The 2001–02 Columbus Blue Jackets season was the Blue Jackets' second season in the National Hockey League (NHL), as the team was coming off a 28–39–9–6 record in their expansion season, earning 71 points and missing the 2001 Stanley Cup playoffs. The Blue Jackets did not qualify for the 2002 playoffs. Regular season Columbus would get off to a poor start, winning only one out of 13 games to open the season and falling to last place in the Western Conference. While the Blue Jackets would play better as the season progressed, they were far off from playoff qualification and would eventually trade team captain Lyle Odelein to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for defenseman Jaroslav Spacek at the trade deadline. Columbus would finish the season with a 22–47–8–5 record, earning 57 points, which was 14 fewer points than in their previous season, and 37 points behind the Vancouver Canucks for the eighth final playoff spot in the West. Columbus would score an NHL-low 164 goals, and their 255 goals against was the highest total in the Western Conference, third-highest in the NHL. The 57 points the Jackets earned was the second fewest in the League, only ahead of the Atlanta Thrashers, who finished with 54. Ray Whitney would lead Columbus offensively, scoring a team-high 21 goals and 40 assists for 61 points, which broke the team record for points in a season. Mike Sillinger would be the only other Blue Jacket to score 20 goals, scoring 20 and adding 23 assists for 43 points. Deron Quint led the Jackets defense, earning 25 points, while Rostislav Klesla scored eight goals and earned 16 points in his first full season in the League. Jody Shelley had a team-high and club-record 206 penalty minutes in only 52 games. In goal, Ron Tugnutt and Marc Denis would split time, with Tugnutt winning a team-high 12 games and posting a team-best 2.85 goals against average (GAA). Tragedy struck at Nationwide Arena during a game on March 16, 2002, against the Calgary Flames, when a shot by Jackets forward Espen Knutsen was deflected off the stick of Flames defenceman Derek Morris and sailed into the stands, hitting 13-year-old Brittanie Cecil in the head. Cecil would pass away on March 18 due to the injury. The Blue Jackets would finish the season 30th in the League in scoring, with 164 goals for, and would be shut