COLUMBUS, Ohio — Well, the NHL offseason just got a lot more interesting with the news on Thursday that Dylan Larkin has requested a trade from the Detroit Red Wings. You might know that Larkin’s best friend is Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski.Ladies and gentleman, start your rumors!The Stanley Cup Final is off to a hell of a start, now headed to Las Vegas with the series knotted 1-1. Meanwhile, the rest of the league is in Buffalo for the scouting combine, where GMs get together for chats that may or may not bear fruit in the coming weeks.Earlier this week, we answered myriad questions about the Blue Jackets’ short-term plans this offseason, how they plan to get better after missing the playoffs for a sixth straight season.There’s a few of those here, too, but also more long-range issues, including questions about Werenski’s patience, the Blue Jackets’ overall progress, the club’s next GM after Don Waddell, etc.How much longer should Zach Werenski tolerate the Blue Jackets’ mediocrity? How much longer will he tolerate it? — Ed P.It’s a great question, but probably one that only Werenski should/could answer. He’s won a gold medal both in the Olympics and the World Championships. He’s now won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s top defenseman. Really, the only thing Werenski hasn’t accomplished is team success in the NHL. He has two years remaining on his contract. On July 1, 2027, the Blue Jackets can sign him to a massive extension. I don’t think it’s a reach to say that this coming season could be massively important. The Blue Jackets certainly expect to win in 2026-27, and that would make it a whole lot easier for players to commit long-term. If they take a backward step, who knows? Werenski will be 30 years old when he begins play under his next contract. He’s in his prime now, and he will be then. But he wants to win, and NHL careers don’t last forever.What do we need to do to sell Werenski on the future? And should we? — G.R.Well, as of Thursday, I’d be making a call to the Red Wings to inquire about Larkin. Werenski and Larkin are extremely close, and have been for a long time. So there’s a start, but there are other ways. Keep building. Keep growing from within. Both of those things, not just one. Boone Jenner is an unrestricted free agent, and may be playing somewhere else next season. The would open up the captaincy, and Werenski is an obvious choice. Werenski has always spoken highly about living and playing in Columbus.Where did it all go wrong? It feels like an enormous gulf exists between us and the elites of the league and we can’t do anything about it year after year. — Joshua R.Let’s go back four years to 2022-23, when the Blue Jackets bottomed out, dumped veterans for first-round picks and started to do what most would call a rebuild. Starting in 2022-23, their overall league finishes, respectively, were 31st, 29th, 20th, and 18th. Since that same starting point, their point totals, respectively, have been 59, 66, 89, and 92. There’s a pretty clear direction there. Sure, the step they took this season wasn’t a big enough improvement to make the playoffs, but I would argue that the gulf isn’t that big and that it’s definitely closing. No question, the end of the season was deflating and demoralizing. But two months later, if you step back, you can see the climb that’s taking place.If you had to take a guess, what kind of contract does Adam Fantilli get this summer? — Union Blue SoldiersIf it’s a short-term deal, I suspect the Blue Jackets would want the contract to walk him up to one year within UFA status so that they still have that margin of control with the next deal. In that scenario, I’d say three years, $8 million to $8.5 million per season. If it’s a long term deal, the Blue Jackets will pay for the UFA seasons they’d be buying. In that case, I’d guess six years, $10 million to $12 million per season. For a 21-year-old, No. 1 center, you’re paying for his so-far production (already a 31-goal season) and you’re paying for potential, which is enormous.Do the Blue Jackets need a No. 1 shutdown defenseman to compete for the Cup? — Nick S.Honestly, I don’t think we’re going to know what they need to compete “for the Cup” until we know what this team looks like in the playoffs. They have to get there first, and in that regard, I think the bigger issues are up front rather than on defense. If the 2025-26 version of Damon Severson can be the consistent version, I like their top four, especially as Denton Mateychuk continues to emerge. I really want to see this group under the pace and pressure of the playoffs. We learned a lot late last season, and what we learned wasn’t pretty. It’ll be fascinating to see how they respond next season and see how they elevate — and who elevates — if they actually get into the playoffs. That’s when beards grow and young players grow up.We were in the trade market last season for Noah Dobson before he went to Montreal. Any rumblings of the same? — Ethan B.You’ll recall that the pursuit of Dobson was made while Ivan Provorov was a pending UFA. But once the Blue Jackets bowed out of Dobson talks with the Islanders, they turned back and signed Provorov to a lengthy extension. That top four, with Werenski-Severson and Denton Mateychuk-Provorov, is pretty well-established now. Not saying they couldn’t flip it upside down with a trade or two, but the Blue Jackets’ needs this summer have changed.Who do you think Waddell will target this summer? My four: Jordan Kyrou, Troy Terry, Bryan Rust, and Pavel Buchnevich — UndisclosedCould certainly see Rust, who might be on the move from Pittsburgh. Kyrou would bring the potential of speed and scoring, which they need, but he’s not coming off a great season in St. Louis. I could see Jake DeBrusk, who could be on the move out of Vancouver. Your question was submitted before Larkin’s trade request was known, but that’s an obvious phone call for Waddell to make. Truth be told, there are probably several other players available that haven’t drawn public mention just yet. This could be a fun summer.Will the NHL salary-cap increases outpace the Blue Jackets’ budget? Can smaller-market teams keep pace? — Stephen C.The NHL also has a salary “floor,” which requires clubs to be within 15 percent of the NHL’s salary cap midpoint. That’s in place to keep clubs from having massive disparities, as in the pre-cap era when the $105 million Red Wings played — and pummeled — the $18.6 million Blue Jackets. So there’s that. Plus, this belief that the Blue Jackets don’t spend money doesn’t stick with the facts. The same people who complain about Provorov’s big ticket last summer and Charlie Coyle’s this summer are often the same who complain that owner John P. McConnell — and by extension, Waddell — aren’t big spenders. If they aren’t at the cap over the next two years, just know that they’ll need to set aside $16 million per season for Werenski in two years.