#2 – Jeff Carter
I sense that thousands of Columbus Blue Jackets fans just threw up a little in their mouths. And for good reason because Jeff Carter is our second most hated enemy. For the fans that may be unsure on why so many CBJ fans hate Jeff Carter, let me break it down for you.
Carter had signed a massive, long-term deal with the Philadelphia Flyers in late 2010, and expected to spend the rest of his career in the City of Brotherly Love. He was wrong.
On June 23, 2011, Jeff Carter was traded by the Flyers to the Blue Jackets. To get Carter, Columbus sent Jakub Voracek, the 2011 eighth overall pick, and a 2011 third-round pick to Philly.
Carter didn’t like that he got traded to Columbus, and basically refused to report. It wasn’t until Rick Nash visited Carter and convinced him to come play that he finally did so. Still not happy, Carter reportedly was difficult to work with in Columbus and was shipped out to the Los Angeles Kings after requesting a trade. The Jackets got Jack Johnson and a conditional first-round pick in return.
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All in all, he’s not the absolute worst guy to ever come to the Blue Jackets. Adam Foote probably beats him out because he actually threatened to poison the locker room’s chemistry and tank his play if he wasn’t traded. But Jeff Carter came just a few years after Foote, and got most of the hate shifted toward him.
Carter’s post CBJ career has also been much better than Foote’s was. He won two Stanley Cups with the Kings while the Jackets struggled to make the playoffs. He’s also still playing at an extremely high level while Foote’s retired and mostly forgotten.
In ten years when Carter’s career is over, he probably won’t be the second most hated enemy, probably just the third or fourth.