The Columbus Blue Jackets are relatively healthy as they play games in the last week of January. As of game time Wednesday night when they host the Philadelphia Flyers on TNT, only defenseman Brendan Smith is on injured reserve.
The Blue Jackets get both Denton Mateychuk and Miles Wood back in their lineup. It will be the first time the team will have Mathieu Olivier, Erik Gudbranson and Mason Marchment return alongside the two players in the same match.
Now that the Blue Jackets are mostly healthy, they get a chance to see the full team with a good mix of skill and grit. It also forced them to make some roster decisions.
As a result of the returns of Mateychuk and Wood, the Blue Jackets placed Zach Aston-Reese and Brendan Gaunce on waivers with a view to being assigned to the AHL. Both players cleared waivers on Wednesday. With Dante Fabbro also set to return, the team will have to decide who plays on a daily basis.
We start News & Rumors this week with the return of Mateychuk and Wood.
Mateychuk & Wood Back
Mateychuk suffered an upper-body injury in Utah and has missed six games, excluding Monday’s postponed game, as he was scheduled to return. He’s ready to rock.
“I’m excited,” Mateychuk said. “It’s been a tough few weeks coming back and I hadn’t missed that much time. It’s tough to watch. I’m excited to get back in there and fight these guys.”
Mateychuk’s injury was originally thought to be short-lived. He admitted he wasn’t sure how long it would be before he returned.
“It’s kind of hard to determine with something like this. (I got back) probably a little faster than I thought. I was happy with how it went and now I’m back.”
As for Wood, he admitted he dodged a bullet with his injury. He thinks he’s ready to help the team.
“I’m really excited about it,” Wood said. “I think I’ve been gone exactly four weeks. I’m just excited to come back and try to help the group.”
“When I first got on the board, they thought it was my Achilles tendon, which was a wild sensation. But thank God it wasn’t.”
Expect Mateychuk to play on the right with Ivan Provorov, while Wood is expected to play on the fourth line with Dmitri Voronkov and Isac Lundestrom.
Zamula takes on the old team
The Blue Jackets’ newest defenseman, Egor Zamula, spent his entire career in the Flyers organization before moving to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Zamula ultimately did not report to the AHL and had his contract terminated. He signed as a free agent with the Blue Jackets.
Zamula will get his first crack at his old team on Wednesday evening. He reflected on what the game will mean and some of his thoughts on the Flyers.
“A little different,” Zamula said of facing the Flyers. “But at the same time it’s the first game in my life against them, so it’s going to be fun and I’ll wait until half past seven.”
“I grew up with these guys from AHL to NHL,” Zamula said. “I have a lot of good stories and a lot of great dinners together with these teammates and friends. So I’m pretty happy to see them today.”
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Although Zamula has only one assist in eight games so far with the Blue Jacketshe says he is loving his time with the team. He also knows that he can play better and wants to show that.
“I love the city and this organization,” Zamula said. “Great leadership group. Great old guys and a lot of young guys too. So it’s pretty simple… I know I can play better. But at the same time I have great partners who help me a lot. So I’m pretty happy with my game right now.”
Zamula is also familiar with a number of Blue Jackets players. He played in the U-18s with Kirill Marchenko. He also played with Ivan Provorov when both were members of the Flyers. Zamula said they all helped him feel comfortable with the transition to Columbus. So far he’s loving his new team.
Side dishes
- Wednesday will mark the first time the Blue Jackets are back on TNT since the infamous 9-4 crushing of the Buffalo Sabres. Tage Thompson scored five goals, including four in the first period. This game was originally scheduled for 7:00 and was moved to 7:30 due to national television. The Rangers/Islanders were originally in that slot.
- Two rusty goalkeepers face each other. Elvis Merzlikins makes his first start since leaving the game against Ottawa ill. Dan Vladar was activated from injured reserve and will make his first start in several weeks.
- Charlie Coyle will be celebrated Wednesday night when the Blue Jackets present him with his silver baton for reaching 1,000 NHL games played.
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