On July 24th, 2021, there was a trade that absolutely no one saw coming: Cam Atkinson was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for Jake Voráček .
Cam Atkinson, the 6th-round pick out of Connecticut, was a fan favorite and a CBJ legend so far in his Columbus Career. After the 20-21 season, he had played 10 years and 627 games as a Blue Jacket. In those 10 seasons, he would go on to score 213 goals, which puts him second all-time behind Rick Nash. His 189 assists have him 4th on the all-time CBJ list, and he had 402 points, which is also second all-time. He scored 42 power-play goals and chipped in 16 short-handed goals. His 16 shorties sit him atop the CBJ record books.
Jake Voráček was originally drafted by the Blue Jackets in 2007, going 7th overall. After being drafted, Voráček would go back to Junior for one more season before making his NHL debut in 2008. In his first stint with Columbus, he played three full seasons, only missing 5 games over those three seasons. He scored 39 goals and had 134 points. And then June 23rd happened, a day that almost all Columbus fans will remember. GM Scott Howson, in an attempt to try to keep Rick Nash in Columbus, traded Jake Voráček and two draft picks to the Flyers for Jeff Carter. That was arguably the worst trade in team history. Carter didn’t want to come to Columbus, and Rick Nash would be traded about a year later. Jake Voráček would go on to play 727 games as a Flyer, scoring 177 goals and totaling 604 points.
When Voráček was traded back to Columbus, Atkinson fans were livid. How could they trade a franchise icon? People were left wondering why? Voráček made around $3 million more per year than Atkinson, too. Fans were puzzled. This was a pure hockey 1-for-1 trade. The Jackets needed a more versatile player who could be a playmaker, which is Voráček. And the Flyers got a pure scorer. Jake Voráček embraced the move, came to Columbus, and had a great year. He would play in 79 games, score 6 goals, and have 56 assists. His 56 assists were three off the single-season record of 59, set by Artemi Panarin in 2018-19. He would only play in 11 games in 2022-23 due to concussion issues. November 4th, 2022, would be the last game he would play in Union Blue. He would suffer a concussion against the Avalanche while playing at the NHL Global Series in Finland. On March 2nd of 2023. The Jackets traded Voráček and a pick to the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for goalie Jon Gilles. The Jake Voráček era in Columbus had come to an end for the second time.
In April of 2024, Voráček would announce his retirement from professional hockey. He would score 806 points in 1058 career games.
Cam Atkinson, played last season with the Tampa Bay Lightning. He played in 39 games and had 9 points. He currently does not have a contract in place, and it's unknown what his future plans are. Atkinson has 489 points in 809 career games. 402 of those points came as a Blue Jacket.
I do believe this trade worked out well for both teams.
This trade shook the fanbase when it happened, but they cooled off once they saw Voráček having a good year. It was a good hockey trade at the time.
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