Ray Whitney finished the 2002-03 season with a plus-minus rating of minus-26. A season earlier, Tyler Wright saw more red lights flashing than an ambulance-chasing attorney in posting a minus-40.

Then there's captain Rick Nash. His first two NHL seasons combined produced an unsightly minus-62.

"When you have a number like that attached to your name it's embarrassing to the individual," said Wright, the Jackets' director of player development. "But it's also a reflection of the team, its style and how it's playing."

It's why many within the organization take pride in what Jan Hejda has accomplished since arriving in Columbus for the start of the 2007-08 season.

The soft-spoken, hard-hitting defenseman is a plus-50 in his Jackets career. It represents the league's fourth-best mark during that span behind Detroit's Pavel Datsyuk (74) and Nicklas Lidstrom (73) and Chicago's Duncan Keith (64).

For a defensive-minded player on a low-scoring club, it's a revealing statistic.

"I think Jan is one of the most underrated players in the league," winger Kristian Huselius said. "He goes out every game and plays against the other team's top lines and really doesn't get enough credit for the job he does."

A skater receives a plus if he's on the ice when his team scores an even-strength or short-handed goal. He earns a minus for being on the ice when his team allows an even-strength or short-handed goal.

Unlike Datsyuk, Lidstrom and Keith, Hejda plays for a franchise that has finished 21st and 29th in scoring the past two seasons.

As the Jackets prepare for tonight's game against Calgary, Hejda already is a plus-7 despite the fact his team has scored just 12 goals.

The Jackets are proof, however, that a team doesn't need a dynamic offense to be successful. It's no coincidence that Hejda's stellar numbers have come during the club's best two seasons.

How have times changed? No Jackets player has been lower than minus-12 since the 2007-08 season. In fact, Hejda was one of five Jackets plus-11 or higher last season.

"It's a sign our team is getting better," said Hejda, who had a career-high 21 points last season. "We didn't re-sign Manny (Malhotra) or Michael Peca in the summer, but when I got back here and looked at our team I thought we looked really good.

"Obviously, Scott (general manager Howson) knows what he's doing."

Two of Howson's best deals have involved Hejda. He signed the obscure defenseman to a one-year, $1 million contract in 2007 and re-signed him to a two-year, $4 million agreement in 2008.

Howson understands plus-minus ratings can be misleading in player evaluation. After all, former NHL forward Paul Ysebaert holds the distinction of finishing the 1991-92 season with the league's best rating (plus-44) and the 1997-98 season with its worst rating (minus-43).

Did Ysebaert's skills erode that drastically in six years? No, he had the misfortune of going from the Detroit Red Wings to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Howson believes Hejda's plus-50 rating, achieved with different defense partners, accurately reflects his value.

"When you are on the good side of the (rating) for a couple of years, I don't think you can say it's an accident," Howson said.

Hejda's profile, expanding within NHL circles, could grow again in February. He has a decent shot of playing for the Czech Republic in the Winter Olympics after spending the offseason training with national coach Vladimir Ruzicka.

His primary focus remains helping the Jackets return to the playoffs. He will block shots and chip pucks off the glass with little fanfare.

"There is nothing flashy about Jan's game," winger R.J. Umberger said. "Then, you look up at the end of the night and he's like plus-4."

treed@dispatch.com