"Blue Jackets prospect Nikita Filatov has a hairline fracture in a fibula, multiple sources told The Dispatch yesterday.

The Blue Jackets would not confirm the report.

"We're not commenting, even to say yes or no," assistant general manager Chris MacFarland said. "We'll stick with what we said on Friday, that it's a 10- to 14-day injury, and then he should be ready to go."

It's believed that Filatov was injured last month while playing an exhibition game with his former club in Russia. He played three games for CSKA-2 before the Blue Jackets found out and asked him to stop.

The injury, which was revealed in a physical Friday in Columbus, is almost healed, sources said. If it were the regular season, Filatov might be allowed to play.

Filatov experienced mild pain after skating Wednesday, a day after he arrived in the United States. He is not with the rest of the Blue Jackets prospects for a tournament in Traverse City, Mich., and he could miss the first week of training camp.

"He was pretty frustrated when he found out he couldn't go," Filatov's agent, Don Meehan, said. "It sounds like it's a fairly minor injury. It's going to be a tough week for him, but he will be ready to go soon enough.""