Werenski ready to put rehab behind him, hit the ice for upcoming season

It wasn't Nationwide Arena, with a packed house of 19,000 fans cheering him on.

Still, Zach Werenski was quite happy to be at OhioHealth Chiller North on Tuesday afternoon.

There was a packed house, after all, as Werenski stepped onto the ice for action in the third week of Cap City Summer Elite League play. And they were there to watch some of the top names in Columbus hockey, a list that included Werenski, who happened to be in the capital city and took the opportunity to play with friends and teammates.

In fact, the occasion marked the first time the Blue Jackets defenseman and alternate captain had done his job in front of the fans since Nov. 10, when he went for a hit and awkwardly fell shoulder first into the boards at Nationwide Arena. The resulting injury ended his year 13 games into the 2022-23 season, leaving him 69 games to rehab and watch as his team went through one of the most trying seasons in its history.

So while the stakes were low Tuesday, there was quite a bit of excitement for Werenski, who not only skated in the game, he also signed every autograph for those who came out to watch.

READ MORE: Werenski named Community MVP | Werenski meets fan he's watched grow up

"I don't think I've played hockey in front of people since my last game, so it's fun to get out there in front of the fans and play hockey again," the 26-year-old defenseman said.

"I'm sick of the gym. I'm done in there. I've been in the gym since January, but I feel good. I'd rather have it that way than trying to rush everything (in offseason preparations) into one month or three weeks. I feel really good, and I'm just counting down the days to camp."

In fact, if there was any good news with Werenski's injury, it's that it happened to the team's all-time top-scoring defenseman so early in the campaign that he knew his rehab would allow him a full summer of training.

Video: PHI@CBJ: Werenski nets 3rd goal of season in 1st

As a result, he said he feels 100 percent and is ready to get back on the ice once the real stuff begins in September with the start of training camp.

"I knew right away when the surgery happened, I'd be ready," he said. "It was so early in the season that I knew even if there were hiccups along the way, I'd be fine for camp. I mainly wanted to get ready for summer just so I could heal it, strengthen it, feel good on the ice, do everything I wanted to accomplish in order for camp.

"And I'm right on my way. I think my timeline has been good. I feel good out on the ice."

As good as Werenski feels about his shoulder, he feels even better about what the Blue Jackets might be able to accomplish this upcoming season. Werenski will have two new veteran blueliners by his side in veterans Ivan Provorov and Damon Severson, players with 16 years of combined NHL experience who have missed a grand total of six games between them the past five seasons.

That should help a CBJ blue line that was young by design the past few years, but that inexperience led to a heavy price to pay as the Jackets set a team record for goals allowed in 2021-22 and then reset the mark a year ago.

Combine that with the draft of fellow University of Michigan standout (and offseason training partner) Adam Fantilli as well as the hiring of head coach Mike Babcock, and Werenski feels the Blue Jackets can make strides in the standings this season.

"I think it's great," Werenski said. "I think whenever you can add to your team to make your team better, it's always exciting. We get a forward in Fantilli, we have two defensemen, a new coach. I think it's definitely going to be a different feel coming to camp this year.

"I know it's going to be demanding. It's going to be hard. But that's the way you want it, right? You want guys to compete for jobs. It makes things exciting and makes guys work harder. I'm excited for it to get things going, and let's see what happens."

On the subject of Babcock, Werenski didn't have to go far to meet his new boss. The 12th-winningest coach in NHL history lives near Detroit just like Werenski, and the two recently met at Babcock's home and had an encouraging conversation.

"It was really good," he said. "I went to his house and met with him; it's not far from me, actually. We had a good conversation. We talked about myself, what he expects out of me, the team. I got to know him a little bit.

"I left impressed. It kind of fired me up a little bit. I think from that point on, I just wanted to get to training camp and get the season going. We had a really good conversation, and I'm just excited to get things going again."