The hits keep coming for the Columbus Blue Jackets. While they still haven’t given an exact timeline for defenseman Jake Bean, he has been moved to injured reserve and is out indefinitely with a shoulder injury.
Bean, 24, had just recently set a season-high with more than 26 minutes against the Philadelphia Flyers and was poised to take on a much bigger role for the Blue Jackets with Zach Werenski (and Nick Blankenburg and Adam Boqvist) sidelined. Instead, he hits the shelf along with nearly half of the Columbus roster and won’t get a chance to step into a top position on the team’s blue line.
In the second season of a three-year, $7M deal, Bean is coming off a career year with 25 points in 67 games. This time around had six through 13, before leaving early in a rematch with the Flyers on Tuesday.
With head coach Brad Larsen saying it doesn’t look good for Bean earlier today, it seems like this will be more than just a short stint on the injured reserve list. The team is at least at home for the next five games, meaning they can probably operate with a 22-man roster for the time being.
It will be interesting to see if these injuries lead to another opportunity for top prospect David Jiricek, who has played two games with the Blue Jackets so far. The sixth-overall pick has five assists in seven minor league games.
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