The 2005–06 Columbus Blue Jackets season was the fifth National Hockey League season in Columbus, Ohio. The team's final position in the standings was hampered by a slow start that resulted from losing a number of key players, including goals leader Rick Nash, to injury. Once these players returned to the roster, the team had one of the strongest second halves in the league. Despite the strong finish, the Blue Jackets finished outside of the playoffs for the fifth consecutive season. However, the strong finish did lead to raised expectations for the 2006–07 season. __TOC__