Blue Jackets’ Gavin Brindley placed on injured reserve

The Columbus Blue Jackets have announced that center Gavin Brindley has been placed on injured reserve.

Brindley suffered a broken finger during Tuesday’s 3-1 win over the St. Louis Blues. It’s unclear what specific play caused the injury, but he last played a shift with just under 10 minutes left in the game. He did have a blocked shot in the game, so it’s likely that the injury occurred on that play.

Brindley also scored the go-ahead 2-1 goal midway through the second period for his only point of the night in 12:37 of ice time. His goal in the game was his only one of the preseason, along with 2 assists for 3 points in 4 games.

Brindley was the Blue Jackets’ second-round draft pick in 2023, and he returned to the University of Michigan for the following season, where he had 25 goals and 28 assists for 53 points in 40 games. After his college season ended, he signed an entry-level contract with Columbus and played in their final regular season game, a 6-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes that he didn’t get a point in.

The Blue Jackets also announced that they have loaned defenseman Ole Bjorgvik-Holm to their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters. This transaction, along with winger Trey Fix-Wolansky being placed on waivers on Wednesday, brings the Blue Jackets training camp roster down to 18 forwards, 9 defensemen and 3 goaltenders for a total of 30 players.

Bjorgvik-Holm did not get into any preseason action with the Blue Jackets, instead sticking around on the roster for practices with the team. He spent a majority of his 2023-24 season with the Cincinnati Cyclones, the Blue Jackets’ ECHL affiliate, where he had 5 goals and 28 assists for 33 points in 57 games. He also played 2 games for the Monsters, where he had no points.

Bjorgvik-Holm was a fifth-round pick for the Blue Jackets in 2020, making his professional debut with the Monsters the following season and signing an entry-level contract that summer, which he is currently in the final year of. He has yet to make his NHL debut.

The Blue Jackets will play their next preseason game on Thursday when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins in Columbus at 7 p.m. EST. They currently find themselves with a 4-2-0 record through six games of the preseason.