Tarasov will man the Blue Jackets' crease for the second straight night as Elvis Merzlinkins recovers from an illness. Tarasov played well in his season debut, stopping 39 of 43 Caroline Hurricane shots on way to an eventual 4-1 loss. The 23-year-old netminder will be looking for his first career victory as he takes the crease for his fifth career start against the Lightning Friday.
Tarasov will man the Blue Jackets' crease for the second straight night as Elvis Merzlinkins recovers from an illness. Tarasov played well in his season debut, stopping 39 of 43 Caroline Hurricane shots on way to an eventual 4-1 loss. The 23-year-old netminder will be looking for his first career victory as he takes the crease for his fifth career start against the Lightning Friday.
With Elvis Merzlikins out, the Blue Jackets sent Johnson to the AHL to make room to call-up Jet Greaves to serve as the backup in Carolina.
Elvis Merzlikins is sick and will not be available for the Blue Jackets' season opener, so Greaves will serve as Danill Tarasov's backup in Carolina. Greaves was 12-12-2 with a 2.84 GAA and .905 SV% in the AHL last season.
Merzlikins will miss the Blue Jackets' season opener in Carolina with an illness. With Merzlikins out, Danill Tarasov will get the start, and Jet Greaves was recalled to be the backup.
Tarasov will surprisingly take the crease in the Blue Jackets' opener after it was announced that expected starter Elvis Merzlikins would miss Wednesday night's game due to Illness. The 23-year-old Russian netminder enjoyed a successful short stint with the Jackets' in 2021-22, getting his first taste of NHL action across a late-season four-game stint where he produced an impressive .937 SV% and 2.40 GAA. He will be looking to achieve his first career NHL win Wednesday as he leads Columbus between the pipes.
Aston-Reese was on a PTO during the preseason and turned it into a one-year deal with the Maple Leafs. Aston-Reese is a strong two-way winger, who had 15 points (5G / 10A) in 69 games last season. He'll be in the Maple Leafs' bottom-6 to begin the season.
Sawchenko, who struggled in the AHL last year, got thrust into the NHL for a period of time, going 1-2-1 with a 3.35 GAA and .901 SV%. He'll be an AHL goalie for the Hurricanes but he was 4-10-0 with a 4.03 GAA and .877 SV% in that league a year ago.
Gillies appeared in 20 NHL games a season ago, going 3-10-2 with a 3.70 GAA and .887 SV% with the Blues (1 game) and Devils (19 games). In Arizona he will battle with Ivan Prosvetov for playing time behind Karel Vejmelka.
Gaudreau spent the first nine years of his NHL career with the Flames and is coming off of the best season of his career. He set career-higher in goals (40), assists (75) and points (115) in 82 games. Gaudreau played almost exclusively with Elias Lindholm and Matthew Tkachuk, which was one of the best lines in the NHL. In Columbus, he won't have the same quality of linemates, so replicating his 115-point season is going to be next to impossible. Still, he should elevate the games of someone like Patrik Laine and should have no trouble getting to 30-plus goals and 50-plus assists.
Olivier was a key member of the Predators in 2021 but fell behind the eight-ball with an injury in 2022, spending most of the year in the AHL. The rugged winger has seven points (3G / 4A) and 102 hits in 48 career NHL games. He'll likely be a fringe roster player for the Blue Jackets in 2022-23.
