Cam Atkinson to sign 1-day contract so he can retire as a Blue Jacket
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- One of the greatest Blue Jackets players will sign a one-day deal so he can retire from the NHL as a Blue Jacket.
Forward Cam Atkinson, 36, is set to sign the deal after an NHL career that spanned 13 seasons, including 10 with the Jackets. Atkinson told NBC4 he plans on living in Columbus with his family and will devote more time to the Battery Hockey Academy in Plain City.
Atkinson came to the Blue Jackets after a successful college career with Boston College, where he won the 2010 NCAA Frozen Four.
He first appeared for the Blue Jackets during the 2011-12 season. In 627 games, Atkinson scored 213 goals (second only to Rick Nash), and provided 189 assists (fifth in the team's history) to amass 402 points. He was named an all-star in the 2017 and 2019 seasons.
He was instrumental in leading the Jackets to the Eastern Conference semifinals in the 2019 season, scoring two goals and notching six assists in 10 postseason games. The Blue Jackets traded him to the Philadelphia Flyers in 2021 and, after two seasons, he appeared in 39 games for the Tampa Bay Lightning during the 2024-25 season.
Atkinson is among six Blue Jackets on the team's quarter-century team announced in January by the NHL, alongside Nash, Sergei Bobrovsky, Zach Werenski, Seth Jones and Artemi Panarin.
The club has yet to announced whether Atkinson's No. 13 would be retired.
The team will honor him before the Oct. 16 game against the Colorado Avalanche.