Since the Atlanta Thrashers qualified for the playoffs in the East, the Blue Jackets were, until the 2008–09 season, the only NHL team to have never played a post-season game.
The off-season was dominated by a contract dispute with top forward Nikolay Zherdev, who had threatened to return to Russia to play if Columbus did not meet his demands.
[2] The Blue Jackets, hoping to qualify for the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, got off to a disastrous start, falling as low as 6–16–2 into December, briefly holding the worst record in the NHL.
The Jackets' poor start led general manager Doug MacLean to fire head coach Gerard Gallant on November 13.
[7][8] Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime/shootout loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; PIM = Penalties in minutes; Pts = Points Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.