Blue Jackets News & Rumors: Injuries, Current Contracts & More – The Hockey Writers Columbus Blue Jackets Latest News, Analysis & More

We have reached a major milestone in the NHL. Wednesday night’s games are the last until U.S. Thanksgiving, the spot in the schedule when most teams have an idea of ​​who they are and what they might need moving forward.

For the Columbus Blue Jackets, they are home after a four-game road trip in which they earned just three of a possible eight points. They are coming off a 5-1 clunker against the Washington Capitals, a game that was more about potential injuries than the final score itself.

That’s where we start this edition of Blue Jackets’ News & Rumors. What about the injured?

Injury overview

The Blue Jackets lost both Mathieu Olivier and Zach Werenski against the Capitals on Monday night. Both were unable to return due to upper body injuries.

Kirill Marchenko did not play on Monday because he is struggling with his own injury. He will not play against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday night. Due to this injury, he left the morning skate in Washington on Monday. His status is day to day.

In the midst of this setback, the Blue Jackets received some good news. Although Werenski did not practice Tuesday, he skated Wednesday morning and considered himself good for the competition.

As for Olivier, the news wasn’t so good. He is out of Wednesday night’s game against the Maple Leafs. It is not yet known at the time of writing what his status will be. The Blue Jackets have Thursday off for Thanksgiving. They next play the Pittsburgh Penguins on Black Friday. We’ll see if Olivier or Marchenko can return.

The Blue Jackets still have captain Boone Jenner and Erik Gudbranson on injured reserve. Both are moving forward. General Manager Don Waddell told The Hockey Writers this week that a more definitive timeline for Gudbranson would be determined once they returned home from the road trip. It appears that both are not far away from a potential return, although an exact timeline is not yet known.

Due to the injuries to Olivier and Marchenko, we will have the Blue Jackets’ NHL debut on Wednesday night. Luca Pinelli, former captain of the Ottawa 67s, will make his expected debut. The Stoney Creek, ON native hopes to become the latest example of a Blue Jacket enjoying his debut against the team they grew up around.

Pinelli’s recall was made on an emergency basismeaning there was a chance the Blue Jackets would have fewer than 12 forwards. Once some of the injured are healthy again, he will return to the Cleveland Monsters, where he got off to a good start this season.

Contract updates

It’s been a while since we’ve heard anything about potential contract extensions for RFA Adam Fantilli and UFA Jenner. Waddell participated in the DFO Rundown this week and talked about that topic.

There are currently no active negotiations taking place with either player. However, it was agreed that the two sides will meet during the Olympic Break. That time seems to be becoming an important part of the calendar.

With no matches taking place in the league, that gives teams and players time to connect and see where things stand.

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In both Fantilli’s and Jenner’s cases, it was agreed not to discuss the conversations until later. Both sides wanted to see how things turned out.

Fantilli is once again playing the role of 1C and has been on a roll lately. He should get a contract similar to the one Logan Cooley just got in Utah.

Meanwhile, nothing has changed with Jenner. The Blue Jackets would like to keep him. He loves Columbus and is open to staying. It’s just a matter of figuring out what works for both parties.

For the time being, we don’t have to wonder whether something is going on. That will pick up again in February as the whole world focuses on Milan.

Side dishes

• Another thing Waddell said during the DFO Rundown that was interesting was his thoughts on the state of the trading market. Teams now want selection players in his mind. He also said of the state of the trading market: “Things haven’t warmed up yet, let’s just say that. The research calls both ways.” With reports of teams potentially making certain players available (e.g. Nashville or Vancouver), there’s always the chance that something might develop. Waddell said he will lean on his scouts to see if there is anyone they should keep an eye on. They will act accordingly based on reports. You can listen to the full interview with Waddell here.
• As sporadically as the Blue Jackets have played, they have scored points in seven of their last nine games (4-2-3 record in that span). They have had six overtime games in their last ten overall. They collect the points. But they also let points slip away.
• Charlie Coyle’s next point will be his 500th point in the NHL. He is also 27 games shy of 1,000 in his NHL career. That will happen later in January at Nationwide, assuming he doesn’t miss a single moment.
• The Blue Jackets have a lot of room to improve, as any team would. But they are in the playoff race on Thanksgiving. The leaderboard is so full that every point matters. Four other teams came in with 25 points on Wednesday, along with the Blue Jackets.
• Brendan Smith will make his season debut with the Blue Jackets on Wednesday. He was in AHL Cleveland on a PTO, but signed a two-way contract for the remainder of the season. He is expected to play on the third pair with Dante Fabbro.