Welcome to the last game in October for the Columbus Blue Jackets. They host the New York Islanders in their Halloween game on Wednesday night at Nationwide Arena.
With a win, the Blue Jackets would finish the month with a 5-3-1 record, something virtually nobody predicted. As for the Islanders, they enter Wednesday night’s game scoring only 22 goals in their first nine games while winning just three times. They’re coming off a 3-1 home loss to the Anaheim Ducks in a game which they dominated chances but had no finish.
In this gameday edition of News & Rumors, we will provide a couple of quick injury updates, some good news for once. Then we’ll discuss a developing theme with one of the Blue Jackets’ rising stars.
Johnson Does Not Need Surgery
The Blue Jackets got the best possible news. Kent Johnson will not need surgery on his injured shoulder. It was the same shoulder he had surgery repaired last season.
To say getting that news was a big sigh of relief for Johnson and the Blue Jackets is a major understatement. He will put in the necessary work to heal and then come back in a reasonable amount of time.
The Blue Jackets do not give specific timeframes these days. With injuries like Johnson’s, it’s especially hard to pinpoint a timeline anyway. The fact that his locker stall is still in the room was a good sign he got good news on his upcoming recovery. Erik Gudbranson and Boone Jenner each had surgery. Their stalls are not in the room.
It will be a while before we see Johnson in a game. But given he and the team avoided the worst-case scenario, it’s possible we could see him closer to midseason than the end of the season. Given how he reacted when the injury occurred, that is very positive news for a player who was off to a hot start.
Voronkov Getting Closer
Some more good news. Dmitri Voronkov continues to get closer to game action. The Blue Jackets originally stated that he could return by the end of November. While they haven’t provided a recent update, his presence at practices and the optional morning skates is encouraging.
Whether Voronkov can beat the original timeline is still to be determined. But from all indications watching him, he seems close. It will now be a matter of how he feels after the practices.
Voronkov was spotted in a non-contact jersey at Tuesday’s practice. He then skated with the optional…
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