Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Placed on injured reserve
Rotowire
Danforth (lower body) was placed on injured reserve Sunday.
Danforth has missed the last six games due to a lower-body injury he sustained in early December, and it appears as though he'll be sidelined through the NHL's Christmas break. It's not yet clear when he'll return to action, but Kevin Labanc will likely enter the lineup in the near future after James Malatesta was sent down Sunday.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Still unavailable
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Danforth (lower body) won't play against Philadelphia on Saturday, according to Adam Kimelman of NHL.com.
Danforth will miss his sixth straight game. He has accounted for three goals, eight points, 49 shots on net, 27 blocked shots and 51 hits across 25 appearances this season. Danforth's final chance to play before the Christmas break will come against Montreal on Monday.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Remains out Thursday
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Danforth (lower body) won't return Thursday versus New Jersey.
It will be Danforth's fifth straight game on the shelf. He has three goals and eight points in 25 outings in 2024-25. When he's healthy, Danforth will probably serve in a middle-six role.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Set to sit again
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Danforth (lower body) isn't expected to play against Tampa Bay on Tuesday, per Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site.
Danforth will miss his fourth straight game. He has contributed three goals, eight points, 49 shots on net, 27 blocked shots and 51 hits across 25 appearances this season. Mikael Pyyhtia has been occupying a bottom-six role during Danforth's absence.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Unavailable Sunday
Rotowire
Danforth (lower body) won't play versus Carolina on Sunday, according to Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site.
Danforth will miss his third straight game. He has three goals, eight points, 49 shots on net, 27 blocked shots and 51 hits across 25 appearances this campaign. Mikael Pyyhtia has been playing during Danforth's absence.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Dealing with lower-body injury
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Danforth missed Wednesday's practice due to a lower-body injury, per Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site.
Danforth has three goals and eight points across 25 appearances in 2024-25. He might still be an option for Thursday's game against Washington, but that's not a certainty. Mathieu Olivier (lower body) is also questionable for the upcoming tilt, and if either of them can't play, then Mikael Pyyhtia will likely draw into the lineup.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Pots shortie in win
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Danforth scored a shorthanded goal, added three hits and blocked two shots in Monday's 5-1 win over the Bruins.
Danforth played 16:31 in this contest, third-most among Blue Jackets forwards, despite being listed on the fourth line. The lopsided nature of the game likely played a role in that, but he's also been a trusted part of the lineup this season. He's up to three goals, five helpers, 37 shots on net, 33 hits and a minus-7 rating through 15 appearances. The tally was the first shorthanded point of his career.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Helps out on both goals in loss
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Danforth logged two assists, two shots on goal and three hits in Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Kings.
Danforth set up tallies by Dmitri Voronkov and Ivan Provorov in this contest. This was Danforth's second multi-point effort of the season, but he's been inconsistent, getting on the scoresheet in just three of 10 outings. He has six points, 23 shots on net, 24 hits and a minus-4 rating while filling a middle-six role.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Pots empty-netter
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Danforth scored an empty-net goal on two shots, blocked two shots and added two PIM in Wednesday's 2-0 win over the Islanders.
Danforth has multiple shots on net in four of his six appearances so far, and he's added at least one hit in every game. The 31-year-old has filled a middle-six role, and he's also seeing time on the second power-play unit. Danforth has four points, 12 shots, 14 hits and a plus-1 rating, giving him some appeal in deeper fantasy formats.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Making season debut Thursday
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Danforth (wrist) will be in the lineup against the Sabres on Thursday, Brian Hedger of The Columbus Dispatch reports.
Danforth has missed the first three games of the season due to his wrist injury but looks set to make his 2024-25 debut. With Danforth cleared to play, preseason addition Kevin Labanc will be dropped from the lineup versus Buffalo with Danforth likely moving up to a second-line role.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Starting season on non-roster list
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Danforth (wrist) was put on non-roster injured reserve Monday.
Danforth didn't skate with the main group during training camp while recovering from offseason wrist surgery. He will be out for the beginning of the 2024-25 campaign but an exact timetable for his return remains unclear. Danforth collected 10 goals, 26 points, 86 shots on net and 109 hits across 71 regular-season contests in 2023-24.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Set to miss Thursday's game
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Danforth (wrist) isn't expected to play in Thursday's preseason game versus Pittsburgh, per Aaron Portzline of The Athletic on Wednesday.
Danforth had 10 goals and 26 points in 71 contests with Columbus in 2023-24. The 31-year-old is likely to serve in a bottom-six role once he recovers from his offseason wrist surgery.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Not playing Friday
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Danforth (wrist) won't play versus the Capitals on Friday, Tom Gulitti of NHL.com reports.
Danforth started stickhandling this week as he recovers from wrist surgery. The 31-year-old winger may get only a game or two of preseason action, if any, before Opening Night on Oct. 10 versus the Wild.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Won't suit up Monday
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Danforth (wrist) will not be in action against Buffalo on Monday, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports.
Danforth has only recently begun stickhandling, so it shouldn't be surprising to see him being held out of action Monday. At this point, the veteran winger should probably be considered a doubtful at best for Wednesday's preseason game against the Blues. All signs point to the Ontario native being ready for Opening Night against the Wild on Oct. 10, but given his limited scoring upside, Danforth's status shouldn't be of concern for most fantasy managers.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Can start stickhandling
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Danforth (wrist) won't resume practicing just yet, but he's ready to begin stickhandling, Jeff Svoboda of the Blue Jackets' official site reports Wednesday.
Danforth is working his way back from offseason wrist surgery. He had 10 goals and 26 points in 71 contests last campaign. When healthy, Danforth is likely to serve in a middle-six capacity.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Out of action Saturday
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Danforth (illness) will not be in the lineup versus Nashville on Saturday, Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers reports.
Danforth has 10 goals and 21 points in 63 games this season. The Blue Jackets will play a man short in the contest, as the team only has 11 forwards and six defensemen on the roster.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Available Saturday
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Danforth (illness) is good to play Saturday versus San Jose, Brian Hedger of The Columbus Dispatch reports.
Danforth has nine goals and 19 points in 52 contests this season. He was initially questionable for Saturday's contest after being unavailable for Friday's practice, but the 30-year-old ultimately won't miss any playing time due to the illness.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Sets new personal best
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Danforth scored the only goal for Columbus on Saturday in a 4-1 loss to the Maple Leafs.
He evened the score at 1-1 just 22 seconds into the second period on a partial breakaway set up by Johnny Gaudreau. Danforth has a career-high 15 points, including eight goals, through 35 games this season. It's not enough to make Danforth fantasy relevant, but it's a dream come true for the 30-year-old. He has appeared in just 86 NHL games since the 2021-22 campaign.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Records two-point night in win
Rotowire
Danforth registered a goal and an assist in Friday's 3-1 win against the Flames.
Danforth has two goals and three points across four games, already equaling his production from six NHL appearances last season. It was his first multi-point performance in 55 career NHL games. He was credited with the game-winning goal, too, his first since April 5, 2022 on the road against the Flyers.
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Blue Jackets' Justin Danforth: Resumes skating
Rotowire
Danforth (shoulder) has begun skating, but it still seems unlikely he'll be able to play again this season, Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports.
The 29-year-old winger landed on injured reserve in late October after undergoing surgery to repair a torn labrum, and at the time it was thought he would be lost for the season. Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen didn't offer a clear answer Thursday when asked if Danforth might return before the team's regular-season finale in April, however, potentially opening the door for him to see some action before the summer.
