Columbus Blue Jackets To Retire First Jersey Number In Franchise History

The Columbus Blue Jackets have announced that they will retire their first jersey number in franchise history. On March 5th, 2022, Rick Nash will be honored as the home crowd watches #61 rise to the rafters.

The Blue Jackets have had little success in since their inaugural season in 2000. They have not appeared in the Stanley Cup Finals; in fact, they have made the playoffs on just 6 occasions. The only NHL Hall-of-Famer to play for the franchise for a significant period of time is Sergei Federov, who is most notable for his time with the Detroit Red Wings.

Nonetheless, Rick Nash was the face of the franchise during his 7 year stint with the team. He was drafted 1st overall in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft and was an instant star. The London Knights Alum was nominated for the Calder Trophy as the "Rookie of the Year" and tied Jerome Iginla and Ilya Kovalchuk with 41 goals as co-winners of the Maurice Richard Trophy in his sophomore season. Nash was eventually named captain of the team.

Nash has also appeared in 5 NHL All-Star games, but that doesn't even begin to characterize his success in the sport. He won the Gold Medal with Team Canada at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics, and competed in the 2006 Olympics with Team Canada's disappointing roster. He also has Gold and Silver Medals for his participation with Team Canada at various other international tournaments.

Nash finished his time with the Blue Jackets with 289 goals and 258 assists for a total of 547 points in 674 games. Though Nash's time in Columbus will never be forgotten, he continued his storied career after being the centrepiece of a blockbuster trade between the Blue Jackets and New York Rangers in 2012. He, along with Steven Delisle and a 2013 conditional third-round draft pick, were traded to the Rangers in exchange for Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov, Tim Erixon, and a 2013 first-round pick.

The star forward spent 6 years with the Rangers and closed out his career with the Boston Bruins in 2018 after putting up a respectable 6 points in 11 regular season games and 5 points in 12 games during the playoffs.

Congratulations to this generation talent. His place in the rafters of Nationwide Arena is well deserved.

NEWS: Blue Jackets to retire Rick Nash’s number 61 prior to game vs. Boston on March 5, 2022. He is the first player in club history to be so honored. #CBJ https://t.co/GqjybPfQbx
— CBJ Public Relations (@BlueJacketsPR) November 11, 2021

WELL DESERVED 👏

Rick Nash, the @BlueJacketsNHL all-time leader in goals scored, will have his No. 61 jersey retired in March.

(via @emilymkaplan) pic.twitter.com/yUeXM7Qju1
— ESPN (@espn) November 11, 2021