Now that it’s all out in the open, things will start to escalate and percolate on the Zach Werenski front.Not that it guarantees the Columbus Blue Jackets will necessarily trade him anytime soon. General manager Don Waddell has been around a long time. He won’t be rattled by this. Disappointed? Sure. But it’s not his first rodeo.Remember, he had a hand in building the eventual Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes.But yes, as I shared on X prior to the start of the first round of the NHL Draft on Friday night, the Jackets have started fielding trade calls on Werenski. The message has been clear from the player’s side: He’s very unlikely to extend at the end of his contract in two years, so it might be in the team’s best interest to fully gauge the trade market now as opposed to waiting a year or more and seeing the asset value diminish.According to league sources, granted anonymity to speak about talks that aren’t public, here are the options the Jackets have laid out internally on how to proceed:1. Trade him this offseason: This is probably where they’ll get the best return. But that depends on how strongly teams step up.From talking to other teams around the league, Waddell’s message to clubs early in these proceedings has been clear: He wants NHL players, not picks or prospects. Some teams tried before Friday’s first round with picks/prospects concepts. Columbus isn’t interested in that. It appears that Waddell is not making a futures deal whatsoever.The Jackets want to remain competitive. Teams need to step up with good players in trade talks.2. Wait a year until next summer when Werenski has one year left on his deal: This is probably the least desirable option of the three I’m laying out, because next summer Werenski will have more control of things with one year left. Teams may not want to step up as much in trade talks unless they know they can sign him.So it’s a murkier proposition with the player one year away from UFA status. And remember, he has a no-movement clause.3. Keep Werenski for the extent of his contract: I’m guessing Jackets ownership are pretty annoyed this is all happening after they’ve paid Werenski $33.5 million of his six-year, $57.5 million, front-loaded contract, with a $6.25 million signing bonus payable in October, as well. But way more important than the money aspect, I would venture to guess that ownership also may be reacting to scar tissue from seeing the likes of Artemi Panarin, Sergei Bobrovsky and Rick Nash, among others, leave town over the years.The Jackets want to stem that flow. They don’t want to be known as a franchise that keeps losing star players. Don’t underestimate that part in how this will play out.Still, of those three options, I think No. 1 is what will most likely play out as long as teams step up with legitimate offers.How to win a Stanley Cup without superstarsHarman DayalOn the other hand, go back to a comment Waddell made to me on Tuesday at the Board of Governors meeting in New York City, responding to a question about the likes of Dylan Larkin and Brady Tkachuk and whether that was a worrisome trend for teams around the league.“I think it’s the model of what the NBA has done over the years, where players ask to get traded to particular places and somehow they always make it happen,” Waddell said. “I will say, for myself, if we’re in that position, just because somebody asked for a trade, you don’t always have to make it.”He probably knew deep down he was referencing his own looming situation with Werenski by then, but, again, he was opining on the league at large in that moment.And that was before Kirill Marchenko’s agent, Dan Milstein, also gave Waddell some terrible news Friday morning about his client deciding he was not extending when his deal is up in a year, as first reported by Kevin Weekes of ESPN/NHL Network. It’s important to note that Marchenko has not asked for a trade. He is ready to come back and play next season for the Jackets and potentially the year after that, as Columbus controls his restricted free agent rights for another year. But the message was delivered that he doesn’t want to be around long-term. And seems to have Marchenko come to that decision once he realized what was happening with Werenski.Several teams, including the Montreal Canadiens, are calling on Marchenko. But despite the message from Marchenko’s agent Friday, my understanding is that Waddell is still telling teams in the last 24 hours that he has no intention of trading the forward this summer.So, lots to chew on here.And all due respect to Marchenko, a very talented forward and a player many teams covet, the Werenski story looms at the biggest this entire NHL offseason. He just won the Norris Trophy for heaven’s sake.It might be easier to report the teams that won’t pick up the phone rather than the interest that’s already out there. My understanding is that eight to 10 teams have already called the Blue Jackets. You can absolutely count the Dallas Stars, Philadelphia Flyers, San Jose Sharks and Carolina Hurricanes among the early teams with interest. The Stars’ and Flyers’ interest I would describe as keen. The one Canadian team that the Team USA Olympic gold medal winner might consider, by the way, is the Toronto Maple Leafs. Again, we’re going to get to at least a dozen teams by the end of this thing for sure.Unlike the Larkin situation, I don’t believe Werenski’s agent, Judd Moldaver, has handed the Jackets a specific list of teams. There’s probably a loose understanding of what teams might make the most sense for Werenski to waive his no-movement clause, but at the outset, it feels like the agent doesn’t want to tie the team’s hands too much as far as fully investigating the trade market.Waddell told teams Friday that he was focused on the draft this weekend and would turn his attention to the Werenski file after that. But again, teams better step up for real. Columbus isn’t going to just move a Norris Trophy winner to appease the player. The Jackets need to have a trade on the table this summer that helps them stay competitive.It’s a brutal situation for the franchise, and I feel for the fan base. Because despite a track record lacking deep playoff success, it’s a market where fans have shown remarkable allegiance and loyalty over the years. If there’s a team that deserves a break, it’s the Blue Jackets.They’ve gotten the complete opposite of that in the last few days.Now let’s see how the organization reacts.But all things being equal, I think Werenski is dealt this offseason.