COLUMBUS, Ohio — Dante Fabbro may miss some games, the Columbus Blue Jackets said on Wednesday, but the veteran defenseman’s injuries aren’t as extensive — or long-term — as feared when he was injured in Tuesday’s loss at Tampa Bay.
“Everything has checked out so far,” Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell told The Athletic. “It looks like it’s more of a charley horse than a knee injury, His leg was pretty swollen, but it looks like we dodged a bullet there.”
That’s not the only bullet dodged by the Blue Jackets on their back end.
Another veteran, Jack Johnson, who took an inadvertent stick to the face during Sunday’s loss in Carolina, was forced to sit out Tuesday with blurry vision. But after a visit with the Blue Jackets’ medical staff on Wednesday, he was cleared to return.
It’s unclear how the Blue Jackets will align on the back end at 7 p.m. tomorrow vs. the New Jersey Devils in Nationwide Arena. But Waddell said Johnson is good to go — he may have to wear a protective device around the eye, in addition to his visor — and Fabbro is questionable.
The Blue Jackets did make two roster moves on Wednesday, however.
Goaltender Jet Greaves was returned to AHL Cleveland after making three of the last four straights for the Blue Jackets, and left winger James Malatesta was recalled from the minors, with the hope that he can add a little energy and passion to a club that has played a string of intermittently sleepy games.
Waddell had a conversation with Greaves on Wednesday after he told him of the demotion. Greaves went 0-1-2 with an .895 save percentage, but played very well — and with very little support, offensively or defensively — in all three games.
“I told him (the demotion) had nothing to do with his play,” Waddell said. “And I told him it could have been 7-0 after two periods on Tuesday (instead of 4-0) if he wasn’t so good. It’s roster management right now. He’s not going to play (vs. the Devils). Elvis (Merzlikins) is going to start.
“All three games, he was very good. You can’t blame him for the overtime goals at all. He’s cool and calm in there. He’s not all over the place. His positioning is very good, and I like the way he plays the puck.”
Waddell said Merzlikins would likely start the Blue Jackets’ three games before the Christmas break: Thursday vs. New Jersey, Saturday at Philadelphia and Monday vs. Montreal.
The Jackets return from the break with a home-and-home vs. Boston, meaning they’d likely have to make a decision then between starting Daniil Tarasov, who hasn’t appeared in a game since Dec. 5, or recalling Greaves.
It’s going to be hard for any of the Blue Jackets’ goaltenders to have much success if the play in front of them doesn’t improve.
The Blue Jackets have been shockingly passive and timid during their 1-6-2 stretch, looking nothing like the aggressive, assertive club that surprised many around the NHL with their respectable start to the season. It wasn’t until the third period on Tuesday that they awakened to make it a game with the Lightning.
Malatesta can’t change that by himself, of course, but he plays with a direct, relentless style that could help bring life to the proceedings. In 25 games with Cleveland, he has 6-6-12 and 25 penalty minutes. He got a three-week trial late last season and totaled 2-2-4 in 11 games.
The Blue Jackets were counting themselves fortunate on Wednesday, though.
Fabbro went from the waiver wire — where Columbus claimed him from the Nashville Predators in November — straight to the Blue Jackets’ top defensive pair opposite Zach Werenski. Those two have cooled of late, but they’ve been a “plus” pair since coach Dean Evason put them together.
But early in the second period on Tuesday, Tampa Bay’s Conor Geekie came straight on into a check on Fabbro, his right knee slamming into Fabbro’s right leg, sending Fabbro’s leg swinging awkwardly behind him as he tumbled to the ice.
Fabbro immediately clutched his right leg as he writhed on the ice. After a minute or so on the ice — Blue Jackets trainer Mike Vogt came onto the ice to treat him — Fabbro was up and moving slowly to the bench, putting no weight on his right leg.
Fittingly, it was Werenski who helped him off.
The Blue Jackets will likely move one of their second-pair defenders, Ivan Provorov or Damon Severson, up to play beside Werenski, with either Jake Christiansen, Jordan Harris or Johnson moving up to the second pair.
More good news on Wednesday: Yegor Chinakhov, who has been out since Nov. 27 with an upper-body injury, returned to skating. There’s no timetable for his return just yet, but getting back on the ice is a step in the right direction.
“It’s a daily thing where we check in to see how he’s doing,” Waddell said. “So no date (for a return), but he’s getting better for sure.”
(Photo of Dante Fabbro: Sergei Belski / Imagn Images)
