Former Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekalainen has thanked fans and team management in a social post, calling his 11 years with the club the best of his life.
"I wish we could've brought you the Stanley Cup that you deserve," Kekalainen wrote in a post on X.
The 57-year-old Kekalainen, who is from Finland, was the third-longest tenured GM in the NHL.
President of hockey operations John Davidson, who made the call with just over three weeks to go before the March 8 deadline, will act as interim GM.
Only St. Louis' Doug Armstrong, hired by the Blues in 2010, and Winnipeg's Kevin Cheveldayoff in 2011, had been in a GM post in the league longer than Kekalainen, who replaced Scott Howson mid-season nearly 11 years ago to the date in 2013.
Kekalainen was fired with the Blue Jackets in last place in the Eastern Conference and on track to miss the playoffs for a fourth consecutive year.
--with files from The Associated Press
