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For the third time on the final day of the secondary transfer portal window, Ohio State lost a player. Buckeye wide receiver Kyion Grayes entered the transfer portal on Tuesday evening, 247Sports has learned.

In two seasons with the Scarlet and Gray, Grayes served largely as a backup, playing in just two games during his time in Columbus. He was behind multiple talented receivers and could never break through to contribute for Ohio State offensively.

Grayes was a four-star prospect, according to the 247Sports rankings, coming out of Chandler High School in Chandler, Arizona. He rated as the No, 14 wide receiver in the 2022 recruiting class, as well as the second-best player from his home state and the No. 88 overall recruit in the country. Grayes initially committed to Arizona on Aug. 11, 2020, but decommitted from the Wildcats four months later. After visiting the Buckeyes in February 2021, the receiver committed to the Buckeyes and stuck with that decision through the rest of the process, despite late offers from programs such as Oregon, Penn State and Texas.

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As a true freshman in 2022, Grayes was buried on the depth chart behind starters Marvin Harrison Jr., Emeka Egbuka, Julian Fleming and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, as well as backups Xavier Johnson and Jayden Ballard. The wideout played in two games that year, coming off the bench late in blowout wins against Toledo and Iowa, totaling 13 snaps before redshirting. He recorded one catch for two yards against the Rockets.

Last season, despite the departure of Smith-Njigba to the NFL, Grayes did not see the field for the Ohio State offense. Once again, he was behind Harrison, Egbuka, Fleming, Johnson and Ballard and the Buckeyes used classmate Kojo Antwi, freshmen Carnell Tate, Brandon Inniss, Noah Rogers and Bryson Rodgers and walk-on David Adolph at receiver.

While Harrison left for the NFL and Fleming transferred to Penn State, the Scarlet and Gray returned Egbuka, Ballard, Tate, Inniss and Rodgers. Ohio State also added freshman Jeremiah Smith, the top-ranked player in the 2024 recruiting class, to the receiver room. With so much depth on the roster, Grayes did not see a path to playing time and elected to enter the transfer portal.

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Grayes became the sixth Buckeye to enter the transfer portal during the secondary window. He joined running back Dallan Hayden (who committed to Colorado), safeties Cedrick Hawkins (UCF) and Ja'Had Carter, as well as offensive lineman Enokk Vimahi and linebacker Nigel Glover, who both also entered the transfer portal on Tuesday.

The minor league affiliate of the Blue Jackets hopes for a long stay in the AHL's Calder Cup Playoffs

All season long, it appeared something special might be brewing along the shores of Lake Erie.

Now, the Cleveland Monsters can prove it.

A red-hot start and fantastic finish have led the Blue Jackets’ minor league affiliate to its first division title in franchise history. The next step? The American Hockey League’s Calder Cup playoffs begin for the Monsters tonight as they face Ottawa Senators affiliate Belleville in a best-of-five series.

And just like when the Monsters ran all the way to the Cup in 2016, CBJ fans will have some interest in seeing how the future Blue Jackets on the squad perform when the lights are the brightest.

If you’re just jumping in, here’s what to know about the Monsters going into the team’s first playoff appearance since 2019.

Cleveland last played the weekend of April 19-21, when it swept division foes Rochester and Toronto in three games to clinch the division title. Belleville beat Toronto in a best-of-three series to open the playoffs for the right to take on Cleveland, and the series will begin in Canada in order to reduce travel costs.

Here’s the five-game schedule for the opening round, with the caveat the games in Cleveland are subject to change based on the Cleveland Cavaliers’ NBA playoff schedule.

Game 1 – Wednesday, May 1 at Belleville, 7 p.m.

Game 2 – Friday, May 3 at Belleville, 7 p.m.

Game 3 – Wednesday, May 8 at Cleveland, 7 p.m.

*Game 4 – Friday, May 10 at Cleveland, 7 p.m.

*Game 5 – Sunday, May 12 at Cleveland, 3 p.m.

*If necessary

This is the first of four series the Monsters will have to win to capture the Cup this postseason, including two to start in the North Division. Should Cleveland win this series, it would advance to the best-of-five division final against either Rochester (Buffalo affiliate) or Syracuse (Tampa Bay), who are knotted at one in their semifinal series.

Should Cleveland win the first two series against divisional opponents, it will move on to the league semifinals, which are best-of-seven series. There, the Monsters could very well meet defending champion Hershey, which led the AHL with 53 wins and 111 points and also just got a boost in the form of a bevy of players sent down by the recently eliminated Washington Capitals.

If Cleveland makes it all the way back to the Calder Cup final, the team would face the Western Conference champion. Milwaukee (Nashville affiliate) won the Central Division, while Coachella Valley (Seattle) won the Pacific Division.

The Monsters last won the AHL's Calder Cup in 2016, when a squad loaded with future Blue Jackets – Josh Anderson, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Sonny Milano, Lukas Sedlak, Markus Hannikainen, Dean Kukan and Joonas Korpisalo among them – won 15 of 17 postseason games on the way to the title.

It’s taken a team effort for Cleveland to get this far, but three players have stood out throughout the season. All three were AHL All-Stars at midseason, while the first two earned end-of-year second-team all-league honors.

Trey Fix-Wolansky: You can call him Mr. Monster, as the fifth-year member of the squad holds franchise records for career goals (86), assists (113) and points (199) in 224 career games. This year, Fix-Wolansky posted over a point per game with a 26-34-60 line in 58 contests while finishing tied for 12th in the league in points. He would have had more were it not for a late-season stint in Columbus, where he finished with two goals in the season’s penultimate game at Nashville. The energetic wing is the straw that stirs the drink for the Monsters offense.

Jake Christiansen: On the defensive side, Christiansen has cemented himself as one of the top performers in the AHL over his four years with the Monsters. The Vancouver native was yet again one of the most productive blueliners in the league, posting a 13-33-46 line in 62 games to place fifth in goals and tied for fourth in points among AHL defensemen. With 44 NHL games under his belt in the last three seasons, he has the skill and experience to change the game on the back end.

Jet Greaves: Then there’s Greaves, who has had a breakout season in net for both the Monsters and Blue Jackets. He’s certainly impressed all campaign with his preparation and skill, and Greaves – Cleveland’s all-time leader with 61 wins in net – won 30 games this year to tie for second in the AHL. In all, the 23-year-old was 30-12-4 at the AHL level to go with a 2.93 GAA and .910 save percentage, plus with nine appearances and three wins with the Jackets. Likely a future NHLer, Greaves is good enough to steal games if the Monsters need it.

The AHL is about developing players, and a number of recent CBJ draft picks have spent much of the season refining their games with the Monsters. Here are five Monsters who could soon be Blue Jackets, in alphabetical order.

Corson Ceulemans: The defenseman will have to battle to get in the lineup – Cleveland is at least nine deep on the blue line – but he has the talent as a 2021 first-round draft pick. The University of Wisconsin product had an up-and-down rookie season with the Monsters, posting a 3-9-12 line in 47 games, but his aggressiveness and willingness to make plays can be a difference maker

Luca Del Bel Belluz: CBJ fans saw Del Bel Belluz in the season finale, as he scored a goal for the Jackets less than four minutes into his NHL career. In Cleveland, he’s become a solid middle-six center as a rookie, and his 31 points (nine goals, 22 assists) in 58 games lead the Monsters’ first-year players. His game is about skill and smarts, which could allow him to thrive in postseason hockey.

David Jiricek: Blue Jackets fans are also quite familiar with Jiricek, the 2022 first-round pick who skated in 43 contests with Columbus this season. The defenseman added seven goals and 19 points in 29 games with the Monsters, and Jiricek is a future eater of big minutes at the NHL level. For now, the young Czech blueliner adds some offense and size to the Monsters blue line.

James Malatesta: The energetic, physical wing was called up for a late-season cameo with Columbus, notching two goals and two assists in 11 games. Still just 20 years old, the Montreal native had a 12-10-22 line in 56 games in his first pro season with Cleveland. With some skill, some speed and no fear in his game, the fifth-round draft pick is someone to watch for CBJ fans going forward.

Stanislav Svozil: The defenseman burst onto the scene in recent years standing out at the World Juniors and the Canadian junior ranks, and the 2021 third-round pick from Czechia had a solid first pro season with Cleveland. Svozil’s 5-18-23 line in 57 games placed him third among team blueliners in points, not to mention tied for 12th among league rookies at his position. A smart player with excellent offensive instincts, he had the tying and winning goals in a big late-season win vs. Rochester.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A doctor from Oregon accused of running a “pill mill” out of Franklin County was indicted in common pleas court and faces a judge Wednesday afternoon.

According to court documents, Dr. Mark Fettman, of Portland, Oregon, is accused of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, including knowingly trafficking narcotics, out of an office space in the 6100 block of Busch Boulevard, just off State Route 161 in north Columbus.

On October 15, 2021, a search warrant was executed as part of a long-term investigation of Fettman, who is facing 147 total felony charges, including 137 counts of drug trafficking. Those charges stem from incidents between January 7, 2021 and Oct. 14 of the same year.

Documents state Fettman, 76, was operating a “pill mill” after the State of Ohio began receiving complaints of his alleged practices. An investigation into Fettman included recordings and reports of an undercover investigator meeting with the doctor at his clinic on Busch Blvd.

Authorities believed that Fettman knowingly conducted office-based opioid treatment without complying with requirements of Ohio Admin. Code Rule 4731-33-03, which includes guidelines and regulations as it pertains to treatment for opioid addiction.

Fettman reportedly operated his clinic two days a month, when he saw patients and prescribed the maximum legal dosage of buprenorphine, a Schedule III opioid. He then allegedly accepted cash payments and money orders in the amount of $290 and did not accept patient insurance.

The undercover investigator stated that Fettman told him, “When you see me, I’d like you to pay me right off the bat,” before receiving a prescription for Suboxone.

Fettman was arrested on Oct. 15, 2021. Two weeks ago, he was indicted on 137 counts of drug trafficking, nine counts of money laundering, and one count of engaging in corrupt activity.

He was not present for his arraignment hearing on Wednesday in Franklin County Court of Common Pleas. Fettman’s lawyer entered a not guilty plea with the judge setting a $10,000 recognizance bond.

What’s Ryan Reynolds up to these days, you may wonder? Well, when he’s not making Marvel movies like Deadpool, apparently, he’s been investing.

In the past, he’s invested in Mint Mobile and Aviation Gin, and now – a Columbus brand just announced that Reynolds’s investment advisory firm, called Maximum Effort Investments LLC, has officially invested in them, too.

HOMAGE, a local vintage-inspired sports and licensed apparel company that was founded in 2007 (first on the internet, then a brick & mortar in the Short North!), has grown exponentially, first paying homage to their Ohio roots with cool t-shirts and apparel. Since then, Lebron James has worn their shirt, the Kelce Brothers have partnered with them, and even Taylor Swift has worn one of their hats to Coachella, causing them to completely sell-out and forced to put the hat on backorder.

According to their press release, “HOMAGE intends to use this round of investment capital to expand its production capacity, grow its operating team, invest in technology, and expand its licensed business with new and existing partnerships.”

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And it sounds like Maximum Effort LLC is a great partner for them. The firm is focused on investing in areas of sports and media. “HOMAGE exists to tell stories that move people – one t-shirt, one hoodie, and one Starter jacket at a time,” said Ricky Engelberg, Maximum Effort Investments Head of Sports. “At Maximum Effort, this aligns perfectly with our mission of bringing people together in smart, fun, unexpected ways. Our investment in HOMAGE represents an exciting new avenue for us to execute on that mission. We’re looking forward to expanding the incredible brand and business that HOMAGE has built.”

Congrats to this Columbus brand for even more celebrity exposure! It’s been exciting to see HOMAGE grow over these past 17 years, and we can’t wait to see what’s in store.

Want to read more? Check out our print publications, (614) Magazine and Stock & Barrel. Learn where you can find free copies of our newest issues here!

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This is part four of the Columbus Blue Jackets Season Grades series. Previously, Johnny Gaudreau, Zach Werenski, and Kirill Marchenko were graded. This time it’s Captain Boone Jenner‘s turn. In the Johnny Gaudreau article, I detailed all of the criteria for the grades, but here’s a refresher:

To address a question from the last article, yes there will be lower grades in the later parts of this series. The series is in descending order from the player with the most points on the Blue Jackets to the least so the best grades are in the first few articles. Also, While the team did not have a good season, I am mostly grading on individual effort, performance, and how they compare to the rest of the team.

Boone Jenner

Dropping only one spot from 2022-23, Jenner finished fourth on the team in points this season with 22 goals (second most on the team) and 13 assists for a total of 35 points. He achieved that while only playing 58 games giving him a .60 point-per-game average (the third-best on the team). He is in a ten-way tie for 226th place for points out of the entire NHL. Out of his 155 shots on goal, he made 14.2%. Jenner is tied for third on the team in hits with 119 and is sixth in blocks with 74.

This isn’t part of the criteria but I wanted to mention that he won 604 of his face-offs and had a 54.3% win percentage. That puts him first in both of those categories.

Last season Jenner had 45 points in 68 games giving him a points-per-game average of 0.66. He had 26 goals and 19 assists, made 12.1% of 214 shots, blocked 70, and made 129 hits.

Grade: A-

Put simply Boone Jenner could have gotten a higher grade if he played more games. This would have given him more opportunities to score more points. Though his absence wasn’t his fault, he missed 24 games this season. Also, while they have been included in the total, any games missed due to non-injury-related reasons have not affected his grade. In the 2022-23 season, he missed 14 games, and in 2021-22 he missed 23. His aggressive style may lead to a few more injuries but his point production, play-making abilities, blocks, and hits keep his grade well above passing.

To improve for next year Jenner needs to continue doing what he has already been doing but stay healthier. The caveat is if he plays it safer and less aggressively his point production could be negatively affected. If he can find a happy medium it could be his golden ticket to an A+.

Other players improving could help as well. If a new top-line center emerges for the Jackets, Boone could take a few more breaks on the ice which could help avoid more injuries. His average time spent on the ice is 20:06. That’s the most by any forward on the team and fourth most out of all skaters. The next closest forward is Johnny Gaudreau with 18:49. Gaudreau also plays a less aggressive style getting 23 blocks and 2 hits this past season. Some top-rated centers are coming up through the system and could help lower Jenner’s time on the ice. Besides current players like Cole Sillinger and Adam Fantilli the Blue Jackets have young players like Gavin Brindley and Luca Del Bel Belluz still developing. Other players getting better could also help create more scoring chances and assist opportunities.

Boone Jenner has been pretty consistent in the last few years. If he plays close to how he has been playing and avoids injury, he will have no problem achieving top marks in next year’s grades.