Waddell and Bowness’ press conference comes two days after club’s season came to a disappointing end.<\/p>\n
COLUMBUS, Ohio \u2014 Columbus Blue Jackets head coach Rick Bowness has agreed to an extension to stay with the club for at least one more season, according to reports.<\/p>\n
TSN Reporter Pierre LeBrun posted on X \u00a0that Bowness is staying as the Blue Jackets head coach. SportsNet<\/a> also reported that Bowness will sign an extension. Details have not been made public.<\/p>\n Further to @Aportzline<\/a> here, hearing that Rick Bowness has agreed to an extension to stay on as HC of the Blue Jackets. Should be made official at 2 pm ET news conference. https:\/\/t.co\/mdaFhHqHAy<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) April 16, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Columbus’ president of hockey operations and general manager Don Waddell and Bowness are set to speak during a 2 p.m. press conference, which will be available to watch in this article and on 10TV+.<\/p>\n The reported extension comes two days after the club’s season came to a disappointing end.<\/p>\n The Blue Jackets were in last place in the Eastern Conference when the 71-year-old Bowness took over for Dean Evason as coach in January.\u00a0<\/p>\n Columbus went 18-2-4 in Bowness\u2019 first 24 games and moved into a playoff spot after collecting a point in 12 straight games. The Blue Jackets went 3-9-1 down the stretch though and have missed the postseason for the sixth straight season.<\/p>\n The press conference comes two days after Bowness clearly expressed his frustration with how the season ended.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bowness said he should have voiced frustration a couple of weeks earlier. Had he done so, the Blue Jackets might have reached the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2020.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThese guys, they don\u2019t care. Losing is not important enough to them. It doesn\u2019t bother them. How can you go out and play like that?\u201d Bowness said postgame. \u201cThis is why we\u2019re out of the playoffs. That kind of effort. You have to hate losing. I don\u2019t care if it\u2019s a meaningless game. Show up and compete.\u201d<\/p>\n Defenseman Zach Werenski disagreed with Bowness\u2019 assessment that the players don\u2019t care or don\u2019t hate to lose, but also knew that the late-season collapse left everyone angry.<\/p>\n \u201cI have a ton of respect for him. He loves us as players, and we love him as a coach,\u201d Werenski said. \u201cWe need to learn how to win, and he can help us with that. He\u2019s been around a long time and knows what it takes. We haven\u2019t done it enough \u2014 it\u2019s clear. But saying we don\u2019t care or don\u2019t hate to lose, I think that\u2019s wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to shifting the team\u2019s culture, the Blue Jackets must address their inability to protect late leads. Over the course of this season, they blew 21 third-period leads. The backbreaker came on March 29 against Boston when Columbus was up 3-0 through two periods and\u00a0lost 4-3 in a shootout<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to learn how to win and get over that hump. That\u2019s what our fans deserve, and we owe it to each other. It\u2019s a tough lesson and will be a long summer thinking about it,\u201d forward Adam Fantilli said.<\/p>\n