Zach Werenski has struggled mightily to stay healthy for the Columbus Blue Jackets over the past two seasons, and that unfortunate trend continues in 2023-24.
The star defenseman is expected to be out week-to-week with a lower-body injury, the team announced on Thursday.
“He's still getting evaluated by our docs,” Blue Jackets head coach Pascal Vincent said, according to NHL.com's Craig Merz. “It's not going to be day to day most likely. I'm sure it's going to be week to week now. How many weeks? I don't know.”
It's a brutal blow for a team that is already in the lower echelon of league standings, a situation that doesn't figure to improve without Werenski. The 26-year-old leads his team with 25 points through 34 games this season, averaging over 24 minutes of time on ice per game.
“He takes up a lot of minutes out there,” explained fellow defenseman Jake Bean. “We'll miss him for sure, but we have a lot of guys that can fill in and pick it up.”
Werenski is no stranger to injuries; last season, he missed the final 69 games of the season due to a shoulder ailment. He also missed two games earlier in the 2023-24 campaign after sustaining a quad contusion in Columbus' opening game.
“Look at what he had to overcome last year,” Bean continued. “You see how much work he did to get back. He'll figure it out and get through it.”
Werenski injured in loss to New Jersey Devils
“The defenseman exited a 4-3 overtime loss to the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday at 9:02 of the second period after getting tangled with Devils forward Ondrej Palat,” wrote Merz on Thursday. “Werenski started crawling toward the bench before he was helped to his feet, but he was not able to put any weight on his left leg.”
The injury certainly didn't look great, and will keep Werenski out until at least the New Year.
“When I saw him down, I was hoping he's going to be all right and nothing serious,” goalie Elvis Merzlikins admitted.” It's tough. He's one of our key defensemen. It really [stinks] for him. I feel bad for the guy because he works hard. He tries every single game, every single practice. … Those injuries, it's something that you can't control.”
Now without their captain in Boone Jenner and best defenseman in Zach Werenski, a disappointing season for the 11-18-7 Blue Jackets continues with the Toronto Maple Leafs in town on Friday night.
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