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Columbus Blue Jackets, Rick Bowness focused solely on the present
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- Columbus Blue Jackets, Rick Bowness focused solely on the present
Those hoping for clarity or a new vision for the Blue Jackets' future beyond this season didn't get it during an introductory press conference for coach Rick Bowness on Jan. 13 at Nationwide Arena.
A day after Bowness, 70, was stunningly named as Dean Evason's replacement , the Jackets' new bench boss joined president/general manager Don Waddell after his first morning skate.
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The only future discussed was the game on tap Jan. 13 against the Calgary Flames , which Bowness was preparing to coach after pausing his retirement in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to accept the Blue Jackets' coaching job. Just 24 hours earlier, he had been on a boat with his wife, Judy.
"This all happened very quickly," Waddell said. "It was almost [11 a.m. on Jan. 12] and I caught Rick out on the boat with his wife. I asked him how he was doing and if he was interested in coaching our team, and it took him about five seconds to say, 'I'm in, let me just run it by my wife.' So, we put this deal together very quickly."
Waddell said he first began mulling a coaching change after the Blue Jackets coughed up a two-goal, third period lead in a 5-4 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Jan. 4 at Nationwide Arena. They also lost the next three games to start Evason's final road trip, which cinched Waddell's decision.
Bowness, Waddell said, will coach the Blue Jackets for the rest of this season. Nothing further is guaranteed. He's the head coach, not interim, which means there's a chance Bowness will run training camp next season ... unless somebody else does.
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The uncertainty beyond this season has to be unsettling for players and remaining assistant coaches, but Bowness and Waddell don't want them thinking about anything farther out than what's left in this schedule.
Bowness said it's similar to when he was hired by the Winnipeg Jets in 2022. He took over their top coaching position after thinking he was retired and wound up coaching in Winnipeg until 2024, when unspecified health issues for him and his wife played a role in his actual retirement.
Now, having overcome those health issues, he's back.
"I went in [there in Winnipeg], and as I told the players, 'Listen, I'm not looking for a job after this. I'm coming in here, and I'm going to do and say whatever has to be done,'" Bowness said. "I'm not a 30-year-old coach worrying about my career. I'm at the end of my career, and I know that, and it'll be the same approach here."
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So, the focus for the Blue Jackets is now microscopic.
It's game-to-game, day-to-day trying to see if a new coach can spark an unlikely rise from the bottom of the Eastern Conference back into playoff contention. Seven points stand between the Jackets and the East's second wild-card spot, and they need to leapfrog eight teams.
"Anybody who's worried about next year is taking the wrong approach on this whole thing," Bowness said. "All that matters right now is this year. All that matters is this game tonight, not what's going on next. Next year will take care of itself. It will, and I'm not worried about next year one bit. I came in here to come in and get the mentality ... we've got to get dialed in on today, and then we've got to get dialed in on tomorrow. I have the energy to do that, and that's my total focus."
Columbus Blue Jackets President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Don Waddell talks about hiring new head coach Rick Bowness during a press conference at Nationwide Arena.
Bowness, like Evason, is personable and talks a good game.
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Time will tell whether he can get the Blue Jackets to back up all his bluster about getting "nastier" and defending harder while holding leads in third periods, which is the biggest reason for the coaching change. The Blue Jackets have blown what feels like countless leads in third periods this season, much like they did two years ago under Pascal Vincent.
Those unclaimed points could've spared Evason and a fired assistant, Steve McCarthy, but they took the fall for Blue Jackets' shortcomings. Waddell and Blue Jackets players know it, and they accepted responsibility for their roles in those departures. Then, they cast their focus forward, but not looking anywhere beyond what's left this season.
Eight of the next 12 games, and seven of the next eight, will be at Nationwide Arena before the NHL pauses for the Olympics in February. It's now or never, the way the Blue Jackets see it, and that's why Bowness is here.
"The bottom line for us is that we haven't met our expectations, and it first starts with me," Waddell said. "We don't take any of this lightly. I have all the respect in the world for Dean and Steve, and I think last year they did a tremendous job in a very difficult situation, but, again, our expectations this year were higher than what we're achieving right now, and that's why we felt we'd make a change."
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So, the future is now.
Blue Jackets reporter Brian Hedger can be reached at bhedger@dispatch.com and @BrianHedger.bsky.social
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Rick Bowness, new Blue Jackets coach, focused on the present
