Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell confirmed he won't be trading defenseman Ivan Provorov prior to Friday's deadline."It's different this year, for me, than probably other years as a GM,

The Blue Jackets have acquired forward Luke Kunin from the Sharks ahead of the stretch run, as first reported by The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun.

As reported by The Athletic on Monday, the Blue Jackets are close to signing tough winger Mathieu Olivier to a long-term contract extension. Olivier, a pending unrestricted free agent, has emerged as perhaps the NHL’s top fighter, as well as a leader and a secondary scorer (12 goals) for Columbus this season.