"This season has been a frustrating one for all of us and the bottom line is we are not performing at a level that meets our expectations. We all share in that responsibility, me included, and while this was not a decision that was made lightly it is one that needed to be made at this time," said the Blue Jackets president of hockey operations and general manager Don Waddell
"Dean did a tremendous job last year under extremely difficult circumstances and I thank him for that. I also want to thank Steve for his commitment to our club over the past five years."
In 127 games as coach, Evason had a record of 59-52-16. This season, however, they find themselves at 19-19-7, joint bottom of the Eastern Conference.
Assistant coach Steve McCarthy was also let go along with Evason, having held the role since September 2021. The 44-year-old was a defenseman with the Chicago Blackhawks, Vancouver Canucks, and Atlanta Thrashers as part of an eight-year playing career.
Bowness returns to the NHL despite having retired back in May 2024 following a career of nearly half a century in the league as a player and as coach.
"Rick Bowness is a tremendous coach with invaluable experience and knowledge, and he will bring a steadiness to our team at an important juncture in our season," Waddell said. "He is a good communicator whose teams play with structure, are sound defensively and we believe he is the right person to bring out the best in our group."
Through 803 career games as a head coach, Bowness is 310-408-37, with 48 ties, across seven teams. His first role came during the 1988/89 campaign, when the initial Jets team got rid of Dan Maloney. During that brief stint, the near-71-year-old went 8-17-3.
Bowness has also coached the Dallas Stars, Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, New York Islanders, and Phoenix Coyotes, leading the Stars to a Stanley Cup Final back in 2020.
His last appointment saw him help the Jets to second spot in the Central Division during the 2023/24 campaign.
"I appreciate the opportunity to come to Columbus because it is a good organization with good people and this is a team that I think I can help improve," said Bowness in a statement about his hiring. "I'm thankful to Don and (Blue Jackets president) Mike Priest and I'm really excited to work with our players and coaching staff to help get us where we want to go."
Bowness is in unique company, alongside Scotty Bowman and Pat Quinn, to be the only coaches to have done so in five different decades.
During his playing days, Bowness managed 18 goals and 37 assists through 173 games with the Atlanta Flames, Detroit Red Wings, St. Louis Blues, and Jet. He played in the league from 1975-81.
