Did you miss anything from the past week at The Hockey News - Columbus Blue Jackets? If you did, we have you covered with the Sunday Recap. Click on each card below to read the stories from the past week.
NEWS & NOTES
Former Cleveland Monsters forward Dylan Gambrell has signed a Standard Player Contract with the Iowa Wild of the American Hockey League. The contract is believed to be a one-year deal.
He was an unrestricted free agent.
Gambrell played in 54 games for Cleveland last season, scoring 13 goals and totaling 25 points.
The first one is Erik Gudbranson, who is likely going to be out for a significant time longer. He has missed 23 games so far and there no timeline for his return. The second player on the IR is Mathieu Olivier who has been out for eight games and much like Gudbranson, there isn't a timeline for his return as of yet. Olivier did skate with the team yesterday, so that's a very good sign.
Given how well Kirill Marchenko and Dmitri Voronkov have performed, the Jackets don’t need to worry about messages being lost in translation with most of their Russian players. Yegor Chinakhov, however, has been vexing, so a hyper-specific ENGLISH-TO-OMSK DICTIONARYmay help. Chinakhov’s unhappiness in Columbus was laid bare this summer, and while he’s providing offense when he plays, the right winger is only averaging 10 minutes of ice time per game and has been a healthy scratch at times.
Last night, Werenski played in his 600th career game, putting him fourth overall in franchise history. He moved past former Captain Nick Foligno and now sits 27 games behind recently retired CBJ legend Cam Atkinson. Rick Nash, who is second, sits at 674, which means Werenski will pass him by this time next season. Boone Jenner currently ranks first overall, but with him back and healthy, Werenski probably won't pass him.
The Summer of 2014 solidified Zach Werenski as a can’t miss prospect. Sure, Werenski was already a highly touted defenseman in the U.S. National Team Development Program, but when he made the decision to graduate high school early and enroll at the University of Michigan as a 17-yearold, that’s when he really committed to his NHL future. “It almost didn’t happen,” Werenski said. “I didn’t really see how it was possible, but my advisor at Grosse Pointe North (high school) helped me find a solution and we went after it.”
The Columbus Blue Jackets have announced that they have recalled forward Luca Del Bel Belluz on emergency recall today.
The recall occurs as the team prepares to leave for Southern California on a two-game trip to play the Ducks and Kings before the Christmas break. The move is for insurance purposes only in case of injury.
GAME PREVIEWS & RECAPS
Anaheim Ducks - 20-12-1 - 41 Points - 6-4-0 in the last 10 - 2nd in the Atlantic
Columbus Blue Jackets - 13-13-6 - 32 Points - 2-5-3 in the last 10 - 8th in the Metro
Blue Jackets Stats
- Power Play - 19.0% - 17th in the NHL
- Penalty Kill - 71.6% - 30th in the NHL
- Goals For - 92 - 23rd in the NHL
- Goals Against - 111 - 29th in the NHL
Zach Werenski(10,11), Boone Jenner(5), and Adam Fantilli(12) powered the offense, as Jet Greaves stopped 24 shots to beat the Anaheim Ducks 4-3 in overtime on a cold Tuesday night in Columbus.
The Blue Jackets played a very good game on Tuesday night. They jumped out to a 3-1 lead with two quick goals in the second period, and once they did, CBJ fans everywhere were holding their breath. The Blue Jackets and leads just don't mix nowadays.
Zach Werenski
- Felt that the team dialled in the details
- If they play like they did last night, they will win more games than not
- Felt that they needed to match their pace, however, it is important to just play their way
- Felt that they checked well
- Most importantly, they found a way to win
- Their mindset now is to move forward and get ready for Thursday
- Not surprised by Fantilli's efforts in OT, feels he can do it more
- Big moment for their group
Minnesota Wild - 20-9-5 - 45 Points - 7-2-1 in the last 10 - 3rd in the Central
Columbus Blue Jackets - 14-13-6 - 34 Points - 3-4-3 in the last 10 - 8th in the Metro
Blue Jackets Stats
- Power Play - 18.5% - 18th in the NHL
- Penalty Kill - 72.8% - 30th in the NHL
- Goals For - 96 - 21st in the NHL
- Goals Against - 114 - 29th in the NHL
Zach Werenski(12,13) continued his hot streak by scoring the only goals for Columbus, while Jet Greaves played very well for much of a 5-2 CBJ loss on Thursday night.
Coming into this game, fans of the Jackets weren't very confident. A Wild team that were winners of five straight, and who just pulled off a monster trade by bringing in superstar Quinn Hughes, just had to blow the Jackets out, right? Wrong.
