Even with the Columbus Blue Jackets off to a sluggish begin, head coach Dean Evason did not really feel that his seat was warming simply previous the halfway level of his second season on the job.
However, in fact, that wasn’t fairly the case.
“I used to be blindsided. Yeah, in fact. Often, if you undergo this as a coach, you possibly can really feel it coming. However I’ll be sincere with you: I didn’t,” Evason mentioned. “(Basic supervisor Don Waddell) talked to me, then he talked to Steve, and it was time to pack our s— and get out of Dodge.”
Below Evason this season, Columbus was 21-19-7 and sitting eighth within the Metropolitan Division.
In 2024-25, the Blue Jackets appeared to take a step ahead, ending above .500 for the primary time since 2019-20 and lacking out on a return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs by simply two factors.
“This season has been a irritating one for all of us and the underside line is we’re not acting at a stage that meets our expectations. All of us share in that duty, me included, and whereas this was not a call that was made frivolously, it’s one which wanted to be made presently,” mentioned Waddell in a press release. “Dean did an amazing job final yr underneath extraordinarily tough circumstances and I thank him for that.”
A part of Columbus’s struggles this season has been its lack of ability to carry leads. In 9 of its 26 losses, it held a lead within the third interval — one thing Evason pointed to when explaining why he thought the workforce was due for a turnaround.
“On the finish of the day, do you are taking it personally?” he mentioned. “You must, somewhat bit. However you must be accountable, too. I get that we misplaced leads within the third interval, and that was irritating for everyone.
“However with out sounding like a whiny or petty little no matter, I don’t suppose (the firing) ought to have occurred. I believe it was too quickly, and I believe there was extra to it than shedding leads within the third interval. What that’s, I don’t know.”
Evason, who beforehand spent 5 seasons as the top coach of the Minnesota Wild, informed Portzline that the Blue Jackets modified their forecheck and neutral-zone play to get rid of their third-period collapses.
Columbus has gained its two video games since bringing Bowness out of retirement to take over behind the bench.
“I don’t know what’s going to occur to this Blue Jackets workforce. However I consider that we should always have made the playoffs this yr if we have been nonetheless teaching,” Evason mentioned. “That’s not a knock in opposition to (Bowness) in any approach, as a result of he could do the very same factor.”
Finally, Evason leaves the Blue Jackets with a 59-52-16 file in 127 video games, bringing his profession mark to 208-129-43. Whereas he wasn’t in a position to convey Columbus again to the post-season, the veteran of 13 NHL seasons as a participant had guided the Wild to the playoffs 4 instances earlier than being let go after 19 video games in 2023-24.
And even after the abrupt firing, he is searching for a approach again into the head-coaching ranks.
“I hope I get one other job,” he mentioned. “I do know I’m an excellent coach. I do. I do know there are issues I’ve to get higher at, and each time you undergo one thing like this, it’s best to get higher. Those who do are those who hold getting jobs.”
