Kirill Marchenko's name won't stop circulating this summer, and the reporting around him keeps contradicting itself.
RG Media's Daria Tuboltseva reported last weekend that Marchenko was nearing a trade, with two clubs finalizing terms and his camp aware talks were ongoing.
Aaron Portzline of The Athletic shot that down almost immediately.
"I was told that these current rumors of this trade being imminent are not factual," Portzline said. "My understanding is that the Blue Jackets have not had trade discussions involving Kirill Marchenko since that initial flurry right at the draft."
Even Marchenko's own agent, Dan Milstein, mocked the coverage directly.
"The confidence here is doing a lot of heavy lifting, shame it's not attached to anything real," Milstein said.
GM Don Waddell has been just as direct publicly, stating Marchenko will be a Blue Jacket when this season starts.
Marchenko is under contract through next season and doesn't reach unrestricted free agency until 2028, meaning Columbus has zero pressure to accept a discount right now.
Why Columbus could demand Michael Hage as the price
The actual asking price is where this story gets more interesting than the will-he-won't-he noise.
Anthony Di Marco of Daily Faceoff was asked directly what it would take from the Montreal Canadiens to land Marchenko.
"You always jump to Reinbacher and Hage," Di Marco said. "If I'm Don Waddell, I'm asking for Michael Hage."
Di Marco pointed to uncertainty around Columbus prospect Cayden Lindstrom, a fourth overall pick from two years ago dealing with back problems, as a reason the Jackets might need center help beyond their current group.
"I think Reinbacher, along with Michael Hage, have to be the ask or the starting point at least if you're Don Waddell," Di Marco said.
He also noted Columbus is deep on the left side of its blue line with Ivan Provorov, Denton Mateychuk, and Zachary Werenski, making a right-shot defenseman like David Reinbacher an appealing fit in return.
Werenski posted 22 goals and 59 assists for 81 points in 75 games, exactly the kind of anchor that makes adding another top prospect on that side less urgent for Columbus.
One real deadline is actually forming here. September 16th is the cutoff for eight year contract extensions, a date that could push Marchenko toward a decision if he won't commit long term in Columbus.
Montreal remains the team most persistently linked, with Frank Seravalli reporting the Canadiens were prepared to make a massive offer.
The Canadiens and Utah Mammoth have both been named among the frontrunners, and the Buffalo Sabres have quietly surfaced too, given GM Jarmo Kekalainen originally drafted Marchenko in Columbus.
Marchenko, 26, is coming off a career year, posting 27 goals and 40 assists for 67 points in 76 games while leading Columbus in goals for a third straight season.
All of that production comes on a $3,850,000 cap hit, which explains exactly why this asking price keeps climbing every time someone reports it out loud.
Should Montreal give up Michael Hage to land Kirill Marchenko?
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