Success of Blue Jackets just one reason Kuraly returned home

Sean Kuraly won't be the first Columbus native and Ohio AAA Blue Jackets product to play for the Blue Jackets.
It seems pretty assured he won't be the last, either, given the way the program is churning out college-level and NHL-caliber talent.
But he checks another box for those who see the symbiotic nature of the success of the youth hockey program and the Columbus Blue Jackets. The establishment of the Jackets led to a surge in interest in the sport, which is paying off as more and more central Ohio natives make it to the top rungs of the sport.

That led to 2019, when Kole Sherwood became the first AAA Jackets alum and Central Ohio native to skate for the Jackets. Two years later, Jack Roslovic became the first NHL regular to join the squad when he was acquired from Winnipeg.
And now Kuraly is the first to establish his career elsewhere then return to the capital city as a free agent to skate for the hometown team. To hear him tell it, that was largely because of what he watched develop from afar over the past few seasons.
"I think me being here is telling you how cool I thought it was," to watch Sherwood and Roslovic play at home, Kuraly said last week after signing a four-year deal to join the Jackets. "Now I'm here. I thought it was pretty awesome -- something that I wanted to do myself. Those guys, credit to them that they did that."

Those faces are certainly all familiar, and it definitely felt like a homecoming last week when free agency started. Kuraly played golf with Roslovic the weekend before signing, and he was welcomed to Nationwide Arena after signing by Ed Gingher, whose work with the AAA Jackets has helped it become one of the premier local development programs in the country.
"It's full circle," the Dublin native said of coming home. "I'm just super excited. This was circled on my places to be and the place I wanted to be, and to be here now is awesome. It feels like it has come full circle, so I'm just excited to get going. … If I could do it tomorrow, I'd ask to do it tomorrow. I'm excited to get to work and join the group and see if I can help the team win some games."
As Kuraly mentioned, there is a hockey element to all of this as well, as the Blue Jackets targeted the hard-working center to add depth down the middle after a season of uncertainty at the position. He's been a regular with the Bruins the past five seasons, playing largely bottom-six and penalty killing minutes as an energy forward while totaling 24 goals and 68 points in 270 regular-season games and winning 57.4 percent of his faceoffs last season. The 28-year-old also has skated in 57 playoff games over the past five seasons, totaling nine goals and 19 points.
READ MORE: Five things to know about the CBJ signing of Kuraly
The Blue Jackets long had an eye on adding Kuraly to the mix because of everything he brings to the table, including leadership abilities, general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said.
"We have been aware of his (free agent) status for a while and watched him and keyed in on him and analyzed him and always thought he would be a great fit," Kekalainen said. "When he became available, we moved quickly on it and got this signed."
There is some hope Kuraly's offensive game will blossom even further in Columbus, as Roslovic's did, and Kekalainen is one who wouldn't be mad if that was the case.

"I think you always want to have guys push for a big role, but he's always shown that he plays the same way with the same type of character, the competitiveness in whatever role he's in," Kekalainen said. "He's a team-first guy with a lot of character. Those were the signs that we valued a lot in him, and we'll let his play decide what roll he fills with our team, but he's also versatile and he's competitive and if he wants and can push for a bigger role here, that's great."
For his part, Kuraly is more focused on the success of the team, and he has faith in what the Blue Jackets are hoping to accomplish during the length of his tenure after a strong offseason.
While he's the only player Columbus has brought in so far this offseason from outside of the organization in free agency, the Blue Jackets in the last two weeks also have acquired talented young defensemen Adam Boqvist and Jake Bean; inked Zach Werenski, Boone Jenner and Eric Robinson to contract extensions; and are thought to have had a successful draft including first-round draft picks Kent Johnson, Cole Sillinger and Corson Ceulemans.
Adding that to the core of a team that has made four playoff appearances in the past five years, Kuraly sees good days ahead in Columbus.
"We've played this team a lot over the past years," Kuraly said. "There's been some turnover, but this is always a hard team to play, and you'd hear that from every guy that's in my locker room that I played for in Boston. I have a lot of respect for the culture that is here and have a lot of respect for the guys that are in this locker room and a lot of faith in where this is going here."
Kuraly was part of the end of one of those playoff runs, though, as he was on the Boston team that beat Columbus in the second round of the 2019 postseason, then went on to come within a game of winning the Stanley Cup. Kuraly might have been at his best in that Columbus series, constantly creating turnovers as part of a hard forecheck and tallying in Nationwide Arena during the Bruins' Game 4 victory.
Having been on the other side, Kuraly can't wait to score in that venue and hear the celebrations that follow.
"I've been here many times when the cannon has gone -- hopefully many more," he said. "It's different, I think, when it's going to be for you. I can't wait."