The Columbus Blue Jackets will enter the 2024-25 season with a lot of questions surrounding their team. Perhaps at the top of the list is how the goaltending situation will play out.
The Blue Jackets appear ready to run it back from 2023-24. Elvis Merzlikins and Daniil Tarasov are ready to occupy the 1-2 positions in some order. Training camp will dictate who gets the first shot.
In Part 1 of our 2024 Blue Jackets Summer Series, we spoke at length about how new head coach Dean Evason and his structure could revive the position. Both Merzlikins and Tarasov could benefit from a structure of low-event hockey in which fewer high-quality shots are taken against them.
We’ll start to get some answers to questions in a little more than a month when Training Camp opens. On Saturday, we caught up with Tarasov who attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony at Chiller North for the unveiling of the sporting-goods collection bins. He opened up about his offseason and why he’s so excited for 2024-25. Here is Part 3 of our Blue Jackets Summer Series.
Tarasov Fully Healthy
Perhaps the best news any Blue Jackets’ fan could hear is that going into his third Training Camp, Tarasov is fully healthy. He came into the league coming off a major knee injury and has had bumps in the road along the way. But when he’s been in and available, he’s shown flashes of what kind of goalie he can be.
“I’m fully healthy and really excited about the new season,” Tarasov said. “Especially starting the training camp healthy and enjoying the season healthy.”
Before recently coming back to Columbus, Tarasov spent a couple of months back in Russia. Before ramping up his offseason training, he took the time to rest. One of his biggest priorities of this offseason was how he treated his body.
“I’m just trying to be smart with your body,” Tarasov said. “I got a lot of lessons from the last two seasons especially with the amount of injuries. I think I found a good balance between the rest and the workload and now I’m feeling really in good shape.”
“I started, I got one month’s rest. Really like trying to calm down, get the body rest and started work beginning July 1 actually. With the workouts every day doing some sessions in the gym and working with our strength coaches, Kevin Collins. And now I’m feeling really, really good and…
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