for so long, it’s important that he gets his reps in at game speed. It’s one thing when you’re skating by yourself. It’s another thing when you’re practicing with other guys at game speed, playing in games.”
The good news is that while Lindstrom said he’s still not at what he would call 100 percent, the only thing keeping him from that designation is time. He has spent the past few weeks training and skating in his home province of British Columbia, spending time with family and friends in Vancouver and working out with fellow CBJ players Kent Johnson, Jake Christiansen and Dante Fabbro.
While Lindstrom wasn’t able to play for most of this past season, he did do much of his rehab in Columbus, where he was able to build relationships with many of his Blue Jackets teammates. It was no fun working his way back to the ice, but he did at least get an up-close education on what it means to be an NHL player.
“It was a bit of an experience for sure,” Lindstrom said. “It was weird obviously not being on the team but being on the team at the same time. Just knowing all the guys, being here every day and hanging out with them, going for dinners, it was a huge learning experience for me.
“Just being around older guys helped mature me as a person and as a player as well. They know how to take care of their bodies. Even the way they talk in the room, they’re all business. I took so much from the team and the older guys, and I asked lots of questions and stuff like that and learned a lot in general.”
Once development camp is over, the plan is to spend much of the rest of the summer in East Lansing, Mich., where he’ll begin preparations to play this upcoming season on a Michigan State team that is expected to contend for an NCAA championship. For Lindstrom, it’s nice to be getting ready to play hockey again rather than rehabbing, and his goal for the coming months is to get ready as best he can.
“There’s a lot I need to work on after missing a whole year, so it was good to see (how I played) so I could put a plan together for the summer and work on the things I need to work on,” he said.
