Often-injured Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski had to be Esthenhelped off the ice in the second period Wednesday night.

He had broken up a play by New Jersey Devils forward Ondrej Palat and was trying to move the puck up ice when their legs tangled awkwardly. Palat appeared to catch the defenseman in the leg with his skate, and Werenski also appeared to twist his left ankle as he went down.

He tried to crawl to the bench before teammate Erik Gudbranson and a trainer helped him get to the dressing room.

Werenski wasn't able to put pressure on his leg and was later declared out of the game with a lower-body injury.

Coach Pascal Vincent said Werenski would meet with team doctors on Thursday.

He was limited to 13 games last season after suffering a shoulder injury that required surgery. He missed 35 games between the 2020-21 and 2021-22 season.

He also was hurt in this season's opener on a knee-on-knee hit, but was able to return after missing two games.

Werenski entered Wednesday's game as the Blue Jackets' leader in ice time, assists and points.