COLUMBUS, Ohio — A collection of notes, insights, ruminations and did-you-knows gathered throughout the week that was for the Columbus Blue Jackets:
Item No. 1: Chin up!
For a couple of years now, maybe longer, there have been percolating signs of discontent between the Columbus Blue Jackets and winger Yegor Chinakhov.
Early in the 2023-24 season, when Chinakhov was working his way back into the lineup on the fourth line under coach Pascal Vincent, Chinakhov’s agent, Shumi Babaev, told The Columbus Dispatch that Chinakhov “doesn’t feel the (Blue Jackets) trust him, and he wants to leave.”
Last season, while Chinakhov was out of the lineup with a back injury, he told a group of reporters in the Blue Jackets dressing room that he and the club disagreed on the best approach to healing his back pain, which had lingered for more than a year.
This week, Chinakhov and Babaev threw it all out in public. On Thursday, Chinakhov told the Russian outlet Sport-Express that he would welcome a trade, again mentioning that he felt a lack of trust from the coaching staff, now led by Dean Evason.
A day later, Babaev went a step further in an interview with The Athletic, saying: “I don’t think there’s any way he can stay in Columbus,” and later adding, “It’s all about the coach.”
When this spat first surfaced, many assumed that it was related to Chinakhov’s back issue. And while that behind-the-scenes drama existed, it appears to have been resolved. During the 4 Nations Faceoff in February, Chinakhov traveled to Moscow to have a procedure that he said wasn’t an approved treatment in North America.
“In one hour, the doctors (in Moscow) fixed everything,” Babaev said. “It’s not a problem. It wasn’t surgery. It was like a shot, like you’d get at the dentist. It took 40 minutes. He visited a lot of doctors in the U.S., and they didn’t know how to fix it.
“Now he’s 100 percent healthy. I explained it to (Blue Jackets general manager) Don (Waddell) and he understands me.”
Babaev said Chinakhov is skating hard and pain-free this summer, training with several NHL players in Moscow, including his Blue Jackets teammate Kirill Marchenko.
If it’s true that Chinakhov’s back pain and any lingering resentment over his treatment are in the past, as Chinakhov and Babaev have indicated, then that leaves Chinakhov’s playing time, his spot in the lineup and his relationship with Evason in question.
Evason, understandably, didn’t want to get into a back and forth with Chinakhov in the media, so he offered a comment through a club spokesman — “The lines of communication are open, and they will continue to be open” — but he otherwise let Chinakhov and Babaev talk.
Waddell is not averse to trading Chinakhov, he said, but he’s not simply going to accept the offer of the highest bidder. This is not the Patrik Laine situation from last summer, when the Blue Jackets were eager to unload Laine and his $8.7 million salary.
The Blue Jackets have said that, barring a trade, they expect Chinakhov to show up for training camp healthy and ready to work. Chinakhov, through Babaev, has said that he plans to honor his contract, which pays him $2.1 million this season and expires next summer, with Chinakhov a restricted free agent.
Here’s what makes this situation so maddening, so silly.
Chinakhov has said he wants to be a top-six winger in the NHL. When you consider the situation in Columbus with Evason’s high-paced, offensively-friendly system, the Blue Jackets’ impressive young forward talent, and the lineup spot in the top six that’s sitting there to be grabbed, there may be no better spot for Chinakhov than right where he is.
Last season, Evason started the season with Chinakhov on the No. 1 line with center Sean Monahan and right winger Dmitri Voronkov. (That doesn’t sound like a lack of trust, eh?) That line was impressive for the first six weeks of the season, and Chinakhov was the Jackets’ top forward.
He did not look the same, understandably so, when he returned after missing 40 games with the back injury, and he was in and out of the lineup with reduced ice time as a result. He played nine games after his return and totaled 0-1-1 with a minus-8 rating.
That’s not an argument for more playing time, and with the Blue Jackets desperate to get into the postseason, the coaching staff had to make short-term, day-to-day decisions.
When fully healthy, there’s no reason Chinakhov couldn’t supplant Voronkov for a spot on the top line. There’s no reason he couldn’t play on the right side of a second line, with center Adam Fantilli and playmaking left winger Kent Johnson.
The two players he’d likely have to beat out for that final top-six spot — captain Boone Jenner and Cole Sillinger — do not have the raw skill package of Chinakhov. If he could only stay healthy for more than a couple of months at a time, one gets the sense that Chinakhov’s career could launch like the rest of the young players in the Blue Jackets’ lineup.
Waddell was looking for a top-six winger this summer, either by free agency or trade. Chinakhov is looking for a top-six opportunity to launch his career.
Maybe the answer is right there in front of them.
-A-
Item No. 2: Big change
The Donskov family has been training young hockey players in central Ohio across two generations and four decades at the Donskov Hockey Development training center in suburban Columbus. So the leap made last week by brothers Anthony and Matthew Donskov was a huge step forward and a natural fit.
The Blue Jackets announced that they hired the Donskov brothers as development coaches, joining a network of coaches who help guide the organization’s young talents on their way (hopefully) to the NHL. It’s now a three-man staff with the Donskovs and Tommy Cross.
“Coaching is just a passion point for our family,” Anthony Donskov said. “It started with our father (Paul), of course. To be a small part of the big journey, to see the development of individuals over time and to help them get to where they want to be … that’s what wakes you up in the morning. That’s what we’re passionate about.”
DHD staff— Anthony @AnthonyDonskov & Matt Donskov wrapped up a great week of hockey with the @BlueJacketsNHL at their 2025 Development Camp. One Day Better. pic.twitter.com/4YCli7Gjx9
— Donskov Hockey Development (@DonskovHD) July 6, 2025
Blue Jackets franchise legend Rick Nash, who oversees the development staff in his role of director of hockey operations, first brought the Donskovs to development camp last summer to be involved in the on-ice coaching. Little did they know it was a tryout.
Last December, Nash put the brothers to work on a “special project” and was impressed with their work, which led to another invitation to work at this year’s development camp, which led to an offer for full-time work in the NHL.
How much time they’ll be able to commit to the family gym — at least during the season — is still to be determined.
“This was something we couldn’t pass up,” Matthew Donskov said. “We’ve absolutely loved doing what we’ve been doing (at the family training center), but this is such a unique opportunity. It wasn’t tough in any way to make this decision. It’s the NHL, right? It’s an opportunity to work with Rick and others in the organization. We’re beyond excited.”
The Donskovs will travel quite a bit in this new role, but they’ll also do a lot of scouting work and have conversations with prospects via phone and video conferencing. Modern technology is a big help when prospects are scattered across the hockey-playing world.
The Donskovs started to develop relationships with several of the prospects over the last two development camps, but that will move forward quickly when training camp starts.
This marks three Donskovs who have worked in the NHL.
Misha Donskov worked for the Atlanta Thrashers, Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars. His first NHL job, ironically enough, was under Waddell with the Thrashers. He left the Stars this summer to accept a top job with Team Canada, but will likely make his way back to the league soon enough.
Could there be three Donskovs in the NHL at some point?
“I haven’t given that a lot of thought, to be honest,” Matthew said. “But all three together in the NHL … well, that would certainly be a dream.”
-A-
Item No. 3: Thanks, Sid
Paul DeFazio, the Blue Jackets’ new equipment manager, said it was a random conversation with Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby last month that prompted Crosby to make a phone call on DeFazio’s behalf.
“We were just chatting, and I told him what was going on, and he said he knew Rick Nash really well and he’d reach out to him,” said DeFazio, who left the Penguins after nearly 30 years to join the Jackets. “Sid kept his word. And I’m so, so appreciative.”
DeFazio, a Pittsburgh native, said he’s been looking to “move on” from the Penguins for a while, and he wanted to run his own room after serving as the assistant with the Penguins for over two decades.
“That’s one of the things that’s most hard is the relationships I’ve had there, with the other equipment guys, with the players, ” DeFazio said. “And Sid is a part of that, obviously. I’ve helped him out a lot, but he’s helped me out a ton.”
How Sidney Crosby helped the Blue Jackets land their new head equipment manager
— The Athletic NHL (@TheAthleticNHL) July 16, 2025
DeFazio became Crosby’s “skate guy” over the last few years, a job that comes with immense responsibility and precision. Crosby, like all the greats, treats his gear like an extension of his body. If something’s off, he’s not pleased.
“It’s a pretty big job,” DeFazio said with a chuckle. “He trusted me and he was happy with my work … I mean, not always. We had our differences. We had times where, you know, something’s not right and he’d tell me. But we’d fix it. It was a great relationship, really.”
Before he was “allowed” to leave Pittsburgh, DeFazio said, he showed another member of the Penguins’ training staff how Crosby likes his skates to be sharpened.
DeFazio is moving on to a new organization and a new group of players, although he’s worked previously with Blue Jackets forward Zach Aston-Reese and defenseman Erik Gudbranson.
DeFazio said he’s already talked to every Blue Jackets player on a one-way contract to ensure their gear has been ordered in time for training camp’s start in mid-September, and he’s working through the list of players on two-way contracts.
The goal is simple, DeFazio said: “I want the room to be organized. I like detail. I like being on top of things. I don’t want to give the players any excuses. I want the players to be well taken care of, whether they’re first-line guys or a guy in prospect camp. I think it’s important to treat every one of them the same.”
-A-
Item No. 4: Snacks
• The most intriguing name left on the free-agent market is Columbus native Jack Roslovic, who will likely be playing with his fourth team in three seasons when he signs later this offseason. Roslovic, who can play center or wing, matched a career-high with 22 goals for the Carolina Hurricanes last season. But the Canes let Roslovic, 28, walk to free agency and added Nikolaj Ehlers as one of their upgrades this summer. Roslovic had to wait for the initial wave to pass last summer before signing with the Hurricanes on July 4, but nothing like this. It’s been almost three weeks since Roslovic hit the market, and more than two-thirds of the NHL has more than $3 million to spend under the cap.
• File this under “Did Not See This Coming”: Former Blue Jackets coach Gerard Gallant, who has been out of work as an NHL coach since being fired by the New York Rangers after the 2022-23 season, is heading to Russia to continue his coaching career, per reports, including The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun. Gallant will coach the KHL’s Kunlun Red Star, which finished with the fifth-worst record in the league last season. The franchise is based in Beijing, China, and has played its home games in two different cities in China and one in Russia over the past few seasons. This year, the KHL announced, it will play in the 22,000-seat SKA Arena in St. Petersburg. Gallant is the latest former NHL coach to take over the Red Star bench, following Mike Keenan and Curt Fraser.
• Defenseman Sam Knazko, a third-round pick (No. 78) by the Blue Jackets in 2020, signed to play with HC Vitkovice in Czechia’s top league. Knazko, who played 149 games in AHL Cleveland but only two with the Blue Jackets over the past three seasons, was a restricted free agent who was not extended a qualifying offer by the Jackets, making him a free agent.
• This week’s Sunday Gathering trivia question: During the Blue Jackets’ first 24 seasons, they’ve had 15 different players lead them in scoring for one or more seasons. How many can you name?
• The departure of Knazko and the signing of defenseman Dysin Mayo happened last Wednesday, but one was not the result of the other. The Blue Jackets were interested in Mayo, who signed a one-year, two-way contract, because they wanted another right-shot defenseman who could be a call-up candidate, if necessary. Mayo has played 82 NHL games — all with Arizona — and spent the past three seasons in the Vegas Golden Knights’ organization, playing exclusively for AHL Henderson.
• The final decision will be made in training camp, of course, but it would appear — at least on paper — that AHL Cleveland will have several new faces on its back end. We noted last week that the Blue Jackets are looking for a goaltender who could play with Zach Sawchenko, but it doesn’t stop there. There could be four new faces among the defensemen: left sider Caleb MacDonald, and right siders Christian Jaros, Luca Marrelli and Mayo.
Runnin’ it back in Buffalo!
Our schedule is set for this year’s Prospects Challenge at the Lecom Harborcenter. Stay tuned for our roster and more info: pic.twitter.com/ikeqQ7nEYq
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) July 14, 2025
• The Blue Jackets released their schedule for the NHL prospects tournament from Sept. 11-14 at Buffalo’s Harborcenter. They play New Jersey on Sept. 11 at 7 p.m. ET, Buffalo on Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. ET and Pittsburgh on Sept. 14 at 3:30 p.m. ET. They are off on Sept. 12.
• Trivia answer: The 15 players who have led the Blue Jackets in scoring during at least one season: Cam Atkinson, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Nick Foligno, Johnny Gaudreau, Ryan Johansen, Rick Nash, Artemi Panarin, Vinny Prospal, Brandon Saad, Geoff Sanderson, Jake Voracek, David Vyborny, Zach Werenski and Ray Whitney. (Atkinson and Saad shared the team lead in points during the 2015-16 season.)
• As the NHL settles into its summer slumber, the Sunday Gathering will hit the pause button for the next several weeks. There’s no stopping the coverage — features on the way, news when it happens, etc. — but the Gathering will return in September.
(Photo of Yegor Chinakhov: David Kirouac / Imagn Images)
