Blue Jackets hire Evason as new head coach
Published
The Columbus Blue Jackets hired Dean Evason as the team's new head coach on a multi-year deal Monday, filling the final vacant position of the off-season.
Evason, 59, spent parts of five seasons as head coach of the Minnesota Wild before he was fired after 19 games this past season, when the team fell to 5-10-4. He led the Wild to three consecutive playoff appearances from 2020 to 2023, losing in the first round each time. The Wild had a 147-77-27 regular season record with Evason at the helm.
The Blue Jackets waited nearly two months after their season ended to fire Pascal Vincent, who replaced Mike Babcock ahead of training camp last fall. The move to fire Vincent came roughly two weeks after Don Waddell was hired as president and general manager.
“Dean Evason brings to coaching what he brought as a player – passion, hard work and tenacity – and I couldn’t be happier that he will serve as the next head coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets,” said Waddell. “He has spent well over two decades in this league as a player, assistant coach and head coach and I believe that experience, combined with the outstanding person he is, will allow Dean to get the best out of our players and put us in a position to succeed as a team.”
“I am incredibly proud and honored to be named the head coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets and appreciate very much the opportunity that Don, the McConnell family and Mike Priest have extended to me,” said Evason. “There is a great core and a lot of young talent on this team. I am really looking forward to working with this group and helping us become a team that plays extremely hard and competes at the highest level.”
The Blue Jackets finished last season with a 27-43-12 record, missing the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year.
More details to follow.