COLUMBUS, Ohio — Rick Nash took the backhand pass from Jason Chimera low in the left circle, cut to the Chicago Blackhawks net and scored off his backhand. It was like so many other goals Nash scored through the years with the Blue Jackets, but this one, on April 8, 2009, was special.



It had been almost a year since Blue Jackets founder and majority owner John H. McConnell died, and his legacy was sewn into Nash’s soul just like McConnell’s initials, “JHM,” were sewn onto the Blue Jackets sweaters that season.



When Nash scored that goal in the United Center, it tied the score 3-3 with 5:30 remaining and set the Blue Jackets up to earn the single point they needed for the organization’s first berth in the Stanley Cup playoffs.



“The relief on my face when I scored that goal in Chicago … ” Nash told The Athletic. “I’ve watched that video more than a few times, and just talking about it now gives...