The Columbus Blue Jackets have 44 days until opening night at Nationwide Arena. Today we look at the history of jersey #44.
Let’s take a look.
Rostislav Klesla – 2001-2004 – Klesla was drafted 4th overall in the 2000 NHL Draft.
Klesla’s scouting report went like this, ”
Klesla is a very physical, defensive defenseman. Has solid hockey sense and positional skills. Doesn’t score as many points as he possibly could. Also, he is rather prone to injury.” Despite that last part about injuries, former GM Doug MacLean drafted Klesla at #4 anyway.
Klesla made his NHL debut in 2000 before he was sent back to Junior. He would come up in the next season and be there full-time. He would then go on to play in 515 games for the Jackets over the course of 10 seasons. On February 28, 2011, he was traded to the Phoenix Coyotes and played the next four years.
In 2014, he would return to his home country of Czechia and play the next two years for HC Oceláři Třinec. After a four-year break from playing to coach for HC Vítkovice, he would play a season in Czechia’s fourth-tier league before finally retiring.
Peter Sarno – 2006 – Sarno was drafted in the 6th round of the 1997 NHL Draft by Edmonton
Sarno played a single game for the Blue Jackets during the 2005-06 season. He also played 39 games for the Syracuse Crunch that season.
After his year with Columbus, he left for Europe, where he would play until 2010.
Aaron Johnson – 2003-07/2011-12 – Johnson was drafted in the 3rd round of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft.
Johnson played 172 games for the Jackets over two stints. Scouts said of Johnson was “A puck-moving defenseman, Johnson is a very good skater. Has good offensive instincts and can quarterback the powerplay. Can play a tough and physical game. Needs to improve his play in his own end.”
During his time with Columbus, he also spent three years with the AHL Syracuse Crunch, where he had 73 points in those three seasons.
In 2016, he left North America and signed on with Adler Mannheim of the DEL in Germany. He then left for England, where he played for the Sheffield Steelers of the EIHL. In 2021, he became a Player-Asst. Coach for a season. He came back home to Columbus in 2021 and joined the Jackets as a Team Consultant. Last season, he was the Team Relations Specialist for the Jackets
Aaron Rome – 2008 – Rome was drafted by the LA Kings in the 2002 NHL Draft.
Rome played 25 games over the course of two seasons for Columbus after being traded from the Ducks on November 15, 2007. He totaled 1 goal and 3 points. He spent most of his time in Syracuse that season, playing 41 games. Rome would leave for the Vancouver Canucks in the summer of 2009 as a free agent. Rome would retire in 2014.
Rome went on to spend three seasons as a skills coach for the
Brandon Wheat Kings of the WHL.
Grant Clitsome – 2010 – Clitsome was drafted in the 9th round of the 2004 NHL Draft by the CBJ.
Clitsome played in 93 games and had 36 points for Columbus. In 2012, he was placed on waivers in order to send him to Springfield of the AHL. But he was claimed by the Winnipeg Jets and would play the next three seasons for the Jets.
He announced his retirement from professional hockey on June 1, 2016, after undergoing back surgery.
Justin Falk – 2015-2016 – Falk was drafted by the Minnesota Wild in the 4th round of the 2004 draft.
Falk played 29 games for the Blue Jackets and totaled 6 points.
On March 2, 2015, Falk requested a trade that sent him and a fifth-round pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Jordan Leopold. The following summer in 2016, he would sign with the Buffalo Sabres.
After retiring in 20198, Falk went into coaching and was a scout for the Sabres in 24-25.
Taylor Chorney – 2018 – Chorney was drafted by Edmonton in the second round of the 2005 draft.
Chorney would play a single game for Columbus after being picked up on waivers on February 21, 2018. After that one game, he left for Europe, where he played until 2021. He retired after the 2021 season.
Vladislav Gavrikov – 2019-2022 – Gavrikov was drafted in the 6th round of the 2015 NHL Draft.
Gavrikov played 256 games for the Jackets over the course of 4 seasons. He totaled 15 goals and 73 points. Gavrikov is widely considered one of the best late-round picks to ever play for the Jackets, despite his short time in Columbus. He played great defense and would always seem to show up on the scoreboard.
After he signed a three-year, $8.4 million contract extension with the Blue Jackets in November of 2020, former GM Jarmo Kekäläinen would make the decision to trade Gavrikov to the LA Kings in March of 2023. A decision that a lot of CBJ hated and wondered why it happened. Kekäläinen knew Gavrikov was going to want a hefty raise and didn’t want to pay him.
Gavrikov signed a two-year extension with LA just a couple months after the trade. In the summer of 2025, Gavrikov would get his big contract. He signed a 7-year. $49-million deal with the New York Rangers, which will take him into his mid-30s.
Erik Gudbranson – 2023-2025 – Gudbranson was drafted 3rd overall in the 2010 NHL Draft by the Florida Panthers.
Gudbranson is going into the last year of a 4-year deal he signed with Columbus back in July of 2022. He has played 164 games and has 43 points. Unfortunately, he missed 66 games last season after suffering a shoulder injury that required surgery.
Gudbranson is more than just a defenseman; he’s a protector and intimidator. Gudbranson rarely fights but will when he has to. Mainly, he’ll just stare at guys until they back down from him.
With Gudbranson going into his final season on his current deal, many CBJ fans hope they re-sign him, while some others are hoping for someone else to step in and take his spot. He’s a fan favorite and seems to love it in Columbus.
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