Johnson was a healthy scratch in the Blue Jackets' season opening loss but will play Saturday vs. the Rangers. It's not clear who Johnson will replace in the lineup, but based on Friday's practice lines, it appears to be Jack Roslovic. Johnson had a strong rookie season, scoring 16 goals with 24 assists (40 points) in 79 games.

Merzlikins stopped 33 of 35 shots in the Blue Jackets' season-opening loss to the Flyers. Despite the loss, it was an encouraging outing for Merzlikins, who struggled mightily during the 2022-23 season. Tonight he'll face a difficult test with the Rangers in town. They had an impressive opening night win over the Sabres.

Johnson was a healthy scratch in the Blue Jackets' season-opening 4-2 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers but will slot into the lineup on Saturday against the New York Rangers as they search for their first victory of the season. Johnson will likely slot in on the third line with Cole Sillinger and Justin Danforth. He had 40 points (16G / 24A) in 79 games with the Blue Jackets last season.

Werenski was placed on the injured reserve and will miss at least one week after being the target of a knee-on-knee collision with Garnet Hathaway in the Blue Jackets' season opener. Hathaway was given a two-minute minor for kneeing on the play. Injuries have been a thorn in Werenski's side the last several seasons as he is coming off a 2022-23 campaign where he was limited to only 13 games. David Jiricek has been recalled from the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL in his absence.

Werenski left Thursday's loss after a knee-on-knee collision with Garnet Hathaway. Initially, it did not look good, but Blue Jackets' head coach Pascal Vincent said that Werenski's injury is not believed to be long-term. This is a fortunate break for Werenski, who missed 69 games a season ago.

A healthy scratch on Tuesday's opening night game against the Lightning, Fabbro will draw back into the lineup on Thursday in place of Luke Schenn (lower-body). Fabbro is expected to skate alongside Roman Josi on the Preds' top pair at 5v5. The 25-year-old defenseman tallied just two goals and nine assists in 79 games with the Predators last season.

Lebanc had 15 goals, 18 assists, 129 SOG, 36 PIMs and a -17 plus/minus through 72 games with San Jose in 2022-23 but will be a healthy scratch for their season opener Thursday vs. Seattle. The 27-year-old right-winger is entering his eighth NHL season and has 216 points in 432 career games with the Sharks. Fabian Zetterlund will take his spot on the Sharks' forth line ahead of San Jose's opener.

Johnson will start the season as a healthy scratch but the talented centreman should find himself on the Blue Jackets roster before long. Patrik Laine being moved to the middle has created an influx of center-depth to start the season for the Blue Jackets, likely factoring into Johnson's early-season healthy scratch. The fifth overall pick from the 2021 NHL Entry Draft is coming off his rookie season with the Blue Jackets which saw him tally 40 points (16G / 24A) in 79 games.

After a fantastic rookie season in 2019-20, where he posted a 2.35 GAA and .923 SV% in 33 games (13-9-8), Merzlinkins has performed progressively worse each year. In 30 games last season (7-18-2), Merzlinkins had a horrendous 4.23 GAA and a .876 SV%. His league-worst GAA (minimum 10 starts) will need to be improved significantly or he will likely find himself battling for starts with backup goalie Spencer Martin. The Blue Jackets go into their season-opener listed as -113 home favourites against the Philadelphia Flyers.

After a fantastic rookie season in 2019-20, where he posted a 2.35 GAA and .923 SV% in 33 games (13-9-8), Merzlinkins has performed progressively worse each year. In 30 games last season (7-18-2), Merzlinkins had a horrendous 4.23 GAA and a .876 SV%. His league-worst GAA (minimum 10 starts) will need to be improved significantly or he will likely find himself battling for starts with backup goalie Spencer Martin. The Blue Jackets go into their season-opener listed as -113 home favourites against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Danforth suited up in six games for the Blue Jackets last season, recording three points (2G / 1A). He is projected to start the 2023-24 season on the third line, playing alongside Kirill Marchenko and Adam Fantilli. The undrafted 30-year-old winger has played 51 games in his NHL career, all with Columbus.

Fabbro had two goals, nine assists, 50 PIMs, 101 SOG, and a -4 plus/minus through 79 games with Nashville in 2022-23 but will be a healthy scratch for their first game of the season vs. Tampa Bay. The 25-year-old defenseman is entering his sixth NHL season and should find himself in the Predators' lineup more often than not this season.

Chinakhov had four goals, nine assists, 44 SOG, 10 PIMs, and a -6 plus/minus through 30 games with Columbus in 2022-23 but will begin the season on the injured reserve as he deals with a back strain. The 22-year-old right-winger is out indefinitely as he enters his third NHL season. The former 1st round pick (21st overall) is expected to be a key depth piece for the young Blue Jackets in 2023-24.

Olivier will be forced to miss the beginning of the 2023-24 season as he was placed on the injured reserve Monday with a leg injury and will be out indefinitely. The 26-year-old forward is entering his fifth NHL season and second as a Blue Jacket after putting up five goals, 10 assists, 75 SOG, 81 PIMs, and a -20 plus/minus in 66 games in 2022-23.

Aston-Reese was released on a PTO earlier in the week by Carolina and has now found himself a spot on Detroit's roster after signing a one-year, two-way contract worth $775,000. The 29-year-old forward had 10 goals, four assists, 89 SOG, 25 PIMs, and a -6 plus/minus through 77 games with Toronto in 2022-23. The Red Wings will make his fourth NHL team in seven seasons.

Tarasov was injured in practice before training camp started and has yet to make an appearance. GM Jarmo Kekäläinen said the team does not have a timeline on Tarasov's return, which is why they claimed Spencer Martin on waivers last Friday.

Gambrell had four goals, six assists, 46 SOG, 35 PIMs and a -4 plus/minus through 60 games with Ottawa in 2022-23 and has signed a one-year, $775,000 contract with the Maple Leafs. The 26-year-old centre has 17 goals, 23 assists, and a -28 plus/minus through 233 NHL games played and will make a solid depth piece for Toronto.

Johnson had two goals, six assists, 92 SOG, 28 PIMs and a -15 plus/minus through 83 games in 2022-23 with both Chicago and Colorado and has signed a one-year, $775,000 extension with the Avalanche. The 36-year-old defenseman was a key piece of Colorado's 2021-22 Stanley Cup wining roster and will be entering his 18th NHL season. He has 74 goals, 320 points and 599 PIMs across 1107 career NHL games played.

Fischer had 13 goals, 14 assists, 122 SOG, 20 PIMs and a -7 plus/minus through 80 games with Arizona in 2022-23 and has signed a one-year, $1,125,000 contact. The 26-year-old right-winger joins Detroit after seven seasons in Arizona where he had 56 goals, 111 points, 97 PIMs and 608 SOG through 398 career NHL games.