The Blue Jackets announced Wednesday that they’ve placed winger Yegor Chinakhov on injured reserve and used his roster spot to recall goaltender Jet Greaves from AHL Cleveland.
Chinakhov, 23, has already been out with an upper-body injury since Nov. 27. Since he’s missed well over seven days, he can come off IR at any time.
Columbus head coach Dean Evason told reporters Tuesday that Chinakhov is “progressing” in his recovery but isn’t yet close to a return. It’s been an unwelcome absence for the Jackets and the 2020 first-round pick, who had seven goals and seven assists for 14 points through his first 21 games.
Chinakhov has been part of one of hockey’s most unexpectedly dominant lines so far this season. In over 120 minutes of skating as Columbus’ first-line left wing alongside Sean Monahan and Kirill Marchenko, the trio has controlled 64.9% of expected goals – third-best out of 46 units with at least 120 minutes together, per MoneyPuck.
The Russian winger is now in his fourth NHL season, averaging a career-high 17:01 per game in 2024-25. Evason has shuffled his lines frequently this season, but even more so in Chinakhov’s absence. In recent games, veteran pickup James van Riemsdyk has skated in a top-line role.
Using his roster spot to recall a goalie suggests an injury or illness looming that could sideline one of Elvis Merzļikins or Daniil Tarasov against the Capitals tomorrow. However, both were present alongside Greaves at today’s practice, the team’s Jeff Svoboda reports, so the motivation behind the latter’s recall remains unclear.
Greaves has already been recalled twice this season and has dressed for three games but hasn’t played in any of them. The 23-year-old’s only action in 2024-25 has come with Cleveland, where he has a career-worst 3.21 GAA, .902 SV%, one shutout, and an 8-4-2 record in 15 appearances.
An undrafted free agent signing by Cleveland out of the OHL’s Barrie Colts in 2021, Greaves has been solid in third-string action the past two seasons with a 3.44 GAA and .912 SV% in 10 NHL appearances. He has a 3-7-0 record and has a .784 SV% on high-danger scoring chances.
Greaves still has one season remaining before he becomes waivers-eligible, so there’s no risk of losing him on the wire at any point this season as they shuffle him between leagues. The 6’0″ netminder inked a two-year, partial two-way deal worth a total of $1.63MM over the summer after spending nearly two weeks as a restricted free agent.
Forget it, Dean…it’s Chinakhov.
Elvis getting traded