Despite being born in Central Ohio, Sillinger spent much of his youth following around his dad, Mike, a former Blue Jacket himself. But when Columbus took Cole 12th overall in the 2021 draft, it was like fate knocking on his door. He returned to his roots, strengthening the foundation laid 18 years prior.
In his five years with the Blue Jackets, Sillinger has played 367 games (most of anyone from the '21 draft), posting a 51-89-140 line. The 23-year-old forward missed only one game last season because of illness but otherwise remained a healthy constant for the team. Sillinger is a young talent, and with the commitment he’s shown to Columbus, he’s become a big piece of the puzzle as the Blue Jackets work to return to the postseason.
His signing comes just in time to avoid an arbitration hearing, something surely both sides were glad to achieve. Now, the two parties can bask in the excitement knowing their futures align. Sillinger’s first goal after signing is to ensure he’s prepared both physically and mentally to rejoin his teammates as they take on the new 84-game format.
“My focus right now is not necessarily where I'm going to be playing or who I'm playing with,” Sillinger said. “It’s just coming to camp with just the best preparation, best shape, the best mental state I can be (in), just bring the best version of me. And I think the way I see it, if everyone just brings the best version of them, then the Blue Jackets as a whole are closer to the best version of our team as we could be.”
As exciting as this moment is for the entire Columbus community, Sillinger still feels that much more is possible now that he’s had five seasons in the NHL.
“Looking at my career to this point, I'd say it's probably more unfulfilling than fulfilling,” Sillinger said. “I know that there's more in there that I want to provide, and I know that collectively as a group, we expect more from ourselves.”
Every player dreams of lifting the Stanley Cup, seeing banners lifted into the rafters marking their significant contributions and, of course, delivering to their loyal fanbase. The Blue Jackets’ multiple close calls in recent years have kept Sillinger from his first playoff berth, but the contract extension allows him to continue to chase that goal.
Sillinger’s contract was just another item checked off on the long list of to-do’s this summer for president of hockey operations and general manager Don Waddell. Names in a similar boat included goaltender Jet Greaves and forward Charlie Coyle, who both signed extensions this summer, keeping some of Columbus’ core figures in the fold.
Having Coyle and Sillinger signed could keep together one of the team’s best lines from a season ago, as the two joined with Mathieu Olivier to form a trio that could score goals and keep the opposition off the board.
“Having the opportunity to be playing with (Olivier and Coyle) again, the expectation we're going to hold ourselves to is going to be even greater,” Sillinger said. “We made some good ground last year, but teams are just going to know more of what we can do. It's up to us to raise the bar and to bring that reliability and just everything we did last year, but on just another level.”
Columbus has always been a big part of Sillinger’s life, and now he knows he's not going anywhere. While there have been the usual offseason changes, Sillinger's familiar face is one to be entrusted with getting the Blue Jackets back into playoff contention. And there’d be no sweeter place to do so than the place he first called home.
“Just super excited to get back (to Columbus),” Sillinger said. “I'm already itching. It's been a long summer. We have a really tight locker room and a couple new faces to meet once we get down to camp and get things rolling. But again, just super pumped up and excited to see the guys again and to create some chemistry.”
