It’s been a reasonably good start to the year in Columbus -- 5-3-2 record, a historic 10-0 win over the Habs -- but some luster was knocked off Monday, as the club announced Seth Jones would miss the next three weeks with a hairline fracture in his foot.
Berglund's skate blade cut through Jones' skate - the laces and tongue - and cut his foot, fractured a bone. #CBJ #StLBlues
— Aaron Portzline (@Aportzline) November 7, 2016
By end of game, #CBJ Jones said there was blood seeping through his laces.
— Aaron Portzline (@Aportzline) November 7, 2016
The loss is profound, without question.
Jones is the team’s anchor on the back end -- nobody on the team plays more minutes, and he leads all blueliners in goals while sitting second in assists.
Up to this point, the 22-year-old has also been remarkably durable, and capable of shouldering a heavy workload. He’s appeared in 240 of a possible 246 games over his three-year career, and has seen his TOI and overall role spike since coming over from Nashville in last year’s Ryan Johansen blockbuster.
The three-week timetable would keep Jones out until Nov. 28, meaning he’s likely to miss Columbus’ next 10 games.
With him out of the lineup, look for the likes of Ryan Murray and Zach Werenski to see more ice time than usual. The club could look at recalling Cody Goloubef from AHL Cleveland.