Dean Evason was not the only coach the Blue Jackets fired on Jan 12.
In addition to the club’s head coach, the team also parted with longtime assistant Steve McCarthy, who had served under four different Columbus head coaches since joining the team in 2021. He had spent the previous five seasons on the staff of the Cleveland Monsters, the Blue Jackets’ American Hockey League affiliate.
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While Rick Bowness was named Columbus’ new head coach, no new assistant coach has been named to replace McCarthy.
Who is fired Columbus Blue Jackets assistant coach Steve McCarthy?
Blue Jackets head coach Pascal Vincent (left) talks to assistant Steve McCarthy during the second period of a Jan. 15, 2024, game against the Canucks at Nationwide Arena.
McCarthy ran defensive pairings and coordinated the penalty kill for the Blue Jackets.
He was promoted Sept. 13, 2021, after former assistant Sylvain Lefebvre was fired. Lefebvre never saw a game day with Columbus because he refused to get a COVID-19 vaccination prior to the 2021-22 season, something the NHL required. Lefebvre was then hired by the Florida Panthers and has helped them make it to the Stanley Cup Final the past three years, finishing the past two seasons as champions.
Blue Jackets assistant coaches Steve McCarthy (right) and Pascal Vincent stand behind the bench as center Gustav Nyquist gets high fives following a goal during a preseason game against the Penguins on Sept. 25, 2022.
After the Blue Jackets fired Larsen following the 2023 season, McCarthy remained on the staff while a revolving door of head coaches came and went, starting with Mike Babcock (fired before 2023-2024 season began), Pascal Vincent (fired after 2023-24 season) and ending with Evason’s two-season tenure.
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Under McCarthy, the Blue Jackets’ combined success rate on penalty kills over five seasons was 76.7%, ranking them 26th in the league. This season, they rank 29th at 76.4% after starting out last in the league at 55.6% through the first five games (11 for 18).
Before his coaching career, McCarthy played eight NHL seasons as a defenseman. Most of that time (five seasons) was with the Blackhawks. He also spent three seasons with the Atlanta Thrashers and 51 games with the Canucks. He totaled 55 points.
2025-26 NHL Eastern Conference Standings
Below are the Eastern Conference standings as of Dec. 12.
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Carolina Hurricanes, 28-14-4, 60 points
Detroit Red Wings, 27-15-4, 60 points
Tampa Bay Lightning, 28-13-3, 59 points
Montreal Canadiens, 26-14-6, 58 points
New York Islanders, 25-15-5, 55 points
Toronto Maple Leafs, 23-15-7, 53 points
Buffalo Sabres, 24-16-4, 52 points
Philadelphia Flyers, 22-14-8, 52 points
Washington Capitals, 23-17-6, 52 points
Boston Bruins, 25-19-2, 52 points
Pittsburgh Penguins, 21-14-9, 51 points
Florida Panthers, 23-18-3, 49 points
New Jersey Devils, 23-21-2, 48 points
New York Rangers, 20-21-6, 46 points
Ottawa Senators, 20-19-5, 45 points
Columbus Blue Jackets, 19-19-7, 45 points
Blue Jackets beat writer Brian Hedger contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Fired Columbus Blue Jackets assistant coach | Who is Steve McCarthy?