:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46910292/GettyImages-460937292.0.jpg)
The speculation has ended and the question on everyone's mind this off-season has finally been answered. Zach Werenski has confirmed to NHL.com that he will be back in Ann Arbor next season.
.@ZachWerenski scores OT winner, confirms return to @umichhockey for sophomore year >> http://t.co/c4jz3qIlSa #CBJ pic.twitter.com/GckKEBIF4q
— NHL Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) August 6, 2015
Werenski was selected 8th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2015 NHL Draft and was reportedly undecided about his future, but after time passed without a decision and every player picked in the Top-10 besides Werenski and Pavel Zacha signed NHL contracts, it seemed like Werenski would end up back at Michigan and not in the NHL or with the London Knights of the OHL.
The news is big for a Michigan program that has lost it's fair share of recruits and roster players after the NHL draft, and even bigger news for a blueline that could ill afford to lose their best returning defenseman.