Jet Greaves has been called up from the AHL on an emergency basis as Merzlinkins continues to battle a stomach bug. Merzlinkins has played well in two games this season (1-1-0), recording a 1.84 GAA and .950 SV%. If Merzlinkins is indeed unable to play on Monday night, Spencer Martin will likely get his first start as a Blue Jacket.
Elvis Merzlinkins is currently battling a stomach illness and if he is unable to suit up on Monday against the Detroit Red Wings, Greaves will likely slide in as the backup for the Blue Jackets. Greaves played one game last season for the Blue Jackets, his NHL debut, where he saved 46 of 49 shots in a 4-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Aston-Reese was recently signed and started the season in Grand Rapids, where he was held off the scoresheet in his debut. He was recalled ahead of Saturday's game with Robby Fabbri out, but he is not expected to play vs. Tampa Bay.
Olivier missed the Blue Jackets' season opener with a leg injury but appears set to play in Saturday's game vs. the Rangers. The Blue Jackets will need to make a roster move in order for Olivier to play, so you'll know ahead of warmups if he's back or not.
Johnson was a healthy scratch in the Blue Jackets' season opening loss but will play Saturday vs. the Rangers. It's not clear who Johnson will replace in the lineup, but based on Friday's practice lines, it appears to be Jack Roslovic. Johnson had a strong rookie season, scoring 16 goals with 24 assists (40 points) in 79 games.
Merzlikins stopped 33 of 35 shots in the Blue Jackets' season-opening loss to the Flyers. Despite the loss, it was an encouraging outing for Merzlikins, who struggled mightily during the 2022-23 season. Tonight he'll face a difficult test with the Rangers in town. They had an impressive opening night win over the Sabres.
Johnson was a healthy scratch in the Blue Jackets' season-opening 4-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers but will slot into the lineup on Saturday against the New York Rangers as they search for their first victory of the season. Johnson will likely slot in on the third line with Cole Sillinger and Justin Danforth. He had 40 points (16G / 24A) in 79 games with the Blue Jackets last season.
Werenski was placed on the injured reserve and will miss at least one week after being the target of a knee-on-knee collision with Garnet Hathaway in the Blue Jackets' season opener. Hathaway was given a two-minute minor for kneeing on the play. Injuries have been a thorn in Werenski's side the last several seasons as he is coming off a 2022-23 campaign where he was limited to only 13 games. David Jiricek has been recalled from the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL in his absence.
Werenski left Thursday's loss after a knee-on-knee collision with Garnet Hathaway. Initially, it did not look good, but Blue Jackets' head coach Pascal Vincent said that Werenski's injury is not believed to be long-term. This is a fortunate break for Werenski, who missed 69 games a season ago.
A healthy scratch on Tuesday's opening night game against the Lightning, Fabbro will draw back into the lineup on Thursday in place of Luke Schenn (lower-body). Fabbro is expected to skate alongside Roman Josi on the Preds' top pair at 5v5. The 25-year-old defenseman tallied just two goals and nine assists in 79 games with the Predators last season.
Johnson will start the season as a healthy scratch but the talented centreman should find himself on the Blue Jackets roster before long. Patrik Laine being moved to the middle has created an influx of center-depth to start the season for the Blue Jackets, likely factoring into Johnson's early-season healthy scratch. The fifth overall pick from the 2021 NHL Entry Draft is coming off his rookie season with the Blue Jackets which saw him tally 40 points (16G / 24A) in 79 games.
After a fantastic rookie season in 2019-20, where he posted a 2.35 GAA and .923 SV% in 33 games (13-9-8), Merzlinkins has performed progressively worse each year. In 30 games last season (7-18-2), Merzlinkins had a horrendous 4.23 GAA and a .876 SV%. His league-worst GAA (minimum 10 starts) will need to be improved significantly or he will likely find himself battling for starts with backup goalie Spencer Martin. The Blue Jackets go into their season-opener listed as -113 home favourites against the Philadelphia Flyers.
After a fantastic rookie season in 2019-20, where he posted a 2.35 GAA and .923 SV% in 33 games (13-9-8), Merzlinkins has performed progressively worse each year. In 30 games last season (7-18-2), Merzlinkins had a horrendous 4.23 GAA and a .876 SV%. His league-worst GAA (minimum 10 starts) will need to be improved significantly or he will likely find himself battling for starts with backup goalie Spencer Martin. The Blue Jackets go into their season-opener listed as -113 home favourites against the Philadelphia Flyers.
Fabbro had two goals, nine assists, 50 PIMs, 101 SOG, and a -4 plus/minus through 79 games with Nashville in 2022-23 but will be a healthy scratch for their first game of the season vs. Tampa Bay. The 25-year-old defenseman is entering his sixth NHL season and should find himself in the Predators' lineup more often than not this season.
Chinakhov had four goals, nine assists, 44 SOG, 10 PIMs, and a -6 plus/minus through 30 games with Columbus in 2022-23 but will begin the season on the injured reserve as he deals with a back strain. The 22-year-old right-winger is out indefinitely as he enters his third NHL season. The former 1st round pick (21st overall) is expected to be a key depth piece for the young Blue Jackets in 2023-24.
Olivier will be forced to miss the beginning of the 2023-24 season as he was placed on the injured reserve Monday with a leg injury and will be out indefinitely. The 26-year-old forward is entering his fifth NHL season and second as a Blue Jacket after putting up five goals, 10 assists, 75 SOG, 81 PIMs, and a -20 plus/minus in 66 games in 2022-23.
Aston-Reese was released on a PTO earlier in the week by Carolina and has now found himself a spot on Detroit's roster after signing a one-year, two-way contract worth $775,000. The 29-year-old forward had 10 goals, four assists, 89 SOG, 25 PIMs, and a -6 plus/minus through 77 games with Toronto in 2022-23. The Red Wings will make his fourth NHL team in seven seasons.
Lundstrom had four goals, 10 assists, 60 SOG, two PIMs and a -13 plus/minus through 61 games in 2022-23 and will now be forced to miss the next six months as he recovers from surgery for an Achilles injury sustained in Sweden. The 23-year-old centre is now expected to return around the turn of the new year and will be hoping to take a step forward after a down season in 2022-23. He currently has 26 goals and 58 points in 212 career NHL games.
Wood had 13 goals, 14 assists, 167 SOG, 76 PIMs and a +1 plus/minus through through 76 game with New Jersey and has signed a six-year contract worth $15.0 million ($2.5M AAV) with Colorado. The 27-year-old left-winger leaves New Jersey after eight successful seasons which saw him score 78 goals and 148 points in 402 career games played.
