Blue Jackets training camp: Greaves vs. Merzlikins, and 8 other storylines to watch

COLUMBUS, Ohio In previous seasons, the training camp questions were significant.

Is this years top prospect ready to play in the NHL? Do they have enough center depth to build four lines? Are there any defensemen capable of playing on a top pair? As noted this week, the Columbus Blue Jackets seem as stable as theyve been in several seasons entering this years training camp.

But that doesnt mean there arent storylines to watch between the start of camp on Thursday and the start of the regulation season on Oct.

9.

Advertisement Here are nine things well be monitoring: 1.

Whos the No.

1 goalie? For the first time in three seasons, goaltender Elvis Merzlikins has a realistic challenger to his role as the Blue Jackets No.

1 goaltender.

Coach Dean Evason has made it clear that training camp will determine if Merzlikins or Jet Greaves will be the opening-night starter, and the regular-season performance of each goalie will determine who gets the bulk of the starts.

Yes, they enter camp on even footing.

Greaves has never looked out of place in the NHL.

He looked other-worldly at the end of last season, when he backstopped five of the Blue Jackets six straight wins to pull within two points of reaching the playoffs.

This will be his biggest opportunity yet.

And itll be Merzlikins biggest challenge since he broke into the NHL in a tandem with Joonas Korpisalo.

Merzlikins has enormous talent, but has struggled mightily over the last three seasons.

A push could be a good thing.

2.

Chinakhovs role GM Don Waddell and Evason both met with Yegor Chinakhov this month after his offseason trade request, and it seems theyve reached (for now) an accord.

Chinakhov wants to play, and Evason wants him to play him, but how much and where is up to the player, Evason said.

At the start of last season, Chinakhov was elevated to the No.

1 line after Boone Jenner was injured at the end of training camp.

That should be proof that Evason recognizes Chinakhovs considerable skill.

But the Blue Jackets top-two forward lines are now the high-rent district in Columbus.

Sean Monahan and Adam Fantilli are locked as the top two centers, but Chinakhov, Boone Jenner, Kent Johnson, Kirill Marchenko and Dmitry Voronkov are all candidates to fill in those lines on the wings.

Is Chinakhov among the top four talented wingers on this roster? Absolutely.

But itll take a healthy, thriving Chinakhov in camp and the preseason for him to land the job he wants.

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Still the Boss Voronkovs teammates have taken to calling him Big Boss, but the Blue Jackets coaches and brass sent him home this summer with a request to become a slightly thinner Boss.

The Jackets want him to be more aerobically fit for two reasons.

First, his offensive numbers have been strong at the start of both of his NHL seasons, but theyve fallen off a cliff in the final months of each campaign.

In 2023-24, he had 16 goals and 14 assists in 51 games, one of the Blue Jackets most consistent scorers through the end of February.

In his first 24 games? Two goals and two assists.

Last season, he was tied with Marchenko for the team lead in goals (17) through Jan.

17.

But in the second half of the season, he had just six goals and 13 assists.

The other reason is they think Voronkov can be one of the NHLs top power forwards, but his lack of foot speed has made it hard for him to step into hits.

Training camp and the preseason schedule will reveal if theres a leaner Big Boss in town.

4.

Bottom 6 The only notable change by the Blue Jackets this summer was among their bottom-six forwards.

Departed players Sean Kuraly (Boston), James van Riemdsyk (Detroit) and Justin Danforth (Buffal0) have been replaced by Charlie Coyle, Miles Wood and Isac Lundestrom.

Its unclear where all the new pieces will fit, except Coyle, who will almost certainly be the new third-line center, pushing Cole Sillinger to the wing.

Who aligns next to Coyle and Sillinger? It could be Jenner or Chinakhov, whoever doesnt land among the top six forwards.

The fourth line will be centered by Lundestom, and you can bank on rough-and-tumble Mathieu Olivier playing on the right side.

Its hard to imagine Wood not playing on the left side, as he was brought in to juice up the forecheck and make the Jackets harder to play against.

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Blue-line scramble? The Blue Jackets defense has remained almost unchanged from last season, which means those three pairs still arent an ideal fit.

Yes, Zach Werenski and Dante Fabbro meshed well on the top pair, and Denton Mateychuk and Ivan Provorov had moments on the second pair, but having the lefty Provorov play on the right side of that pairing is something less than perfect.

Evason has said he wants to use camp and the preseason to look at different combinations, which could get interesting.

Dont be surprised if Mateychuk, coming off an impressive rookie season, gets a look on the top pair next to Werenski.

Dont be stunned if Provorov, who signed a seven-year, $59.5 million contract this summer, sees time on his natural side.

Other than Erik Gudbranson being locked in on the right side, the third pair bears watching.

If Damon Severson slots in next to Gudbranson, he, too, would be playing on his off side.

With six seasons remaining on his contract, finding a spot where Severson can regain his confidence is a key.

Dont forget about Jake Christiansen, who played 68 games last season.

6.

Depth battles This is nothing like its been in recent seasons, when five or six players were fighting for the final one or two spots.

But competition is the very reason for training camp, and there are still a couple of battles to watch.

On paper, Zach Aston-Reese would appear to be the 13th forward, with Mikael Pyyhtia his top competition.

You cant rule out the likes of Luca Del Bel Belluz, James Malatesta and others, but those players can all go to the AHL without waivers, meaning theyd have to significantly outplay Aston-Reese and Pyyhtia.

On defense, the Blue Jackets have little mystery.

Youd have to consider Jake Christiansen the No.

7 as of today, but Waddell and Evason have talked up the crew at AHL Cleveland as being a threat.

That includes Christian Jaros and Daemon Hunt, along with veteran Brendan Smith, who is in camp on a tryout agreement.

Some notable new numbers for players at #CBJ training camp: 3 Charlie Coyle 7 Brendan Smith 11 Miles Wood 20 Hudson Fasching 21 Isac Lundestrom 22 Jordan Dumais 28 Ivan Fedotov 37 Dysin Mayo 48 Christian Jaros Jeff Svoboda (@JacketsInsider) September 15, 2025 7.

Waiver wire The Blue Jackets were active on the waiver wire last season, claiming Fabbro from Nashville and Aston-Reese from Vegas.

Theyll be active in the other direction by the end of camp, with several players needing to clear to join AHL Cleveland.

Advertisement Aston-Reese and Pyyhtia whoever doesnt claim that 13th forward spot would each need waivers to be sent to Cleveland.

Other forwards who would need to be exposed to the rest of the league are Hunter McKown, Brendan Gaunce, Hudson Fasching and Owen Sillinger.

Among defensemen, Dysin Mayo, Jaros and Hunt would all need to clear, as would goaltenders Ivan Fedotov and Zach Sawchenko.

Thatll be a nervy day for AHL Cleveland coach Trent Vogelhuber and his staff, who open training camp on Sept.

29 in suburban Cleveland.

8.

OK go? One player not mentioned above as battling for a forward spot is Oiva Keskinen, who has a chance to be a steal of a draft pick for the Blue Jackets.

Keskinen, a 21-year-old center from Finland, was a seventh-round pick (No.

194 overall) in the 2023 draft, but has really elevated over the past two seasons playing in Finlands top league, Liiga.

The Blue Jackets were excited to sign him to an entry-level deal, which indicates they believe he has NHL potential.

Is that this year? That would seem a reach.

Keskinen was a standout player at the NHL prospects showcase in Buffalo last weekend, and hes over-the-moon excited for his first NHL training camp.

Theres a clause in his contract that will allow him to return to Finland if he doesnt make the Blue Jackets final roster.

Quite frankly, that seems likely.

But Keskinen, talking with The Athletic in Buffalo, said hed consider joining AHL Cleveland if the Blue Jackets thought he was a likely recall during the season.

9.

Injuries Injuries have wrecked so many recent seasons that Blue Jackets fans have taken to watching games heck, even practices through their fingers, fearing the worst.

Last season, at the end of training camp, Boone Jenner slammed into a wall and suffered a shoulder injury.

There are already some bumps and bruises at the start of this years camp.

Advertisement Mateychuk will miss the first couple of days of camp with a groin injury, but Waddell indicated he could join camp by the weekend.

AHL Cleveland-bound forwards Jordan Dumais (lower body) and Max McCue (undisclosed) are day to day, and Sillinger (knee) will take part in practices, but be held out of contact drills and preseason games.

Defenseman Luca Marrelli had shoulder surgery at the end of last season, so his pro debut is on hold.

Hes expected to be cleared to return in mid-December.

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