Follow me on Twitter @ToddCordell

The Columbus Blue Jackets moved to 4-0 in preseason on Thursday night with an impressive 5-4 win over a star studded Blues team, but once agains negativity clouds over the team.

This time it's not bad news about Ryan Johansen's contract dispute, but rather Nathan Horton.

When the Blue Jackets signed Horton to seven-year, $37.1 million deal they knew he had a shoulder issue to be taken care of, but were under the impression his injury history was a thing in the past.

Unfortunately for them, that is not the case. Horton missed well over half of last season with a shoulder injury, and it now looks like he'll miss a good chunk of time with a back injury.

Via the Columbus Dispatch: Horton has yet to skate during this training camp because of what general manager Jarmo Kekalainen has called a “degenerative” back condition, albeit one, he has said, that generally plagues almost everyone who has played hockey.

Kekalainen today reiterated that Horton’s injury is one that the club believes can be remedied by a continued course of core strengthening. It is not clear when Horton might be able to resume hockey activities, and no one with knowledge of the injury has ventured to even guess at a timetable.

“Everybody is different, obviously, because there is pain involved and all kinds of things involved with that,” Kekalainen said. “I think Nathan Horton is probably more frustrated than anybody right now as far as trying to find a way to get stronger and get back to being able to play again.”

“[Horton] is the only person that really knows where he is at and how much pain there is involved,” Kekelainen said on Thursday. “It’s impossible for anybody else to know what he is going through right now.

The fact that there isn't even a timetable obviously isn't encouraging, so it seems extremely unlikely he'll be in the lineup opening night; or any time soon.

Horton was already starting to decline as a player when the team gave him a lucrative deal in free agency so, as he continues to age and battle injury after injury, the likelihood of them getting their money's worth decreases significantly.



As you can see, in recent years his possession numbers and overall production has decreased. He's still a useful player, obviously, but those numbers will likely only get worse with age.

Columbus gambled on damaged goods when they signed Horton, and there probably won't ever be much of a payoff.

Recent posts

KHL teams hot after Johansen

Atlantic Division predictions

Metro Division predictions

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Email: [email protected]