Blue Jackets to Build Contender Around Rick Nash

On June 16, Rick Nash turned 27. The occasion sparked a conversation within the Blue Jackets’ hockey operations department.

“His birthday inspired us all to help him,” general manager Scott Howson said yesterday.

He was dead serious.

“We talked about it internally,” Howson said. “He deserves it, and it’s the right thing to do for our franchise. If we don’t act, we’re going to waste Rick and waste the prime of his career. We had to try something different, maybe more radical.”