7 Biggest Trades in Columbus Blue Jackets History, Ranked

The Columbus Blue Jackets have endured more downs than ups since joining the NHL for the 2000-2001 season. 

The Jackets languished through most of the 2000s and didn’t win their first playoff series until they defied the hockey odds in a monumental upset of the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2019 playoffs. 

Throughout their history, the Blue Jackets have been involved in some blockbuster trades for some of the biggest stars in the sport. Rick Nash, Artemi Panarin, and Sergei Fedorov all feature in my countdown of the seven biggest trades in the history of the Blue Jackets.

7 Biggest Columbus Blue Jackets Trades in Team History

1. A Second-Round Pick and Two Fourth-Round Picks for Sergei Bobrovsky  

The Blue Jackets are still waiting for their first “golden generation,” but their most successful era began when they acquired goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky from the Philadelphia Flyers for a pittance.

Bobrovsky won two Vezina Trophies with the Blue Jackets, and led Columbus to the playoffs on four different occasions – including in 2018-19 when the Jackets swept the Lightning in a historic victory.

2. Brandon Saad, Anton Forsberg, and a Fifth-Round Pick for Artemi Panarin, Tyler Motte, and a Sixth-Round Pick

The Blue Jackets’ crowning moment came in 2019 when they swept the record-setting Tampa Bay Lightning in Round 1 of the playoffs, but that would never have happened if they didn’t pull off this heist 22 months prior.

Artemi Panarin was the 2016 Calder Trophy winner, but the Blackhawks had to do some serious salary cap gymnastics and Panarin ended up as a casualty. 

That was a huge break for the Blue Jackets, who made the playoffs in both seasons that Panarin spent in Ohio.

3. Pierre-Luc Dubois and a Third-Round Pick for Patrik Laine and Jack Roslovic

This one remains a complicated trade to evaluate, but there’s no question that it was a massive deal at the time.

Patrik Laine was selected No. 2 overall in the 2016 NHL Draft by the Winnipeg Jets. Pierre-Luc Dubois went immediately after him to Columbus.

Both players looked like stars in the making in their first few seasons, but both situations began to deteriorate to the point where a change of scenery was the best solution for everyone involved.

So the two teams swapped their former top three picks for one another in what seemed like a pretty straightforward solution.

Neither player would light it up after the trade and both players have been traded since (Dubois has been dealt twice). 

4. Rick Nash, Steve Delisle, and a Third-Round Pick for Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov, Tim Erixon, and a First-Round Pick

The decision to move Rick Nash – the face of the franchise – was a painful one for the Blue Jackets and their fans, but it was time.

Nash had been a loyal soldier for the Jackets, but he wanted to contend for a Stanley Cup and was sent to the Rangers for what was considered a promising package at the time.

The players that the Jackets received for Nash were serviceable pros, but this deal was all about Nash and the end of an era in Columbus. 

5. Ryan Johansen for Seth Jones

Another one-for-one deal that shocked the hockey world, this trade made sense for both Columbus and Nashville.

The Preds had an abundance of blue-liners, but desperately needed a second-line centre, while the Jackets had the opposite predicament. 

Jones was a stalwart for six years in Columbus and played a massive role in helping the Jackets defy the NHL odds in their sweep of the Lightning in 2019.

6. Tyler Wright and Francois Beauchemin for Sergei Fedorov

This trade didn’t work out as planned, but there’s no denying it was a massive moment for the Blue Jackets.

Columbus pulled off this swap with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in 2005, hoping that Fedorov would add some pizzazz to their organisation after a sluggish start to their existence.

The deal did create a ton of buzz in the market (and around the league), but Fedorov wasn’t able to lead the Jackets to any notable success. 

7. Jakub Voracek, a First-Round Pick, and a Third-Round Pick for Jeff Carter

This is a painful one, but it’s easy to see what the Jackets were thinking when they pulled it off.

Jeff Carter was a 26-year-old star in the NHL when the Jackets acquired him in 2012. Carter had put up 115 goals in the three previous seasons and was seen as a bona fide first-line centre. 

Unfortunately, he didn’t want to play in Columbus.

Carter sulked his way through half a season, basically forcing the Jackets to cut bait midway through his only campaign with the club. 

It was a swing and a miss for the Jackets, and it only became more painful as they watched Jakub Voracek and Sean Couturier (the player selected with the first-round pick) turn into stars with the Flyers.