Kammala jumla mai zuwa: Makonni biyu kafin ranar ƙarshe na canjin NHL, Columbus ya ba da sanarwar cewa ba kamar a farkon kakar ba, za su saurari shawarwarin musayar da suka shafi Rick Nash, kodayake ba sa siyayya da shi sosai. Howson ya bayyana cewa kungiyar a bude take ga dukkan zabin inganta kungiyar, gami da cinikin Nash. An yi hasashen cewa a musayar Nash da Blue Jackets za su nemi "haɗuwa da matasa, 'yan wasan da aka tabbatar da su, masu kyakkyawan fata da kuma zaɓaɓɓu". Gabatarwa zuwa ranar ƙarshe na musayar, Blue Jackets sun ba da Antoine Vermette ga Phoenix Coyotes don zaɓuɓɓuka biyu da kuma mai tsaron gida Curtis McElhinney. Duk da cewa ya ji rauni a lokacin, an yi imanin cewa sayen McElhinney ya ba Columbus damar sassauƙa don cinikin Curtis Sanford. Kashegari, a ranar 23 ga Fabrairu, Columbus ya yi musayar Jeff Carter ga Sarakuna. A cikin yarjejeniyar, Columbus ya sami mai kare Jack Johnson da kuma zagaye na farko; an ba wa tawagar damar zaɓar ko dai
2012 ko kuma 2013. A wa'adin, Columbus bai sami damar cimma yarjejeniya kan yarjejeniyar da ta shafi Nash ba, amma sun yi wani motsi; sun aika da cibiyar Samuel Pahlsson zuwa Vancouver Canucks a musayar zagaye na huɗu na zagaye na huɗu da kuma ƙananan 'yan wasa masu kare Taylor Ellington. Bayan ranar ƙarshe na musayar, Howson ya ba da sanarwar cewa ƙungiyar ta yi ƙoƙarin musayar Nash bisa buƙatar ɗan wasan. Nash ya bayyana cewa ya nemi cinikin ne bayan an sanar da shi cewa lasisin yana shiga wani matakin sake ginawa. Ya kara da cewa yana jin cewa "zai iya zama babban ɓangare na wannan don kawo kadarori", kuma a ganinsa "shi ne mafi kyawun abu ga ƙungiyar, ƙungiyar, da kuma kaina don [aikinsa]". Bayan sauye-sauyen ma'aikata, Blue Jackets sun rufe watan tare da rashin nasara na wasanni uku.