Though the Jackets official press release didn't say it, Jones will not return for the balance of the regular season. Even a return for the first round of the playoffs would be unlikely. The release from Tuesday says and I quote:

Jackets defenseman Seth Jones underwent successful surgery today to repair his injured ankle and is expected to be sidelined approximately eight to 10 weeks...Jones suffered a sprain and hairline fracture of his ankle in last Saturday's game vs. Colorado.

That was according to the Blue Jackets website.
(https://www.nhl.com/bluejackets/news/blue-jackets-defensemen-seth-jones/c-314918972)

While I'm sure the D pairings will evolve over the next two months as guys return from injury (Kukan and Murray) it looks as if Nutivaara will get the first crack at top pair time with Werenski.

Given that piece of knowledge, I would expect these pairings tonight at Buffalo:

Werenski - Nutivaara
Gavrikov - Savard
Harrington - Peeke

This was also what was published on the CBJ website's game preview today.

Other Injury News

Cam is out with a sprained ankle for 2-3 weeks.
Korpi is listed as a scratch (injury) for tonight's game, which may be a signal that he could return soon.
Murray, Anderson and Kukan don't have a published timetable for return.
Wennberg could return in March.

The next 3 games are all winable games. To be a playoff team these Jackets will have to find a way to beat the team below them in the standings. That starts tonight in a visit to Buffalo.

Good Luck and Go Jackets!

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