It would be the next step for someone who has been considered to be one of the top young defensemen not just in Canada but the world the past few years. This summer was the second one in which Ceulemans attended the Team Canada summer evaluation camp, and the fact that many thought the Blue Jackets got a steal when they took the 6-2, 198-pound defenseman 25th overall in the 2021 draft shows just how highly thought of he has been.
Ceulemans is mentioned in the same breath as such names as Kent Johnson, Cole Sillinger and Denton Mateychuk when it comes to building blocks for the CBJ future, and the good news is he's played with all of those Jackets at Team Canada camps the past few years.
That's one reason Ceulemans felt at home during his first trip to Columbus on official CBJ duty last month when he was part of the team's prospects development camp. He's been to Columbus previously while playing with the University of Wisconsin, where he was a freshman a year ago, but last month's visit was his first chance to truly put on the gear and feel what it's like to be with the NHL squad.
"It was good to meet all the other prospects and all the staff," he said. "It was my first time meeting most of them, so it was cool. The first day I got to see a little tour of the city and walk downtown a little bit. It's a really awesome city, so it was pretty cool."
On the ice, Ceulemans said he was happy with what he showed in his three-day visit to Columbus. Known for his offensive abilities at the junior level, as Ceulemans posted nine goals and 46 points in 52 games over two years with Brooks of the AJHL before heading to Wisconsin, he felt he showed a solid defensive game at development camp.
That's a spot the Blue Jackets would like him to continue to develop as he gets ready for the professional level.
"I think something (head coach) Brad Larsen mentioned to me was being intense all the time, trying to be aggressive all the time and taking charge," Ceulemans said. "I think that's something I'm going to really try to bring this year. It's important just being more consistent too. All these coaches had great little tips and tricks they shared with me, and I want to apply a lot of that to my game."
His first season at Wisconsin a year ago was filled with ups and downs, including an injury suffered on a massive hit in a rivalry game vs. Minnesota as well as the fact the Badgers went just 10-24-3. On the good side of the ledger, Ceulemans finished in the top 10 in the Big Ten in scoring from the blue line with a 7-15-22 line in 34 games, including a two-goal game in Wisconsin's visit to Columbus to play Ohio State.
"It was challenging at the start just adjusting to the speed and the bigger players," he said. "There were a lot of older guys, probably the oldest I've played against so far, so that was cool. We had a lot of adversity last year. We weren't the best team. I think that's good for building character and resilience. I think next year, using those skills is going to be good for the team.
"I think it took me a couple of games to get into it, but once I figured it out, I took off a little bit and our team started winning a little more, so that was great to see."
Ceulemans' fellow first-round picks from the 2021 draft, Johnson and Sillinger, have already made their NHL debuts, but his path is a little more traditional. Ceulemans is set to return to Wisconsin for another year and remains part of a talented defensive pipeline that includes 2022 first-round picks Mateychuk and David Jiricek, fellow 2021 picks Stanislav Svozil and Guillaume Richard, and much more.
He said he's excited to be part of that blue line in the future, and he think he'll be a big part of it when his time comes.
"I think I've matured a lot," Ceulemans said. "I'm a solid two-way defenseman now. I'm able to play on the PK and the power play. I use my body a lot more too now, so I think bringing that physical element is going to help my game, too."
