The Columbus Blue Jackets have activated goalie Sergei Bobrovsky off injured reserve and, in a corresponding move, assigned goalie Joonas Korpisalo to AHL Lake Erie.
Bobrovsky is expected to start Friday versus Pittsburgh. The 27-year-old hasn’t played since January, when he suffered yet another groin injury.
The Jackets were committed to not rushing Bobrovsky back from his latest groin issue. In the words of GM Jarmo Kekalainen, they wanted to do “everything that’s possible to make sure he gets back to 100 percent and playing and sustaining that, rather than this back and forth.”
Bobrovsky returned to practice last week.
“I did some splits,” he told the Columbus Dispatch. “I did some reaction stuff. I felt pretty good.”
As for Korpisalo, the 21-year-old rookie showed well in the NHL. He leaves the Jackets with a 14-8-4 record and .918 save percentage.
“His development is very, very important to our organization,” said Kekalainen. “This was the plan all along. He needs to play, and play regularly. He’s going to be a big part of Lake Erie’s playoff run.”
Related: Jackets insist Bobrovsky didn’t return too early from groin injury