If the Blue Jackets are going to qualify for the playoffs, they may need to do it without their top power forward, Mathieu Olivier.
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Coach Rick Bowness said he expects to be without Olivier, “at least a couple weeks,” with an undisclosed upper-body injury that occurred in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Boston Bruins on March 29. Filling Olivier’s void the Jackets’ top enforcer and most menacing forechecker will be a major challenge.
Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Mathieu Olivier (24) fights Boston Bruins center Mark Kastelic (47) during the first period of the NHL hockey game at Nationwide Arena on March 29, 2026.
Bowness said March 31 at a morning skate prior to hosting the Carolina Hurricanes that compensating for Olivier’s absence a team responsibility.
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“We’re going to have to (do it), that’s all,” he said. “It’s a pack mentality out there. I’ve been telling them since Day 1, ‘If they come after one of us, they come after all of us.’ So, we’re going to be in there as a pack mentality and we’ll never get away from it.”
Rookie forward Luca Del Bel Belluz was recalled from AHL Cleveland on March 30 for depth, but Danton Heinen will get the first run in Olivier’s spot at right wing on the top checking line. He’ll step into that role with Charlie Coyle at center and Cole Sillinger on the left hoping to provide a similar forechecking pressure.
Columbus Blue Jackets right wing Mathieu Olivier (24) skates past Boston Bruins center Fraser Minten (93) during the first period of the NHL hockey game at Nationwide Arena on March 29, 2026.
As for Olivier’s injury, it’s unclear when it happened. A fight late in the first period in one possibility, as he connected with a lot of punches to the helmeted head of Bruins forward Mark Kastelic. Another possible cause was contact he made while being hit by former Blue Jackets teammate Sean Kuraly and responding with a hit of his own during his only shift in the second period.
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Olivier’s injury means he’s likely out for most, if not all, of the Jackets’ final eight games while they cling to a playoff spot. Dmitri Voronkov, a power forward who could have stepped into that role, is also out on a week-to-week basis with a hand injury that happened March 28 against the San Jose Sharks, the day before Olivier went out.
Forward Kent Johnson draws back into the lineup against Carolina on the fourth line and has two main areas Bowness wants to see improvement.
Columbus Blue Jackets center Kent Johnson (91) shoots past Los Angeles Kings right wing Adrian Kempe (9) during the second period of the NHL hockey game at Nationwide Arena in Columbus on March 9, 2026.
“When he gets the puck, he’s got to go to the open ice,” Bowness said. “He’s an open-ice player. Some guys can dangle their way through two or three bodies. He can’t. He’s got to go to the open ice. … He’s very dangerous. When they give him room, he’ll make something happen.”
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Johnson’s play along the walls is also a concern, since he isn’t physically built to win battles with size or strength.
“In today’s (game), with everything that’s at stake, there’s a lot of board battles,” Bowness said. “It’s going to end up there. He’s got to win some of those. He can’t get pushed off the puck all the time. You’ve got to win your share. You’re not going to win every battle. There’s another guy trying to win that, right? But you’ve got to win more than you lose.”
Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Mathieu Olivier could miss Columbus Blue Jackets’ final 8 games