COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The sixth game of the preseason for the Blue Jackets will see a mostly veteran lineup take the ice in Bridgestone Arena. But make no mistake, there are guys still fighting for a roster spot with opening night 10 days away.
At this point, there are no worries about a player fitting in within the dressing room or the systems. To the contrary, these "bubble" players have taken to this room like ducks to water.
"I think they already are fitting in," said forward Nick Foligno. "I mean, you bring in anyone that's going to be here, we're happy to have them. If they're going to make our team better, then we want them on the team."
"If they're going to make the team," he said, "it's for a reason. Our job, as teammates, is to help the new guys and make sure they're getting accustomed to things as fast as possible to help us win.
"When that regular season starts, it's all about winning. And you're going to be here helping us or you're not going to be around very long."
The list of potential players that are in the mix for a roster spot is quite large, resulting in quality competition among the players. It also serves to push the veterans on the team. And with potentially three available spots, the decisions are hard ones for the organization.
"It's a good thing that we have so many guys that can fill that void," Foligno said. "You're seeing so many players step up and do great things in this camp. It's exciting to see for the organization, I'm sure, and for us as players. There's a lot of good competition and it will only help our team get better."
While many of the prospects have had a good showing during camp, center Michael Chaput and defenseman Cody Goloubef have played well and are both getting their fifth preseason games Monday night. Their play has caught not only the eyes of the coaches, but also of the players in the room.
"I'm unbelievably impressed with Chaput," said Foligno. "He's a great skater and a smart player. He just comes in to work. They've put him in almost every game and he's done a great job, continuing to play the right way every game. It's not easy, especially with how hard practices are and getting ready for games.
"Goloubef is another guy that I'm really impressed with, too," he said. "For young players, they've really stepped in and done a great job. There are a lot of candidates and it's going to make it hard for the coaching staff. But that's a good thing that I'm sure they're happy about."
Murray still a question mark
Defenseman Ryan Murray skated with the group for the first time Sunday. He was back out on the ice Monday skating with the non-game players. He has not been cleared for contact drills, as of yet. It's not certain that he'll dress for opening night next Thursday.
"He's out skating with the group," was all head coach Todd Richards would say when asked about Murray.
Monday night's lineup
With Boone Jenner taking a puck to the hand yesterday in practice (swelling of the hand), Todd Richards has replaced him in the lineup with Marko Dano.
Line combinations from A.M. skate:
Hartnell-Anisimov-Dano
Rychel-Letestu-Foligno
D'Amigo-Chaput-Boll
Hjalmarsson-Wennberg-Atkinson
Johnson-Savard
Tyutin-Goloubef
Erixon-Wisniewski
Richards said after practice that goaltender Curtis McElhinney is scheduled to go the distance in Nashville with Oscar Dansk as his backup.
Johansen...
With the announcement over the weekend of St. Louis signing Jaden Schwartz (2 years/$4.7M) and the Boston Bruins signing Torey Krug and Reilly Smith to $1.4M/one year contracts Monday, the pressure is on for Columbus and unsigned center Ryan Johansen to get a deal done. The Blue Jackets are firmly in the driver's seat as the days count down to the start of the season on Oct. 9.
Of these three signings, the Schwartz deal is the most comparable, as both him and Johansen put up similar numbers last year. It could be argued that Johansen is a more valuable asset to Columbus than Schwartz is to St. Louis.
#JoeyWatch is on Day 12...
