We're almost there.
After another round of training camp cuts on Wednesday morning, the Blue Jackets' camp roster stands at 29 players: 17 forwards, nine defensemen and three goaltenders.
With a week remaining until opening night rosters are due to the NHL, the Blue Jackets have six more decisions to make – in addition to the composition of their roster. They may opt to carry eight defensemen depending on the status of Seth Jones, but John Tortorella indicated earlier this week that those calls have yet to be made.
Defenseman Michael Prapavessis (more on him in a minute) impressed at training camp and in his preseason auditions, but was assigned to the Cleveland Monsters today. Also heading to the Monsters are forward Sam Vigneault, Eric Robinson and goaltender J-F Berube, provided the latter clears waivers at noon ET tomorrow.
Liam Foudy, the Blue Jackets' 2018 first-round pick, was assigned to the OHL's London Knights.
Alright, back to Prapavessis. What a freakin' story this guy was.
You might be asking: who is this guy?
Before camp began, John Tortorella asked the same question.
"I didn't know who the hell he was," Tortorella said after Tuesday's Kraft Hockeyville game in Clinton, N.Y.
He certainly knows now. The 22-year-old Prapavessis saw plenty of action in the preseason, pairing up with Seth Jones at times and playing "more than just a simple audition" minutes in all situations. He saw power play time, top-four time, and made his case to stick around deep in the proceedings, despite the Blue Jackets cutting nearly half of their original camp roster.
The Blue Jackets were able to bring Prapavessis to Traverse City because the Dallas Stars – who selected him in the fourth round of the 2014 NHL Draft – opted not to sign him. After a solid four-year career at RPI (where he served as team captain in 2017-18), Prapavessis played 11 ECHL games with the Cincinnati Cyclones.
Earlier this month, Prapavessis signed a one-year AHL deal with the Cleveland Monsters.
