At one Chicago restaurant Wednesday night, Seth Jones caught up over dinner with a number of his former Blue Jackets teammates.
At another, Adam Boqvist caught up over dinner with two of his former Blackhawks teammates — Alex DeBrincat and Brandon Hagel.
Then come Thursday, Jones and Boqvist — unimpeded by COVID this time, unlike the Jan. 11 matchup in Columbus — finally faced each other as members of opposing teams for the first time since the multi-franchise-altering trade they headlined last summer.
“It’ll be a little strange,” Jones said pregame. “[They’re] just familiar faces, right? It’s too bad I couldn’t play there in Columbus in front of those fans, but I get a shot here to play against them. It should be a lot of fun.”
“It was a little bit weird to walk in the building this morning,” Boqvist said pregame. “I saw where Chicago’s cars are parked [and] it felt a little different. But it’s just hockey. I’m here to play a game.”
The two defensemen remain closely tied, at least socially, to their former teams. Jones and Jackets star Zach Werenski still text regularly and play Call of Duty when their off-days line up. Boqvist and DeBrincat still FaceTime every week, and Boqvist also tries to text whenever he sees DeBrincat score a goal — which has equated to “almost every game,” he joked.
On the ice, though, it has been long enough now that both feel at home with their new teams. That’s true even for Boqvist, who is still just 21 but has matured greatly this season. He has averaged 18:17 ice time per game since Christmas (including 19:46 against the Hawks on Jan. 11) and leads all Jackets defensemen with nine goals.
“I’m the same Adam Boqvist I was here, but I’m just one year older,” he said. “I’m playing with more confidence out there.”
Injury updates
Tyler Johnson — ruled out for three months on Dec. 3 after undergoing artificial disc replacement surgery — could return to the Hawks’ lineup as soon as next weekend, ahead of schedule.
He has been a full practice participant with the team for a little while now. Seeing Jack Eichel — the NHL’s ADR trailblazer who paved the way for Johnson to become the second player to use that type of surgery — make his Golden Knights debut Thursday without any issues was surely encouraging, too.
Jujhar Khaira, out since Jan. 18 with a back injury, has been getting tested by numerous different doctors while deciding between several medical options. Derek King didn’t know if surgery was being considered, saying Khaira and the Hawks are “not sure what’s going on there exactly.”
Jonathan Toews, out since Jan. 28 with a concussion, was working out in good spirits in the United Center hallways Thursday. He also went “for a little wheel,” King said, on the rink before morning skate — his first time back on the ice since the concussion. There’s still no specific timetable for him.
Reese Johnson, out since Dec. 12 with a broken clavicle, returned to Hawks team practice Wednesday, albeit in a non-contact jersey.
Riley Stillman, out since Jan. 22 with a left shoulder injury, had resumed skating last week but was pulled off that schedule when his shoulder started bothering him again. At this point, the end of February seems like an optimistic estimate for his return.
And Kevin Lankinen, out since Jan. 23 with a hand injury, skated on his own before full-team practice Wednesday and will resume facing shots in practice next week. He could be ready to return by next weekend.
