The History Of Jersey #41

The Columbus Blue Jackets have 41 days until opening night at Nationwide Arena. Today we look at the history of jersey #41. 

Let’s take a look.

Matt Davidson – 2000-03 – Davidson was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres in the 4th round of the 1995 NHL Draft. He is a native of Flin Flon, Manitoba, the same town as CBJ bench boss Dean Evason. 

Davidson was traded to the Blue Jackets as part of an expansion draft deal in 2000. He played parts of three seasons for the Jackets, totaling 56 games, and had 12 points. He spent most of his time with Columbus playing for the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL. 

He left North America in 2004 for Europe. He played in Germany, Finland, Denmark, and Sweden before retiring in 2011.  

Brad Moran – 2001-04 – Moran was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres in the 7th round of the 1998 NHL Draft. 

The Jackets signed Moran as a free agent in 2000. He only played in 5 games as a Blue Jacket and had 2 points. He spent most of his time playing for the AHL Syracuse Crunch. In his final year with the Crunch in 2004-05, he played in 80 games and had 72 points. 

Moran left for a second stint in Europe in 2011 and played the last six years of his career there. He would retire after playing two seasons in the EIHL in 2017. 

Moran would be the GM and HC of the Calgary Canucks in the Alberta Junior Hockey League from 2018 to 2025. For the 25-26 season, Moran is signed on to be the Asst. Coach of the WHL’s Calgary Hitmen. 

Ben Simon – 2005-06 – Simon was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1997 NHL Draft. 

Simon, a native of Shaker Heights, Ohio, played 13 games for Columbus during the 2005-06 season. He totaled zero points. He left for Europe and played one season in the EIHL in England. He retired in 2011. 

Simon moved into coaching almost immediately after retiring. His first head coaching job was for the Cincinnati Cyclones in 2013-14 for one season. He spent 5 years as the Head Coach for the Grand Rapids Griffins of the AHL. He has been an assistant for the Iowa Wild for the last two seasons. 

Adam Pineault – 2007-08 – Pineault was drafted by Columbus in the 2nd round of the 2004 NHL Draft.

Pineault only played in 3 games for the Jackets and had zero points. He spent most of his time playing for the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL. On January 10, 2009, Pineault was traded by the Blue Jackets to the Chicago Blackhawks for Michael Blunden.  

After playing two years in Europe, he returned to North America and would play three more seasons before retiring in 2014. He suffered a jaw injury that ultimately ended his career. After retiring, he moved into pharmaceutical sales after his wife was diagnosed with Leukemia.

Allen York – 2011-12 – York was drafted by Columbus in the 6th round of the 2007 NHL Draft. 

York played in 11 games and started 5 of those for the Blue Jackets. He went 3-2 with a .920 SV%. He signed with the Nashville Predators on a PTO but was never signed. 

York would never play another game in the NHL after his time in Columbus. He spent time playing in the AHL, ECHL, and other various lower leagues around North America. He also spent five years as a goaltending coach in various leagues. 

He retired on March 4, 2016.

Alexander Wennberg – 2014-20 – Wennberg was drafted in the 1st round of the 2013 NHL Draft as the 14th overall draft pick. 

Wennberg came to North America and made his NHL Debut in 2014. After having three decent seasons, including a 59-point year in 2016-17, Wennberg was signed to a six-year deal on September 1st, 2017. 

Tom Wilson would seemingly derail Wennberg’s career in the 2018 playoffs when he laid a devastating check on him. The next two seasons, Wennberg would only total 47 points. In October of 2020, the CBJ would buy Wennberg out, making him a free agent. The Jackets are finally about to make the final buyout payment to Wennberg this year. 

In addition to playing with the Florida Panthers since leaving Columbus, He’s played for the Seattle Kraken, New York Rangers, and San Jose Sharks. After the 59-point season he had in 2016-17, Wennberg hasn’t scored more than 38 points in a single season.

Hunter McKown – 2022-23 – McKown was an undrafted free agent out of San Jose, California. 

McKown has played 12 career games with the Jackets, all in 2022-23. He has spent the majority of his time playing for the Monsters. In the last two seasons, he has played in 121 games and has 55 points. 

This summer, he was signed to a one-year, two-way contract by GM Don Waddell. 

There are 41 days until opening night at Nationwide Arena. Who was your favorite #41? 

Let us know what you think below.

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