The Columbus Blue Jackets are 34 days away from opening night at Nationwide Arena, and jersey No. 34 has had quite a revolving door over the years.
The list starts with Jean-Luc Grand-Pierre, who wore the number from 2001 to 2004. Drafted in 1997 by the St.
Louis Blues, Grand-Pierre came to Columbus in the 2000 NHL Expansion Draft and went on to play in 209 games for the Blue Jackets over more than three seasons. The “Hyphenator” is now part of the broadcast side, working as an analyst during CBJ games.
He retired after the 2012-13 season, finishing the last five years of his career in Europe.
After that came a short run from a goaltender drafted in the third round of the 2004 NHL Draft. He played four games from 2007 to 2009, spending most of his time with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch and also seeing action with the Dayton Bombers of the ECHL. He retired in 2014 after a single season in England with the Cardiff Devils, where he also served as goaltending coach.
Wade Dubielewicz wore No. 34 in 2009 after the Blue Jackets claimed him off waivers from the New York Islanders. The undrafted netminder from Invermere, British Columbia, appeared in three games for Columbus before signing with the Minnesota Wild that summer. He retired in 2011 after one season in the DEL and later became a goaltending coach and GM for the Columbia Valley Rockies.
Dane Byers got the number in 2012. Drafted in the second round of the 2004 NHL Draft by the New York Rangers, he was traded to Columbus on November 11, 2010, then assigned to the Springfield Falcons.
He played eight games for the Blue Jackets in all. Byers and former CBJ original Rusty Klesla were dealt to the Arizona Coyotes on February 28, 2011, though Byers later signed back with Columbus on July 11, 2011 for one season.
He headed to Europe in 2015 and retired in 2019.
Nick Drazenovic wore No. 34 in 2013. A fifth-round pick by the St.
Louis Blues in the 2005 NHL Draft, he signed with the Blue Jackets in 2011 and skated in eight NHL games for Columbus. His first season in the organization was spent entirely with Springfield, and the next year he played 62 games for the Falcons.
He moved on to Pittsburgh in 2013 and retired in 2016.
Dana Tyrell had the number in 2015. Drafted in the second round of the 2007 NHL Draft by Tampa Bay, he was traded to Columbus on March 5, 2014 in the deal that sent Jonathan Marchessault to the Lightning.
Tyrell played just three games in a Blue Jackets uniform before stepping away from the game for two years. He officially retired in 2017 after playing four ECHL games.
Josh Anderson was next to wear No. 34, though he first arrived in Columbus wearing No. 53.
Over six seasons with the Blue Jackets, “The Andy Man” played 267 games, scored 65 goals and finished with 115 points. His best season came in 2018-19, when he set career highs in goals, assists and points.
The next year brought a torn shoulder in December and season-ending surgery that wasn’t decided until March.
There were rumors floating around that Anderson was upset about the injury and how it was handled by Jackets' management, so he wanted out of Columbus. On October 6, 2020, he was traded to the Montreal Canadiens for Max Domi and 3rd round pick in the 2020 draft, ending his career in Columbus.
Since then, Anderson has played 349 games for Montreal, putting up 81 goals and 135 points over five seasons. His top goal total with the Canadiens is 21, his best assist mark is 13, and he has reached 32 points twice.
He also signed a 7-year, $38,500,000 contract with a cap hit of $5,500,000 per season in October of 2020, just days after the trade. With one season left on that deal, it’s fair to say Montreal hasn’t gotten its money’s worth.
The most recent Blue Jacket to wear No. 34 was Cole Sillinger, who had the number from 2022 to 2023 before switching to No. 4 ahead of the 23-24 season. Drafted in the first round of the 2021 NHL Draft, Sillinger is already heading into his 6th NHL Season. His rookie year produced 31 points, but his second season was a major step backward: just 11 points in 64 games, plus a stint with AHL Cleveland.
He bounced back in his third season with 13 goals and 32 points. Two seasons ago, he posted only one more point than that but still earned breakout-year buzz thanks to 11 goals, 22 assists and a career-high 16:55 of ice time per game.
Last season, he followed that up with another strong year, setting career highs in assists and plus-minus while skating alongside Mathieu Olivier and Charlie Coyle on what was arguably the best line Columbus had all year. Those three were noticeable every night and played havoc on opposing teams.
Sillinger was awarded a new 3-year, $13.875 million contract extension with the Columbus Blue Jackets on July 24, 2026, avoiding an arbitration hearing. He will be expected to produce more points and keep building on what he's started.
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