The Blue Jackets get one more preseason night at Nationwide Arena, and for two defense prospects, it comes with a real chance to move the needle. Columbus hosts the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight in its final home tune-up, and the most interesting part of the lineup isn’t the veterans - it’s who they’re skating beside.
Zach Werenski and Erik Gudbranson are both in the lineup, but not together. Instead, the Jackets are pairing each of their NHL regulars with a young defenseman who is squarely in the mix. Werenski is lined up with Corson Ceulemans, while Gudbranson is alongside Guillaume Richard.
That setup gives Richard and Ceulemans a clear stage. Richard has been a name worth watching all summer as a possible lineup candidate, and that only became more relevant once the injuries started stacking up.
Tonight, he gets the kind of look many expected him to get: next to Gudbranson, in a spot that could fit him well if Columbus decides he’s ready for NHL minutes. He logged 20:15 in his first preseason game Monday, third-most on the team, and he should be in line for another heavy workload.
Ceulemans, though, has the even bigger spotlight. He’s skating with the reigning Norris Trophy winner on the top pairing, and he’s earned the chance. He also happens to own the Blue Jackets’ lone regulation goal this preseason.
That pairing situation says plenty about where the roster battle stands. With Dante Fabbro and Damon Severson still up in the air, both Richard and Ceulemans have a real path to opening the season in Columbus. If Fabbro and Severson begin the year out of the lineup, those two could be the club’s No. 6 and No. 7 defensemen when the games count.
There’s still another layer to this, of course, because everything also depends on whether the team signs Carson Soucy from his PTO. Even then, at least one of these prospects still has a shot to stick.
The third pairing is worth a look, too. Veteran Colton White is paired with Charlie Elick, and that combination has the feel of a potential top two on the Cleveland Monsters blue line this season.
The opponent gives Columbus no real cover here. Pittsburgh is dressing a lineup that is barely compliant with the NHL’s preseason roster rules, so the Jackets won’t have any excuses. Tonight is about seeing how these younger defensemen handle a bigger load in an NHL setting.
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