Blue Jackets’ Laine arrives in Columbus, could debut Tuesday

Sportsnet Staff January 29, 2021, 12:40 PM

Patrik Laine arrived in Columbus on Friday and could make his Blue Jackets debut as soon as Tuesday.

Laine, who was in Ottawa to sort out his work visa, landed in Columbus on Friday afternoon.

LAINE HAS LANDED pic.twitter.com/tzEluRn340

— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) January 29, 2021

The 22-year-old Finn, acquired last Saturday in a blockbuster deal with the Winnipeg Jets for Pierre-Luc Dubois, will now have to quarantine for 48 hours after arriving in Columbus as part of the NHL’s COVID-19 protocols.

Laine could debut at home on Tuesday against the Dallas Stars, according to The Athletic‘s Aaron Portzline.

Once Laine lands in Columbus, he’ll clear immigration at Port Columbus Intl’ and begin a 48-hour, NHL-mandated COVID quarantine before he’s cleared to play.

Expectation remains that he makes his Columbus debut Tuesday vs. Dallas in Nationwide Arena.

— Aaron Portzline (@Aportzline) January 29, 2021

Before being dealt to Columbus last week, Laine had been dealing with an upper-body injury and hadn’t played for the Jets since the opening game of the season. Whether Laine is still dealing with that injury at this point is unclear.

Jack Roslovic, who was acquired along with Laine in the trade, made his debut for Columbus on Thursday night in the Blue Jackets’ 3-2 shootout win over the Florida Panthers. The Columbus native recorded 14:14 off ice time and won 4-of-4 faceoffs.

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