3 Key Takeaways From Rick Bowness’ First Blue Jackets’ Press Conference

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It’s already been an eventful week for the Columbus Blue Jackets. On Monday, the team announced the firings of head coach Dean Evason and assistant coach Steve McCarthy and the hiring of Rick Bowness. On Tuesday, Bowness held his first media availability.

Bowness alongside GM Don Waddell spent almost 30 minutes talking about how this all came to be and what fans can expect from this move. To say this happened fast would be an understatement. While the thought of making a coaching change started a week or so before, the events on Monday all happened in the span of about 4-5 hours.

Waddell said he called Bowness while he and his wife were on their boat. That was at 11 A.M. Monday. The job was offered at that moment.

Bowness admitted taking only about five seconds to say yes. With that, he’s back in the NHL.

In talking to Zach Werenski on Tuesday morning, he said he found out the news of the coaching change around 4 P.M. The Blue Jackets announced the news at 4:30 P.M. eastern. Even the pregame email released at 3 P.M. eastern indicated Dean Evason was still the head coach.

It happened fast. It happened with purpose. What was going on with the Columbus Blue Jackets was not acceptable to anyone. In going over our three key takeaways from the availability, that’s where we’re going to start. Why did Waddell make the move to Bowness now?

Why The Change Was Made?

Waddell wasted no time at the start of the press conference. His opening statement directly addressed why the coaching change was made.

“Making coaching changes in-season is never an easy decision,” Waddell said. “A lot goes into those decisions. And the bottom line for us is we haven’t met our expectations. And it first starts with me. We all take accountability in this, coaches, players and myself. We don’t take any of this lightly. I have all the respect in the world for Dean (Evason) and Steve (McCarthy.) I think last year, they did a tremendous job in very difficult situations.”

“But again, I think our expectations this year were higher than what we’re achieving right now. That’s why we felt we would make a change…It’s a critical point of our season with 12 games, I believe, before we go on an Olympic break. I think eight at home. That’s why we felt if we’re going to do something, now is the time to do it. And so, we’re very fortunate to be able to hire Rick Bowness.”

Rick Bowness, Don Waddell, Columbus Blue Jackets
Blue Jackets head coach Rick Bowness & GM Don Waddell meet with the media on Tuesday afternoon. (Photo credit: Mark Scheig, the Hockey Writers)

The bar for the Blue Jackets was set at playoffs in the preseason. Last place in the Eastern Conference meant the first part of the season was a failure. Waddell admitted when this decision really started to become a real possibility.

“It started back when, probably that Pittsburgh game, just giving up that lead,” Waddell said. “Then watching our team play in San Jose and I talked to some of the younger guys who were on the team the whole time, talked to some of the leaders on the team and they weren’t by any means bashing the coach. But I could tell that they were frustrated with how things were going. So it all came to a point kind of over the weekend and when I got back and met with necessary people including my staff and then Mike (Priest) and ownership and that’s when we made a decision that we’d make a change.”

It’s clear that frustration has been building for some time. Consider the blown leads. Consider how the Blue Jackets have played in a lot of third periods. Then consider that as time went on, there was a noticeable change in the mood of the team. Players were clearly frustrated with each passing loss. Evason didn’t have a lot of answers for why things kept happening.

Instead of waiting until the Olympic break, Waddell took decisive action and made the move now with the hopes that the Blue Jackets will get a much needed bump. In our second key takeaway, they also hope to get a lot more of another important element in their game.

Defensive Structure

Firing both Evason and McCarthy was a clear indication of what the Blue Jackets saw as an unacceptable issue. Their overall team defense was not good enough. In Bowness, the team gets an experienced coach known for structure especially in their own zone.

Bowness explained a little bit of what he hopes to bring as the head coach. He already explained to the players where he wants things to go.

“I talked to the players this morning,” Bowness said. “I looked at that goals against. I looked at the shots against. I looked at the penalty kill and looked at the slot chances against. I looked at the rush chances against. There’s the issue. Those issues will take you right out of the playoffs. They will. In our league, you don’t score your way into the…this isn’t the 80’s man. You don’t score your way into the playoffs. You defend your way into the playoffs. And you get your offense and play good, solid team defense. But that’s team defense. That’s everyone committed.”

“So we’re just going to try to get everyone to buy in a lot more defensively, far more committed. There’s some structural changes we can make, absolutely and we’re going to make them. But we have to tighten this thing up. And you tighten it up by giving them a game plan and then the onus is on them. Okay, this is what we need. Now do it. Right? So we’re going to be pushing them hard on that.”

Bowness led the 2023-24 Jets to the best team goals-against in the NHL at 2.41 goals per game. That’s almost a full goal per game less than this season’s Blue Jackets.

Whether they’re able to see significant improvement in 37 games is certainly a question. But there is no question what Bowness is going to try instilling with these Blue Jackets. Goals against and team defense will be a top priority.

Communication

Bowness has always been known as a great communicator. He will bring that element to the Blue Jackets no matter how long a player has been in the league.

Bowness spent the first part of the morning skate going up to players and talking with them. He was seen talking with Adam Fantilli for a minute. Bowness then gave Fantilli a tap on the shin pads in encouragment.

The Blue Jackets’ young stars Fantilli, Kent Johnson and Cole Sillinger haven’t finished the way they would like. While Bowness will work on team defense, he knows that finding a way to get these three in particular going will be important.

Bowness explained his stance on the way he communicates to everyone. It will be of utmost importance to get to know the players as quickly as possible because as the coach said, “I don’t know these guys that well.”

“Spend time with them. Work with them,” Bowness said. “Do a little video with them. Talk to them. Get to know them, right? I have to know basically what makes them tick. I need to spend time with them. There are those things. They do take time. I got to talk to every one of the players. I got to get to know them. And then it starts with that. I got to watch them play. Honestly, some of those guys in that room probably never heard of me before either so it’s even.”

“But I’ve got to spend a lot of time with those guys and I’ve got to watch them play and I’ve got to see what they do well and I’ve got to see what we can help them with…We’ve got to spend a lot of one-on-one time with every player in that room, veterans included not just the young guys. Then you go to your veterans and you get them to help. But there’s going to be a lot of communication with this staff and each and every players. We have to get to know them and it starts with me.”

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With the number of games remaining starting to count down, this aspect will go a long way in determining if the Blue Jackets can salvage this season. They have to get to know their new head coach. When there are issues, they needs to be an open-door on both sides to be able to address differences. With frustration mounting before, it’s fair to wonder if communication really started to break down between Evason and the players.

Overall, the Blue Jackets had to act if they wanted a new voice in the room. They didn’t hesitate when Bowness was available. Given what he brings, it’s easy to see the logic in bringing a more defensive-minded coach who is good at communicating with his players.

The big question now is, will the expected coach bump be enough to push the Blue Jackets back into the playoff race? If not, what will the ramifications be?

The players are now on full notice. Waddell has done everything possible to wake them up including trades, signings and coaching firings.

If that doesn’t work, the players will have no choice but to look at themselves in the mirror.

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