Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Nabs assist in 800th game
Rotowire
Gudbranson logged an assist, two shots on goal and three hits in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Senators.
This was Gudbranson's 800th NHL contest, and he was able to get on the scoresheet by helping out on a Mathieu Olivier tally in the second period. The 33-year-old Gudbranson has often been a shutdown blueliner in his career, earning just 135 points in his career. He's at two assists, seven shots on net, 17 hits and 12 blocked shots over 11 outings this year after losing much of the campaign to a shoulder injury.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: First point since return
Rotowire
Gudbranson logged an assist and went plus-2 in Friday's 7-6 shootout win over the Canucks.
Gudbranson logged his first assist of the season in his second game back from a long-term shoulder injury. The 33-year-old defenseman is holding onto a third-pairing role for now, though he could be pushed by Jake Christiansen or Jack Johnson for playing time down the stretch. Gudbranson had a career-high 26 points last year, but given how much time he missed, he doesn't need to be rostered in most fantasy formats this year.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Returning to action Monday
Rotowire
Gudbranson (shoulder) will be in the lineup for Monday's game against the Islanders, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.
Gudbranson hasn't suited up since mid-October due to a shoulder procedure, but he'll be back in action on the road Monday. He logged six goals, 20 assists, 170 blocked shots, 92 hits and 74 PIM while averaging 19:40 of ice time over 78 appearances with the Blue Jackets last year, but it's possible that he faces some limitations Monday following his lengthy absence.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Expects to return Monday
Rotowire
Gudbranson (shoulder) is expected to return Monday against the Islanders, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.
Gudbranson has missed Columbus' last 66 contests after undergoing shoulder surgery in mid-October. The veteran blueliner appeared in 78 games last season, logging six goals and 26 points.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Won't play against New Jersey
Rotowire
Gudbranson (shoulder) won't play in Monday's game against the Devils, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.
Gudbranson is expected to return to game action soon, but he'll remain on injured reserve for at least one more matchup. His next chance to return will be Thursday against the Panthers, while Jack Johnson will remain in the lineup Monday since Gudbranson and Jake Christiansen (upper body) remain sidelined.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Nearing return
Rotowire
Gudbranson (shoulder) is expected to return at some point soon, perhaps against the Devils or Panthers on Monday or Thursday, respectively, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.
Gudbranson was originally expected to be out of action until April, so it seems the blueliner is ahead of schedule in his recovery from shoulder surgery. Once given the all-clear, the veteran defenseman will likely replace Jack Johnson in the lineup, which will likely see him and Jordan Harris firmly relegated to the press box as healthy scratches.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Targeting April return
Rotowire
Gudbranson (shoulder) is not expected back until sometime in April, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports Tuesday.
Gudbranson has started skating, but his shoulder needs time to heal fully after surgery back in October. At this point, the defenseman might not even play in 10 regular-season contests this year and will be hoping his teammates can hold onto at least a wild-card spot and make the postseason.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Skates before practice
Rotowire
Gudbranson skated Saturday for the first time since undergoing shoulder surgery in mid-October, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.
Gudbranson could still be a month away from returning to action but appears to be progressing in his recovery. The defenseman was injured in the Blue Jackets' third game of the season versus Florida and had four hits and three blocked shots while failing to hit the scoresheet before the injury.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Not close to returning
Rotowire
Gudbranson (shoulder) isn't expected to return until the end of March, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports Saturday.
Gudbranson hasn't been in the lineup since Oct. 15 due to the injury. He had six goals, 26 points, 74 PIM, 92 hits and 170 blocks in 78 appearances with the Blue Jackets in 2023-24. When healthy, Gudbranson will likely serve in a bottom-four role.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Begins skating Thursday
Rotowire
Gudbranson (shoulder) took the ice with the Blue Jackets' other injured skaters Thursday, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.
Gudbranson should still be considered out indefinitely at this point, as this is just the first step in his recovery process. Still, it's a step in the right direction for the veteran blueliner, who has been out of action since the third game of the 2024-25 campaign. Once cleared to play, Gudbranson should retake his spot on the blue line, though he shouldn't be expected to offer much in the way of offensive contributions considering he's reached the 20-point threshold just once in his career.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Out indefinitely following surgery
Rotowire
Gudbranson had shoulder surgery Monday and will be out indefinitely.
Gudbranson has already been out of action for the Jackets' previous two games and is not expected back in the short-term. Even without his injury, the blueliner was unlikely to reach the 20-point threshold for a second straight season considering last year was the only time he's reached that threshold. In the meantime, David Jiricek, Jack Johnson and Jordan Harris will likely rotate on the bottom pairing. Given his timeline, it wouldn't be surprising to see Gudbranson end up on long-term injured reserve.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Lands on injured reserve
Rotowire
Gudbranson (upper body) was placed on injured reserve Thursday.
Gudbranson suffered an upper-body injury during Tuesday's game against the Panthers, and head coach Dean Evason said after the game that the injury was "not looking good." As a result, it's not very surprising to see Gudbranson land on IR, but it's not yet clear when he'll be in the mix to return. David Jiricek could take on a third-pairing role for the Blue Jackets in Gudbranson's absence.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Likely to miss time
Rotowire
Gudbranson's upper-body injury was described as "not looking good" by head coach Dean Evason, Brian Hedger of The Columbus Dispatch reports.
Evason's comments after Tuesday's game versus the Panthers suggests the defenseman is set to miss time. With Gudbranson likely coming out of the lineup, David Jiricek could step into a third-pairing role.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Good to play Thursday
Rotowire
Gudbranson (lower body) will draw into the lineup Thursday against Minnesota, per the NHL media site.
Gudbranson missed some preseason action due to the injury, but it seems he's fine for Columbus' Opening Night. He had six goals, 26 points, 74 PIM, 92 hits and 170 blocks in 78 contests with the Blue Jackets in 2023-24. The 32-year-old is projected to serve on the third pairing alongside Jack Johnson on Thursday.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Resumes skating Friday
Rotowire
Gudbranson (lower body) skated with the non-game group during Friday's practice, Brian Hedger of The Columbus Dispatch reports.
Gudbranson won't play in Friday's preseason game against Pittsburgh, but it's encouraging that he was on the ice Friday morning. He'll have several days to rest before Opening Night against the Wild on Thursday, and it seems as though he'll be in the mix to play against Minnesota.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Not expected to play Thursday
Rotowire
Gudbranson (lower body) isn't expected to play in Thursday's preseason game against Pittsburgh, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports.
Gudbranson didn't skate in Tuesday's practice session due to a minor lower-body injury, and he'll remain sidelined for a second consecutive preseason game Thursday. His final chance to play during the preseason will be in a rematch against the Penguins on Friday, but it's unclear whether he'll be able to suit up.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Dealing with minor injury
Rotowire
Gudbranson (lower body) didn't skate Tuesday because of a minor injury, Brian Hedger of The Columbus Dispatch reports.
As a precaution, Gudbranson didn't play in the third period of Columbus' 3-2 preseason loss to Washington on Monday. He wasn't going to play Tuesday versus St. Louis anyway. However, he could still see game action before Opening Night versus Minnesota on Oct. 10. The Blue Jackets finish the preseason with a home-and-home against Pittsburgh on Thursday and Friday.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Lights lamp in loss
Rotowire
Gudbranson scored a goal on four shots and added three hits in Saturday's 4-2 loss to the Golden Knights.
Gudbranson ended a seven-game point drought with his first-period tally. The defenseman has put together a career year, reaching the 20-point mark for the first time with five goals and 15 assists over 67 appearances. He's added 77 shots on net, 63 PIM, a minus-11 rating, 80 hits and 148 blocked shots. While he often sees bottom-four usage, he's been a sneaky-solid source of depth offense and physicality from the blue line.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Posts pair of assists in win
Rotowire
Gudbranson logged two assists and a plus-2 rating in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Sharks.
Gudbranson had an undisclosed injury in Friday's practice, but he didn't miss a game. He's racked up three helpers over his last two contests and now has 17 points through 49 outings. That matches his career-best production from 78 games in 2021-22 with the Flames, so there's a good chance the 32-year-old sets a new high-water mark this season. He's added 53 hits, 114 blocked shots, 55 PIM, 50 shots on net and a minus-11 rating while seeing time in a bottom-four role for much of the campaign.
... See More... See Less
Blue Jackets' Erik Gudbranson: Available to play
Rotowire
Gudbranson (undisclosed) will be in the lineup Saturday versus San Jose, according to Brian Hedger of The Columbus Dispatch.
Gudbranson will be good to go despite tweaking something during Friday's practice. He has picked up 54 hits, 114 blocked shots and 15 points across 48 appearances this season.
