Blue Jackets’ Damon Severson out week-to-week with upper-body injury
Unwanted news for one of the hottest teams in the Eastern Conference.
When speaking to the media on Friday, Columbus Blue Jackets head coach Rick Bowness revealed that defenseman Damon Severson is out with an upper-body injury and is considered week-to-week.
Severson suffered the injury during a game on Thursday night against the Montreal Canadiens. In the third period, he and Canadiens forward Zachary Bolduc came together in the corner in the Columbus zone. While it didn’t look like anything more than a solid hit from both sides, the check seemed to have stunned Severson, as he ended up leaving the game and didn’t return.
Damon Severson had to leave the game after some contact with Zachary Bolduc.
The 31-year-old logged 21:23 of ice time across 21 shifts, putting two shots on goal, with one finding the back of the net, despite the Blue Jackets falling to the Habs by a final score of 2-1. Severson left the game with a plus/minus of +1.
Severson has played an important role as Columbus has rallied in the second half of the season, going from the bottom of the conference to the top three in the Metropolitan Division. Bowness recognizes that the absence of the veteran right-hander couldn’t have come at a worse time for the team.
“Terrible timing for us, terrible timing for him. He’s been outstanding for us,” Bowness said.
Severson might not reach his career-high 46 points that he posted as a member of the New Jersey Devils during the 2021-22 campaign, but he’s been having one of the top all-around seasons of his career. Through 71 games, the Melville, Sask. native has scored eight goals and 24 assists for 32 points, registering a career-best +18 rating while averaging just over 21 minutes of ice time per game.
The Blue Jackets (38-23-11) are sitting third in the Metro, one point back of the Pittsburgh Penguins for second.