"I needed to move on" - Patrik Laine reflects on his decision to split with Blue Jackets

By Zachary Roberts

Modified Aug 20, 2024 17:32 GMT

Patrik Laine's time with the Columbus Blue Jackets came to an end after the star defenseman was traded. This was not surprising, as he had previously requested a deal and was given permission by the team to pursue other options this offseason.

Laine was asked about what went wrong in Columbus and if he ever envisioned coming back healthy this season and continuing to build the Blue Jackets up.

He said via TSN (15:43):

"If I'm being honest, I don't really want to get into that. Whatever happened, happened. I don't want to look back on it too much. I just want to focus on what's ahead of me.

"It just wasn't a great fit for me. The team and I needed to move on, and I needed a fresh start as a person. I'm going to leave it at that. Now, I'm more focused on what's ahead of me instead of what's in the rearview."

Now that Laine has moved on, he'd like to look ahead to his time with the Montreal Canadiens and not at his failed stint with the Blue Jackets.

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Blue Jackets GM wishes Patrick Laine well after trade

The Columbus Blue Jackets parted ways with Patrik Laine, sending him and a second-round pick in 2026 to the Montreal Canadiens for Jordan Harris. It wasn't a surprising trade—something that GM Don Waddell touched on.

Patrik Laine is no longer with the Blue Jackets (Imagn)

He said via NHL very plainly that it was Laine's decision and it was made clear to the team what he wanted to happen:

"We want players that want to be Blue Jackets and Patrik made it clear that he thought a change of scenery was best for him," Waddell said via NHL.com. "We were able to acquire a good young player in Jordan Harris while maintaining financial flexibility in this deal which was very important to us. We wish Patrik all the best."

It remains to be seen if Laine drops more details about the bitter split with the Blue Jackets.