Blue Jackets’ Kent Johnson placed on IR, will miss rest of season
The Columbus Blue Jackets placed forward Kent Johnson on Injured Reserve (IR) on Sunday, announcing that the 21-year-old would be undergoing surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder and will miss the rest of the 2023-24 season.
We have placed Kent Johnson on Injured Reserve and have recalled Jet Greaves from @monstershockey on emergency recall.
Elvis Merzlikins is day-to-day with an upper body injury.
📝 https://t.co/4tC9S4IFQa @RuoffMortgage | #CBJ pic.twitter.com/7AvMefGa4B
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) March 3, 2024
The club also announced that goaltender Elvis Merzlikins is day-to-day with an upper-body injury, meaning the team added goaltender Jet Greaves to the roster on emergency recall from the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters.
Johnson suffered the injury in a game against the New York Rangers on Feb. 28. According to The Hockey Writers’ Mark Scheig, he may have suffered the injury on the last faceoff of the game.
Appears Kent Johnson’s injury may have happened on the last faceoff after the second ENG. MSG feed didn’t get good look at it. But Bally’s feed did. Johnson in obvious discomfort here. #CBJ pic.twitter.com/ZkG3Uc22Mw
— Mark Scheig (@mark_scheig) February 29, 2024
Johnson, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, was in his second full season with the club, scoring six goals and 10 assists for 16 points in 42 games. During the 2022-23 campaign, he scored 16 goals and 24 assists for 40 points in 79 games.
Before being drafted by the Blue Jackets, Johnson spent two seasons with the University of Michigan from 2020-22, scoring 17 goals and 47 assists for 64 points in 58 games. He represented Team Canada at the 2022 Winter Olympics, scoring a goal and four assists in five games. He also won a gold medal for Canada at the 2022 World Junior Championship.