from Michael Arace of the Columbus Dispatch,

The Jackets have a nine-day break beginning Sunday. Amid this mini-vacation, left wing Artemi Panarin is supposed to meet with his agent to talk about what’s next. That is good of them. Jackets fans have been dying to find out....

Of Panarin, Kekalainen said, “I don’t want to drag the situation out too close to the deadline. Hopefully, we’ll have an answer in the near future. ... We’ll figure out things on our end and hopefully sit down with him and do something.”...

Should Panarin, 27, go on the block, he might be the most-coveted rental out there next month. He is an elite offensive talent. What could he fetch in return?...

There are many puzzle pieces — ages of players, wants and needs of teams, salary-cap considerations, overall market dynamics, etc. — to fit together in a deadline deal. Yet, if the Jackets feel they had to move Panarin next month, they should exact a relatively decent price in salvage — beginning with a first-round draft pick and a well-regarded prospect.

“Sometimes,” Kekalainen said, “you’re better off renting the player to yourself.”

As for Bobrovsky, he isn’t going anywhere at the deadline unless he supplies a list of teams to which he’ll accept a trade — or waives the no-movement clause in his contract. All is quiet on those fronts, but that could change.

We now know something about the “incident” that compelled Jackets management to suspend Bobrovsky for a game: Bob left the bench, showered and was dressed — maybe, he even left the arena — after he was pulled against the Tampa Bay Lightning last week.

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