Tuesday night in Carolina, Anton Forsberg made his first start of the season for the Columbus Blue Jackets.
It may also have been his last. Forsberg allowed four goals on 27 shots in a 5-3 loss, and yesterday he was sent back to the AHL.
Staying up with the Jackets is young Joonas Korpisalo, who’d been recalled to back up Forsberg due to Sergei Bobrovsky’s illness.
Bobrovsky is better now and is expected to start tonight in Tampa Bay. But Korpisalo may get a chance to play soon. The Jackets also have a game tomorrow in Sunrise.
Prior to getting called up, Korpisalo was not enjoying a particularly good season in the AHL, where he was 5-5-1 with a .900 save percentage for Cleveland. But unlike Forsberg, who’d been playing well for the Monsters, Korpisalo has been good in his limited time in the NHL. Last season, the 22-year-old went 16-11-4 with a .920 save percentage. He’d come up to the big club after Bobrovksy was sidelined by a groin strain.
Read more: Korpisalo is ‘poised’ and ‘confident’ in Jackets’ crease
Be it Korpisalo or Forsberg, the Jackets need somebody to step up and provide consistent backup goaltending. They don’t have Curtis McElhinney anymore, and they don’t want to wear down Bobrovsky before the playoffs even start.