Artemi Panarin will have a number of options come free agency this summer, but one Columbus distillery hopes he stays right where he is. The winger for the Blue Jackets will hit the open market for the first time in his career, but Blue Jackets fans hope the sniper re-signs with Columbus.
Those fans include the owners of High Bank Distillery, a Columbus-based spirits maker that wants to give Panarin some extra incentive to re-sign with Ohio’s only NHL franchise. The company wants to give Panarin something other places might not be willing to provide, which is why they offered the 27-year-old free alcohol for life if he re-signed with the Blue Jackets.
High Bank posted on social media about the promotion, showing off some of their booze with a personal plea to Panarin to accept their offer and start negotiating with the Blue Jackets.
This is much more than just a social media stunt, however, the distillery did the next logical thing and bought a local billboard to promote its, well, promotion.
The offer is significant for a few different reasons, namely that Panarin didn’t actually sign with the Blue Jackets. The winger was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks and shined right away on a team loaded with talent. The Hawks won the Stanley Cup in 2015 — Panarin’s rookie year — but then the salary cap finally caught up with Chicago and they had to shake up the roster.
Panarin fell victim to one of those roster shakeups shortly after signing a 2-year, $12 million extension with Chicago in the middle of the 2016-17 season. He was then traded to the Blue Jackets in the summer of 2017, effectively playing out that deal entirely with the Blue Jackets. Panarin has been great with the Blue Jackets under that deal, but in a way that’s entirely the problem: it’s likely he will command a hefty contract on the open market, possibly more than Columbus can offer.
Whether Panarin can be swayed by the offer is unclear at this point. But it’s unlikely he’ll get a better one this summer, at least as far as booze is concerned.
