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Columbus Blue Jackets banged up: Marchenko, Fabbro injured in loss to Dallas Stars
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- Columbus Blue Jackets banged up: Marchenko, Fabbro injured in loss to Dallas Stars
The Blue Jackets have one game remaining on a productive and costly road trip .
More: Dallas Stars use tipping point to end Columbus Blue Jackets' three-game win streak
Despite regaining a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference by sweeping a back-to-back against the Vegas Golden Knights and Utah Hockey Club , they're now nursing multiple new injuries after a brutal game Sunday night at American Airlines Center in Dallas, a 5-3 loss to the Stars that hurt both figuratively and literally.
Stars center Roope Hintz (24) and Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Kirill Marchenko chase the puck during a Feb. 2 game.
Kirill Marchenko sustained a fractured jaw while struck with the puck while seated on the bench and Dante Fabbro , left with an upper-body injury that's believed to be a concussion after being elbowed in the face by Stars forward Mason Marchment . Blue Jackets coach Dean Evason didn't provide an update on Marchenko, but a source told the Dispatch on Monday he sustained a fractured jaw. Evason told traveling writers in Dallas that Fabbro, Zach Werenski 's partner on the top defense pairing, could miss "some time" with his injury.
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The Blue Jackets (26-20-7) are already missing key forwards Sean Monahan (wrist), Boone Jenner (shoulder) and Yegor Chinakhov (back) along with veteran defenseman Erik Gudbranson (shoulder).
Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Dante Fabbro (15) skates past Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Brandon Hagel (38) during the second period of the NHL hockey game at Nationwide Arena in Columbus on Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024.
Fabbro is expected to miss the final game of the trip Tuesday in Buffalo, while Marchenko could be out for weeks. Werenski, meanwhile, left the game late in the second for unknown medical reasons before returning to play the third. Rookie forward Mikael Pyyhtia was also struck in the face by a puck earlier in the second period and played the rest of the game after receiving medical attention on the bench.
Marchenko was struck by a puck late in the second, while seated on the bench. It's the second straight season the Blue Jackets have lost a player that way . Last year in Calgary , former defenseman Adam Boqvist was struck in the mouth by teammate Cole Sillinger 's clearing attempt, which knocked him off the bench while he spoke with Werenski.
Blue Jackets forward James van Riemsdyk was wearing a protective shield on his helmet Sunday after getting hit in the mouth with a stick on Friday.
Boqvist had his upper rack of teeth on the right side of his mouth knocked out by the roots from the force. Going into Sunday's game, Blue Jackets forward James van Riemsdyk was already wearing a protective jaw shield due to mouth trauma sustained Friday in a 3-2 overtime win in Utah .
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During the first period in that game, Van Riemsdyk was struck in the mouth by former Blue Jackets defenseman Ian Cole's stick blade during a battle in the offensive zone. He missed the rest of the period, the entire second and returned for the third with the plastic guard.
Left wing Mason Marchment (27), defenseman Matt Dumba (3) and the Stars beat the Blue Jackets Sunday 5-3.
Van Riemsdyk told reporters Sunday in Dallas that he lost four teeth, needed 30 stitches and had one of the teeth accidentally stitched into his lip. He wasn't the only player wearing facial protection in Dallas, though. The Stars also had two players, Marchment and defenseman Mathew Dumba , wearing similar devices after returning from facial injuries of their own.
The Stars also lost one of their young centers, Maverick Bourque, to a puck in the face in the third. Despite losing to the Stars, the Blue Jackets remained in a playoff spot by occupying the second of two wild cards in the Eastern Conference with 59 points.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets banged up: Marchenko, Fabbro injured in Dallas
