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Just when the Blue Jackets appeared to settle their projected lineup following the July 1 start of free agency, reports in Sweden say that center Isac Lundestrom might be out until December with an Achilles injury.
More: Columbus Blue Jackets GM shuts down Kirill Marchenko trade talk
Lundestrom, 26, reportedly sustained the injury shortly after returning from Columbus. Here is a translated comment from Lundestrom in Norbottens-Kuriren, a newspaper in Lulea, Sweden:
“During a training session, I felt a sharp pain in my right foot,” Lundestrom said. “Shortly afterwards, it became clear that my Achilles tendon had ruptured. I immediately understood what happened.”
Blue Jackets president/general manager Don Waddell did not immediately reply to a message from The Dispatch seeking confirmation and further details. This injury, according to the reports, is to Lundestrom’s right Achilles. He tore his left Achilles in August 2023 during an offseason training session and missed the first half of the 2023-24 season for the Anaheim Ducks, who selected Lundestrom 23rd overall in the 2018 NHL Draft.
“I hardly know any other hockey player who has had this happen to them, and the odds of it happening twice are [rare],” Lundestrom told Norbottens-Kuriren. “It felt like a nightmare, and I have been both sad and angry.”
Waddell and the Blue Jackets' front office have been riding an emotional rollercoaster of a summer. Losing Lundestrom for the first two-to-three months of the season, if that’s an accurate timeline, only adds to the list of issues that need solutions.
He was the projected center of the fourth line heading into training camp in September after playing most of last season in that role and finishing with four goals, eight assists and 12 points in 68 games.
Add that to the list of the Blue Jackets' challenges.
This week, multiple reports indicated leading scorers Zach Werenski and Kirill Marchenko were unwilling to commit to long-term deals, although Werenski did issue a statement saying, "I want to win and I want to do that in Columbus." The Blue Jackets still need to re-sign key restricted free agents Adam Fantilli, their top center, goalie Jet Greaves and forward Cole Sillinger.
They’ve also added power forward Valeri Nichushkin in a trade, signed gritty depth forward Ryan Lomberg, re-signed imposing defenseman Erik Gudbranson and allowed two key forwards, Mason Marchment and Boone Jenner, to sign elsewhere.
Keeping Jenner would’ve made Lundestrom more of a footnote, but Waddell was unwilling to sign the former captain to a contract that matched the four-year, $23 million deal Jenner received from the Washington Capitals.
The Jackets' GM must protect his $21.5 million in salary-cap space to re-sign his RFAs and fend off potential contract offer sheets for them. As for the hole Lundestrom’s injury creates, the Jackets are now without their projected center on the fourth line to start the season.
They can look within, moving Sillinger back to center, give Luca Del Bel Belluz a look or tap into the free agent market. Regardless of how it's managed, replacing Lundestrom adds yet another item to the Jackets' summer chores.
Dispatch Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at [email protected]
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Reports say Columbus Blue Jackets' Isac Lundestrom has Achilles injury
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More: Columbus Blue Jackets GM shuts down Kirill Marchenko trade talk
Lundestrom, 26, reportedly sustained the injury shortly after returning from Columbus. Here is a translated comment from Lundestrom in Norbottens-Kuriren, a newspaper in Lulea, Sweden:
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“During a training session, I felt a sharp pain in my right foot,” Lundestrom said. “Shortly afterwards, it became clear that my Achilles tendon had ruptured. I immediately understood what happened.”
Blue Jackets president/general manager Don Waddell did not immediately reply to a message from The Dispatch seeking confirmation and further details. This injury, according to the reports, is to Lundestrom’s right Achilles. He tore his left Achilles in August 2023 during an offseason training session and missed the first half of the 2023-24 season for the Anaheim Ducks, who selected Lundestrom 23rd overall in the 2018 NHL Draft.
“I hardly know any other hockey player who has had this happen to them, and the odds of it happening twice are [rare],” Lundestrom told Norbottens-Kuriren. “It felt like a nightmare, and I have been both sad and angry.”
Waddell and the Blue Jackets' front office have been riding an emotional rollercoaster of a summer. Losing Lundestrom for the first two-to-three months of the season, if that’s an accurate timeline, only adds to the list of issues that need solutions.
He was the projected center of the fourth line heading into training camp in September after playing most of last season in that role and finishing with four goals, eight assists and 12 points in 68 games.
Add that to the list of the Blue Jackets' challenges.
This week, multiple reports indicated leading scorers Zach Werenski and Kirill Marchenko were unwilling to commit to long-term deals, although Werenski did issue a statement saying, "I want to win and I want to do that in Columbus." The Blue Jackets still need to re-sign key restricted free agents Adam Fantilli, their top center, goalie Jet Greaves and forward Cole Sillinger.
They’ve also added power forward Valeri Nichushkin in a trade, signed gritty depth forward Ryan Lomberg, re-signed imposing defenseman Erik Gudbranson and allowed two key forwards, Mason Marchment and Boone Jenner, to sign elsewhere.
You must be registered for see images
Keeping Jenner would’ve made Lundestrom more of a footnote, but Waddell was unwilling to sign the former captain to a contract that matched the four-year, $23 million deal Jenner received from the Washington Capitals.
The Jackets' GM must protect his $21.5 million in salary-cap space to re-sign his RFAs and fend off potential contract offer sheets for them. As for the hole Lundestrom’s injury creates, the Jackets are now without their projected center on the fourth line to start the season.
They can look within, moving Sillinger back to center, give Luca Del Bel Belluz a look or tap into the free agent market. Regardless of how it's managed, replacing Lundestrom adds yet another item to the Jackets' summer chores.
Dispatch Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at [email protected]
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Reports say Columbus Blue Jackets' Isac Lundestrom has Achilles injury
Continue reading...
