Rick Bowness is back in the NHL, this time taking over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Dean Evason was let go after a 19-19-7 start that saw the team finish last in the Eastern Conference and near the bottom of the league.
Bowness isn’t the kind of coach you see making flashy moves or chasing headlines. He is steady, practical, the kind of man who can manage a dressing room when reality does not meet expectations. For a team struggling to find its footing, he could be just the right voice in the room.
Bowness must still have the itch to coach in the NHL
Full disclosure up front: Rick Bowness has always been a favorite of mine. He’s one of those hockey people who never seems to chase the spotlight, but somehow keeps finding himself in places where teams need stability, perspective and level-headedness in the room. Every few years someone declares him ‘too old’, and every few years he proves him wrong.
Bowness retired from coaching in Winnipeg because his wife, Judy, suffered from a serious health problem during the 2023-2024 season. After Winnipeg I thought he might have had enough. He seemed to enjoy his sessions on the panel of The Hockey Night in Canada.
“I appreciate the opportunity to come to Columbus because it is a good organization with good people and this is a team that I believe I can help improve,” Bowness said. “I’m grateful to Don and (Blue Jackets president) Mike Priest, and I’m very excited to work with our players and coaching staff to help us get where we want to go.”
I was surprised when I heard his name heading towards Columbus. It tells me something. You don’t take a job like Columbus unless the itch is still there.
As for Evason, he didn’t get much of a chance
As for Evason, the shooting surprised me. Not because the Blue Jackets are good (they have been this season), but because impatience has become such a default in this league. Evason hadn’t even been there for two full seasons. In 127 games, his record was approximately 59-52-5. Not great, not terrible. And given the selection and the circumstances, not pointless.
Let’s not forget last season. Columbus experienced an emotional, exhausting year after Johnny Gaudreau’s tragedy. Yet somehow they came together and went far beyond what most people thought was their true talent level. They did too well. This season? They seem much closer to what the selection probably is. That doesn’t mean the coach suddenly forgot how to coach.
But this is the NHL now. Short straps everywhere.
Players are traded. They are waived. They are sent down. Coaches get fired because it’s the easiest move. Their salaries do not reach the limit. No assets lost. No long explanation needed. It’s the cleanest button you can press when things get stuck.
Is it fair? Seldom. Is it still surprising? Not really.
What does Bowness bring to the Blue Jackets?
That’s where Bowness comes into the picture. He’s now 70. His first head coaching job in the NHL was with the original Jets in the early ’80s. He’s seen every version of this league: good owners, bad owners, patient rebuilds, fake rebuilds and everything in between. He has done an excellent job as an interim coach with the Dallas Stars and, more recently, the Jets.
Columbus isn’t looking for the next rising star behind the bench. They don’t try to ‘grow’ a coach. If they had, they wouldn’t have gone back to Bowness. They want someone who has done this before. Someone who understands how to manage a space that is frustrated, vulnerable and probably tired of hearing timelines.
Could they have gone after bigger names? Maybe, but Bowness is a proven man who brings stability to his job. His history shows that he gets along well with players. He encourages teams without coddling them. He is honest without being theatrical. And he understands that progress in this league isn’t always linear, no matter how much executives want it to be.
Hard to say if the Blue Jackets will be fixed with a new coach
I don’t know if this hire will solve Columbus. Coaching changes rarely “fix” anything on their own. But if you want to make the easy move, at least make a thoughtful move. Bowness has always been that kind of appointment.
He’s a steady presence, and maybe that’s what the Blue Jackets need. But given the NHL’s impatience with coaches, a firing often becomes the simplest decision in a complicated case.
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