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More bad news in Columbus: Letestu to IR, out six weeks

Ryan Johansen, Mark Letestu

Columbus Blue Jackets center Ryan Johansen (19) celebrates with teammate Mark Letestu (17) after Johansen scored his first goal of the game against the Nashville Predators in the first period of an NHL hockey game on Thursday, Dec. 22, 2011, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

AP

You’d think things would get easier in Columbus with Scott Arniel getting fired. That’s not the case if you’re Mark Letestu.

Letestu was placed on injured reserve with a hand injury and Jackets GM Scott Howson says Letestu will be out for six weeks. Letestu was acquired from the Penguins earlier this season and has fit in as well as you can in Columbus given how poorly things have gone there.

Since arriving in Columbus, Letestu has five goals and five assists in 25 games with the Blue Jackets. With his injury and now with Todd Richards taking over as the interim head coach, figuring out how the lines will work will be worth paying attention to in Columbus.

Expect that the pressure on Rick Nash and Jeff Carter to step up their game will only increase even more. The guy this could benefit the most is Derick Brassard as he struggled under Arniel. With a new head coach and old problems out of the way, he’ll look to find his game once again.