A total of 6 players have jersey #21 since the start of the franchise
The Columbus Blue Jackets have had many players don the Union Blue in its history. The #21 has only been worn a handful of times though.
Let's look at the players that have worn the number.
Who Wore It First?
- Espen Knutsen - Knutsen played 188 games as a Jacket and had 108 points. In 2002, he made history as the first Norwegian ever to play in the NHL All-Star Game. In March of 2002, Knutsen was part of a tragedy at Nationwide Arena when he took a shot that deflected off Flames defenseman Derek Morris' stick and struck 13-year-old Brittanie Cecil in the head, which resulted in her death two days later. The NHL later made it mandatory to install protective nylon mesh nets above the glass behind both goals. Knutsen retired due to injury in July 2005.
Who Wore It Last?
- Josh Dunne - Dunne played 14 games for Columbus over the last two seasons and had no points. He played the majority of his time in Cleveland, playing 134 games and totaling 65 points. He left for the Rochester Americans of the AHL this summer.
Who Wore It Best?
- James Wisniewski - Wisniewski played in 209 games for the Jackets throughout four seasons, scoring 26 goals and 121 points. He was traded to the Anaheim Ducks in 2015 and then went to Carolina in 2015-16 where he would only play a single game. He finished his career in Germany in 2016. In June of 2024, he was Named Associate Coach of The Ohio State Women's Hockey Team.
Others That Have Worn #21
- Radoslav Suchý - Suchý played 79 games for the CBJ in 2005-06, scoring one goal and totaling eight points. He would never play another NHL game after Columbus and would leave for Europe where he would play until 2019.
- Alexandre Picard - Picard was drafted 8th overall in 2004 by Columbus. He played 67 games over five seasons and had two points. He never played another NHL game after Columbus. After leaving for Europe, he returned to North America in 2019 to play in The Ligue Nord-Américaine de Hockey, a semi-professional ice hockey league based in Quebec, where he still plays today.
- Kerby Rychel - Rychel only played 37 games for the Blue Jackets and could only muster a pair of goals and 12 total points. He only played six NHL games after he left Columbus. Rychel retired in 2019.
There are 21 days left until opening night at Nationwide Arena.
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