Blue Jackets coach Rick Bowness agrees to return next season days after rant
It didn’t take long for the Columbus Blue Jackets to decide if Rick Bowness would return as coach. The team announced Thursday that Bowness agreed to a deal to be behind the bench for the 2026-27 season. Bowness led Columbus to a 21-11-5 record after taking over for Dean Evason on Jan.
12. “If you look at the body of work that happened here over the last 37 games, I’m very pleased with Rick’s work. I’ve said all along that the strengths of this organization from a coaching standpoint has been the communication he’s had with the players and getting them ready to play on a regular basis,” President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Don Waddell said during a news conference.
“It’s always interesting when you do make changes how players are going to respond. Through all the exit meetings that have happened so far, every player to a man said they love playing for Rick, they respect Rick and they’re all hoping he’d come back for another year. ” The Blue Jackets were in last place in the Eastern Conference when Bowness arrived.
They went 18-2-4 in Bowness’ first 24 games and moved into a playoff spot after collecting a point in 12 straight games. But Columbus struggled down the stretch, going 3-9-1 to miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the sixth straight season. Bowness gave his players a lot to think about after a 2-1 season-ending loss to the Washington Capitals on Tuesday night.
He launched into a 3-minute rant on the team’s effort and that “losing is not important enough to them. It doesn’t bother them. ” He also said that if he was back “we’re changing this freaking culture.