New Kid In Town
2004
Jun. 22, 2002
The Blue Jackets, who are expected to select third overall at the 2002 NHL Draft at Air Canada Centre in Toronto, make a trade with Florida to acquire the first overall pick and use it to select London Knights left wing Rick.
Oct. 7, 2002
The Blue Jackets sign Rick, the first overall pick at the 2002 NHL Draft, to a three-year contract.
Oct. 10, 2002
Rick becomes the eighth first overall NHL draft pick, and first since Eric Lindros in 1991, to score a goal in his first NHL game as the Blue Jackets win their season and home-openers for the first time in club history, beating the Chicago Blackhawks 2-1 at Nationwide Arena. Mike Sillinger collected the lone assist on the goal.
Dec. 2, 2002
Rick is named the NHL’s Rookie of the Month for November after registering 4-5-9 in 15 games, including the first multi-goal game of his career vs. the New York Rangers on November 9.
Jan. 13, 2003
Rick collects his first three-point game with 1-2-3 against the Edmonton Oilers at Skyreach Centre. It is the first of what will be a franchise-record 39 multi-assist games in his CBJ career.
Feb. 1, 2003
Rick and Rostislav Klesla play in the Topps/NHL YoungStars Game during NHL All-Star Weekend in Sunrise, Fla. Rick posts 2-1-3 in the game.
Feb. 12, 2003
In his first game on the team’s No. 1 line, Rick scores his first career game-winning goal against San Jose’s Miikka Kiprusoff in a 1-0 victory over the Sharks at Nationwide Arena.
Mar. 6, 2003
Rick beats Vancouver goaltender Alexander Auld 2:02 into overtime to give Columbus a 5-4 win at Nationwide Arena. It is the first overtime goal of the 18-year-old rookie’s career.
Off The Ice:
Rick established The #61 Club that encouraged students to make healthy choices and through the #61 Club Good Health Challenge provided more than 30 tickets to every Blue Jackets home game to students who made 61 healthy choices in a month.Apr. 30, 2003
Rick is named a finalist for the 2003 Calder Memorial Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL’s most outstanding rookie. Detroit forward Henrik Zetterberg and St. Louis defenseman Barrett Jackman are the other finalists.
Jun. 13, 2003
Rick is selected to the NHL’s All-Rookie Team for the 2002-03 season. Rick finishes third in voting for the Calder Memorial Trophy (top rookie) behind Barrett Jackman (winner) and Henrik Zetterberg.
A Star IsBorn
2008
Feb. 7, 2004
At 19, Rick plays in the NHL All-Star Game for the Western Conference at the Excel Energy Center in St. Paul, MN. He is the first teenager to play in the game in 12 years and youngest to play in the game since 1986.
Apr. 3, 2004
Rick nets his 41st goal of the season in the Blue Jackets’ final game of the season, a 4-1 win at Detroit. He finishes the season tied with Atlanta’s Ilya Kovalchuk and Calgary’s Jarome Iginla for the NHL lead in goals, netting him a share of the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy. He becomes the youngest player in NHL history in lead the League in goals and he also scored an NHL-leading 19 power play goals.
Apr. 30 - May 15, 2005
Rick leads Team Canada to a silver medal at the 2005 World Championships. He leads the tournament in goal scoring, ranks second in points and is named to the All-Tournament team as he tallies 9-6-15 with a +7 plus/minus rating in nine games.
Aug. 8, 2005
The Blue Jackets sign Rick to a five-year contract extension.
Dec. 30, 2005-Jan. 11, 2006
Rick scores a goal in six-straight games, registering seven goals in the longest goal-scoring streak of his Blue Jackets career. He would match the streak with nine goals in six games from Jan. 8-Feb. 1, 2011.
Jan. 11, 2006
Rick sets a franchise record for fastest goal scored at the start of the game when he scores :10 into a 6-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Off The Ice:
Rick donated $100,000 to The Ohio State University Athletics Department to endow a scholarship for a student-athlete.
Feb. 14 - 25, 2006
Four Blue Jackets compete at the Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. Bronze medalist David Vybrony (Czech Republic) is joined by Rick (Canada), Adam Foote (Canada) and Radoslav Suchy (Slovakia).
Apr. 7, 2006
Rick scores three goals, including the game-tying goal at 19:27 of the third period, to record his first career hat trick in a 6-5 shootout loss at Detroit. He also becomes the second Blue Jacket to record 10 shots on goal in a game, tying the club record set by Ray Whitney (2x).
Jan. 24, 2007
Rick makes his second-straight NHL All-Star Game appearance at American Airlines Center in Dallas. He registers four points on two goals and two assists to lead the Western Conference to a 12-9 win.
Feb. 24, 2007
Columbus scores two shorthanded goals in a game for the first time in team history to overcome a 2-0 deficit to beat the New York Rangers 3-2 at Madison Square Garden. Jason Chimera’s goal at 11:02 of the second period tied the game at 2-2 and Rick tally just 4:52 later is the game-winner.
Apr. 27 - May 13, 2007
Five Blue Jackets – Rick (Canada), Jason Chimera (Canada), David Vyborny (Czech Republic), Rostislav Klesla (Czech Republic) and Fredrik Norrena (Finland) – and prospects Raffaele Sannitz (Switzerland) and Jaroslav Balastik (Czech Republic) participate in the 2007 World Championships in Russia. Rick, who is named MVP of the tournament, and Chimera win gold medals for Canada.
Dec. 31, 2007
Rick scores three goals to collect the 12th hat trick in Blue Jackets history in a 4-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers at Nationwide Arena. It is Rick’s second career hat trick.
The Captain
2012
Jan. 17, 2008
Rick scores one of the most dynamic goals in NHL history as he beats a pair of Phoenix defensemen and goaltender Mikael Tellqvist with 21.5 seconds left in regulation to lift Columbus to a 4-3 win at Jobing.com Arena.
Jan. 27, 2008
Rick sets an NHL All-Star Game record by scoring a goal just :12 into the game en route to collecting the 15th hat trick in All-Star Game history at Philips Arena in Atlanta. The game marks Rick’s third-straight All-Star Game selection after combining for 5-2-7 in the previous two games.
Off The Ice:
Rick made a $5,000 contribution to the 2009 Quebec Pee Wee team that represented Columbus, to pay for travel expenses so families would be able to attend with their children.
Mar. 12, 2008
Rick is named the fifth captain in franchise history.
May 2 - 18, 2008
Six Blue Jackets compete at the 2008 IIHF World Championships in Canada. Rick, Head Coach Ken Hitchcock, Jason Chimera and Pascal Leclaire represent the host Canadians, while Jiri Novotny and Jan Hejda play for the Czech Republic. Canada wins the silver medal as Rick is named to the All-Tournament Team for the third-consecutive year.
Apr. 6, 2008
Rick fires off eight shots in the season finale vs. St. Louis to finish the 2007-08 campaign with club-record 329 shots on goal. To this day, Rick is the only Blue Jacket to register 300 or more shots in a season as he had 305 and 2010-11 and 306 in 2011-12.
May 7, 2008
Blue Jackets captain Rick is one of the individuals chosen to deliver a eulogy at the public memorial service honoring the life of club founder John H. McConnell. He is also a founding donor of the John H. McConnell Scholarship Fund.
May 15, 2008
2K Sports announces that Blue Jackets All-Star left wing Rick will be featured as the cover athlete and spokesman for their NHL2K9 video game.
Jul. 2, 2008
Rick’s highlight real goal scored against Phoenix on January 17 is nominated for a 2008 ESPY Award in the “Best Play” category. The ESPY-winning play is the Eli Manning to David Tyree completed pass in Super Bowl XLII.
Jan. 2, 2009
Rick scores his first career penalty shot goal vs. Colorado netminder Peter Budaj in a 6-1 road win.
Jan. 18, 2009
Rick collects 1-2-3 at Vancouver to become the franchise’s all-time leading scorer with 318 points in 405 games, surpassing David Vyborny (317 points in 543 games).
Off The Ice:
Rick gave $15,000 annually to Santa’s Silent Helpers, which assisted families with children, single mothers and the elderly in central Ohio experiencing financial hardships.
Jan. 25, 2009
Rick tallies 1-2-3 for the Western Conference in his fourth NHL All-Star Game, held at Bell Centre in Montreal.
Jan. 27, 2009
Rick collects his third career hat trick, scoring all three goals, in a 3-2 overtime win over Detroit at Nationwide Arena.
Mar. 7, 2009
Rick becomes the first player since Montreal’s Maurice “Rocket” Richard in 1947-48 to record an unassisted hat trick as the Jackets set a then-franchise record for goals in a game in an 8-2 win at Detroit.
Mar. 26, 2009
Rick sets a career high with four assists in a 5-0 win over the Calgary Flames at Nationwide Arena.
Apr. 8, 2009
Rick’s goal at 14:30 of the third period erases a 3-2 Chicago lead and forces overtime, resulting in the Blue Jackets clinching the first playoff berth in franchise history. Fedor Tyutin’s shootout goal is the game-winner as the Jackets beat the Blackhawks 4-3 at United Center.
Apr. 11, 2009
Rick scores 1:00 into the season finale vs. Minnesota at Nationwide Arena, reaching the 40-goal mark for the second time in his NHL career.
Jun. 18, 2009
Rick is named the winner of the 2008-09 NHL Foundation Player Award, presented annually to a player “in recognition of his commitment and service to charities in his community.”
Jul. 3, 2009
The Blue Jackets sign Rick to an eight-year contract extension.
Off The Ice:
Developed the “Rick Bands” program to promote leadership and character among local youth with sales of the wristbands benefitting the Columbus Blue Jackets Foundation.Nov. 13, 2009
Rick sets a career-high for minutes played as a Blue Jacket, logging 26:06 TOI vs. Anaheim. He scores a first period goal and the winning tally in the shootout as Columbus earns a 3-2 win at Nationwide Arena.
Feb. 13 - 28, 2010
Six Blue Jackets participate in the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver, British Columbia. Rick helps lead Canada to the gold medal, while Samuel Pahlsson (Sweden), Fredrik Modin (Sweden), Fedor Tyutin (Russia), Jan Hejda (Czech Republic) and Milan Jurcina (Slovakia) also participate.
Nov. 20, 2010
Rick records his fifth career hat trick – the 17th in Blue Jackets history – with three goals in a 3-0 win at San Jose.
Jan. 8-Feb. 1, 2011
Rick matches the longest points streak of his Blue Jackets career, picking up a point in nine-straight games (5-7-12) for the third time (10-3-13, Oct.30-Nov. 22, 2010 and 9-7-16, Dec. 30, 2005-Jan. 16, 2006).
Jan. 30, 2011
Rick plays in his fifth-straight NHL All-Star Game, tallying 1-1-2 at RBC Center in Raleigh.
Oct. 22, 2011
Rick becomes the first player in franchise history to appear in 600 games with the club when the Blue Jackets take on the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Place.
Nov. 10, 2011
Rick becomes the first player in CBJ history to register 500 points with the club when he has the primary assist on a Mark Letestu goal vs. the Chicago Blackhawks.
Dec. 1, 2011
Rick scores the tying goal with :58 left in regulation and scores the only goal in the shootout to give the Blue Jackets a 5-3 win at Calgary. It marks the only time that Rick scores the tying goal with an extra attacker on the ice and adds the game-deciding goal during his time as a Blue Jacket.
Off The Ice:
Rick served as the spokesperson for several charitable initiatives including The Columbus Dispatch Newspapers in Education program; Jackets For Jackets, which collected coats during the holiday season; and the Time Warner Cable Adult Literacy Campaign.Apr. 5, 2012
Rick registers his franchise-record 46th multi-goal game as a Blue Jacket with a pair of tallies in a 5-2 win over the Colorado Avalanche at Pepsi Center.
Apr. 7, 2012
Rick scores his 30th goal in the season-finale, a 7-3 win over the New York Islanders, in what would be his last game as a Blue Jacket. He reached the 30-goal mark for the fifth-straight season and seventh in the last nine.
Jul. 23, 2012
The Blue Jackets acquire Artem Anisimov, Brandon Dubinsky, Tim Erixon and a 2013 first round pick in exchange for Rick, Steven Delisle and a 2013 conditional third round pick.
A Return Home
2022
Jan. 13, 2019
The Blue Jackets honor recently-retired former captain Rick and his family prior to the Blue Jackets-Rangers game at Nationwide Arena on Jan. 13, 2019.
Jun. 13, 2019
The Blue Jackets name Rick special advisor to the general manager.
May 13, 2021
The Blue Jackets promote Rick to director of player development.
Nov. 11, 2021
The Blue Jackets announce that former captain Rick will be the first player in franchise history to have his number retired as the club will raise his number 61 to the rafters on Mar. 5, 2022.