Blue Jackets' Cole Sillinger: Sitting out Wednesday
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Sillinger (upper body) won't play Wednesday versus the Maple Leafs.
Sillinger has one goal over five games since he returned from missing one contest due to an illness. It's unclear when he sustained the injury, as he logged 19:10 of ice time versus the Islanders in the Blue Jackets' last game Monday. Columbus will dress seven defensemen for this contest.
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Blue Jackets' Denton Mateychuk: Won't play vs. Toronto
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Mateychuk (illness) isn't available for Wednesday's clash against Toronto, per Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site.
Mateychuk also missed Monday's 3-1 loss to the Islanders due to the illness. He has a goal and three points in 12 appearances in 2024-25. When Mateychuk is healthy, he might serve in a bottom-four capacity and see some time on the power play.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Gets starting nod against Leafs
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Merzlikins will be between the pipes on the road versus Toronto on Wednesday, Dave McCarthy of NHL.com reports.
Merzlikins will look to bounce back from Monday's clash with the Islanders in which he gave up three goals on 25 shots. The 30-year-old netminder needs just four more victories to reach the 20-win threshold for just the second time in his career and could even push for 30 for the first time. With Merzlikins going Wednesday, Daniil Tarasov should take the second leg of the back-to-back versus Carolina on Thursday.
Blue Jackets' Dmitri Voronkov: Adds power-play helper
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Voronkov notched a power-play assist, three shots on goal, three hits and a minus-2 rating in Monday's 3-1 loss to the Islanders.
Voronkov ended a three-game slump when he helped out on Kent Johnson's first-period tally. The 24-year-old Voronkov has not had a drought go beyond three contests, so he's often been reliable enough to be rostered in many fantasy formats. Overall, the forward has 17 goals, 14 assists, nine power-play points, 83 shots on net and a plus-14 rating across 38 appearances.
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Blue Jackets' Kent Johnson: Opens scoring in loss
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Johnson scored a power-play goal on four shots and blocked three shots in Monday's 3-1 loss to the Islanders.
Johnson is up to three goals and three assists over nine outings in January. Three of those points have come with the man advantage. The 22-year-old is up to 13 tallies, 14 assists, 68 shots on net and a minus-6 rating over 33 appearances. Monday also marked the first time all season he's blocked multiple shots in a game -- while he often plays in all situations, the bulk of his production comes from points, not physical play.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Win streak ends
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Merzlikins gave up three goals on 25 shots in a 3-1 loss to the Islanders on Monday.
Merzlikins was beaten for the first time since Jan. 2 against the Red Wings, a stretch of four wins during which he registered a 2.45 GAA and a .906 save percentage. With the Jackets heading into a road back-to-back versus the Leafs and Canes on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, look for Merzlikins to split the goaltending duties with Daniil Tarasov -- though it's possible the team could bring Jet Greaves back up from the minors.
Blue Jackets' Denton Mateychuk: Not playing Monday
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Mateychuk will miss Monday's game against the Islanders due to an illness, according to Aaron Portzline of The Athletic.
Mateychuk will miss his first game with the Blue Jackets since being recalled from AHL Cleveland on Dec. 22. Jack Johnson will enter the lineup as a result of the 20-year-old's absence.
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Blue Jackets' Elvis Merzlikins: Defending crease Monday
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Merzlikins will guard the road goal against the Islanders on Monday, according to Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site.
Merzlikins has stopped 96 of 106 shots during his four-game winning streak. He has posted a 16-10-3 record with one shutout, a 3.05 GAA and an .890 save percentage across 29 appearances this season. The Islanders sit 27th in the league with 2.64 goals per game in 2024-25.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Activated off IR
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Danforth (lower body) was activated off injured reserve Monday.
Danforth has missed the last 18 games due to a lower-body injury, but it appears as though he'll be back in action on the road against the Islanders on Monday. The 31-year-old has made 25 appearances for the Blue Jackets this year, posting three goals, five assists, 51 hits, 27 blocked shots, eight PIM and a minus-7 rating while averaging 15:20 of ice time.
Blue Jackets' Daniil Tarasov: Heartbreaking shootout loss
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Tarasov made 26 saves in regulation and overtime and turned aside two of three shootout attempts in Saturday's 1-0 loss to the Rangers.
The 25-year-old went toe-to-toe with Igor Shesterkin to earn Tarasov's first shutout of the season, but Tarasov made the lone mistake by either goalie on the night, getting beaten low to his blocker side by Vincent Trocheck in the shootout. Tarasov has looked better since his conditioning stint in the AHL, allowing only two goals on 51 shots while starting two of the last three games. Elvis Merzlikins is 7-2-1 over his last 10 outings but with a lackluster 3.04 GAA and .894 save percentage, so the door could be open for Tarasov to work his way into a timeshare in the Columbus crease.
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Not close to returning
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Gudbranson (shoulder) isn't expected to return until the end of March, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports Saturday.
Gudbranson hasn't been in the lineup since Oct. 15 due to the injury. He had six goals, 26 points, 74 PIM, 92 hits and 170 blocks in 78 appearances with the Blue Jackets in 2023-24. When healthy, Gudbranson will likely serve in a bottom-four role.
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Blue Jackets' Yegor Chinakhov: Still weeks away from return
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Chinakhov (upper body) is still a few weeks away from a return, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.
Chinakhov likely experienced a setback after resuming skating. The 23-year-old's absence reached the 25-game mark against the Rangers on Saturday, and the latest update on his status indicates he will be out for a while longer.
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Blue Jackets' Daniil Tarasov: Between pipes Saturday
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Tarasov will be in the visiting blue paint against the Rangers on Saturday, per Peter Baugh of The Athletic.
Tarasov picked up his fourth win of the season Tuesday, stopping 23 shots in a 3-2 shootout win over Philadelphia. Tarasov is 4-6-1 with a 3.99 GAA and an .862 save percentage across 11 outings this season. The Rangers are averaging 2.93 goals per game this season, 19th in the NHL.
Severson notched an assist and went plus-3 in Thursday's 4-1 win over the Sharks.
Severson has two helpers, nine shots on net and a plus-4 rating over his last four contests. He's worked his way back into a steady bottom-four role after being scratched a few times in recent weeks. For the season, the defenseman is at 19 points, 68 shots on net, 70 blocked shots and a plus-3 rating through 42 outings. The risk of being scratched again negates some fantasy value for Severson, who has at least been decent on offense when in the lineup.
