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Mar 24, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Zach Werenski (8) celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the Philadelphia Flyers in the second period at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

Blue Jackets’ Rise Becoming the NHL’s Biggest Surprise

Originally posted on Breakaway on SI | By Seth Dowdle | Last updated Mar 25, 2026 2:10 PM ET

On Jan. 12, the Columbus Blue Jackets fired head coach Dean Evason. They were in last place in the Eastern Conference. Absolutely nothing was going as planned, and it appeared as if this season was going to be another disappointment in Ohio’s capital.

And then everything changed on a dime in a single moment.

In one fell swoop, the Blue Jackets axed Evason and replaced him with long-time NHL coach Rick Bowness. Bowness, who’d coached a variety of teams — most notably the Dallas Stars and Winnipeg Jets — had been working in television prior to returning to the bench to take over the Columbus job. On paper, the move was the definition of a stopgap: Bowness would control the ship for the rest of the season, safely get it into port, and then hand over the reins to a permanent replacement once the offseason began.

And then everything changed, again.

Bowness has led the Blue Jackets on an extraordinary run. Columbus is 19-3-4 since he took over and has moved into second place in the Metropolitan Division, nine points behind the East-leading Carolina Hurricanes and one point ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins, another surprising story in the NHL this season. How in the world did Columbus turn the operation around to such an extraordinary degree? Can it actually compete for a Stanley Cup? Only the hockey gods know the answer to that second question, and perhaps only the players and coaches in the locker room are aware of the true meaning behind this shocking turn of events. What is absolutely certain is that the Blue Jackets, a franchise which Bill Simmons called the most irrelevant in all of North American professional sports late last year, are storming into the playoff picture and are ready to muck it up.

Players Love Rick Bowness

The Blue Jackets feature several fantastic stars, but it’s defenseman Zach Werenski who stands above the rest. He leads the team in points with 77 — the next closest player, Kirill Marchenko, has 59 — making him a contender for the Norris Trophy once the season concludes in several weeks.

The rest of the offense comes from Marchenko, centers Charlie Coyle, Adam Fantilli and Sean Monahan, and several other players like Dmitri Voronkov, Cole Sillinger and Boone Jenner. Overall, it’s a deep team that’s playing the best hockey of its life at the moment. How could it not be, while it’s on the high that it is?

One of the key reasons the Blue Jackets are on the run they’re on is that it’s evident the players love playing for Bowness. He’s a gravitational figure who’s an expert communicator. He knows how to fix things, which made him an ideal candidate for the Columbus job when it came open.

Bowness has never won a Stanley Cup — he last had the opportunity with the Stars back in 2020 — so he doesn’t necessarily have the winning pedigree that other coaches in the NHL do. But what he has that others don’t is the leadership capability to make a dead team come alive. So while the Blue Jackets turnaround is shocking and surprising, Bowness’ ability to rise this squad from the ashes is absolutely not.

This article first appeared on Breakaway on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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