Columbus Blue Jackets introduce head coach Dean Evason. What we know

Nearly two months after hiring Don Waddell as general manager, and a month after firing coach Pascal Vincent, the Blue Jackets have hired their fourth head coach in three seasons.

Related Dean Evason article: Columbus Blue Jackets hire Dean Evason as head coach

Former Minnesota Wild coach Dean Evason was named as the 11th coach in the Blue Jackets' 24-year history. Specific terms for Evason's deal were not made public.

Here are highlights from his introductory press conference on Tuesday:

Dean Evason on CBJ opener vs. Minnesota Wild

The Blue Jackets will open the 2024-25 season against the Minnesota Wild, Evason's former team. And it's a game he has circled on his calendar.

"They just fired me last year," Evason said. "Of course it means something."

Dean Evason on Blue Jackets playoff drive

For Evason, the desire to make the postseason with the Blue Jackets was at the front of his mind when he took the job.

"That long playoff drive, I'll be honest with you, eats at me too," Evason said. "That's what I want as a head coach. That's what the players want. "That's what Don wants and the ownership wants. And more importantly, that's what the fanbase wants.

"Do we want that long run? Heck yeah... I have an opportunity to lift a Stanley Cup with a suit on."

Dean Evason has not started to build CBJ coaching staff

Evason said he has not started the process of assembling a Blue Jackets coaching staff, but will start the process "as soon as I leave here."

He said the structure of training camp will be the same. He has an idea of how he wants the Blue Jackets to play, but that there will be communication with his staff as to what that will look like.

Why Don Waddell hired Dean Evason

Waddell said Evason checked the box of "passion" in terms of what he needed out of the Blue Jackets' next head coach.

"To be a coach in he national hockey league, every time I spoke with Dean, he was the same way... you could always see the passion," Waddell said.

Dean Evason on Blue Jackets playing style

Evason provided a preview of what he wants the Blue Jackets' playing style to look like.

"Our team will play with great detail, with great structure," Evason said. "But we'll also give them the opportunity to be creative in the offensive zone and through the neutral zone."

Dean Evason said he 'learned' from past Stanley Cup Playoffs appearances

While the goal for Evason is to win the Stanley Cup, he said getting to the playoffs is a process he has learned from past experience with the Minnesota Wild.

"This is a hard league," Evason said. "It's the best league in the world, best players," Evason said. "It's so even across the board. I don't care, any given night, you can get beat."

Dean Evason: Blue Jackets core group 'fantastic on paper'

Evason said he was impressed by the core group he's inheriting with the Blue Jackets, calling it "fantastic on paper," even if he doesn't know what it's going to look like.

"Everything excites me right now because I don't know exactly what we have in that room," Evason said.

Dean Evason wants to bring Stanley Cup to Columbus Blue Jackets

While saying there is "a process" ahead with the Blue Jackets, Evason said in his opening statement that the steps are in place to build something successful in Columbus.

"We're just going to continue to build to our ultimate goal of winning a Stanley Cup," Evason said.

Don Waddell on Dean Evason: Brings 'passion (and) structure'

Waddell said what Evason brought to the table was "the passion (and) the structure" the Blue Jackets needed for this new era.

Who is Dean Evason?

In parts of five seasons with the Wild, Evason led the team to a 147-77-27 record, and led the team to appearances in the Stanley Cup Playoffs four times.

Evason was named a Wild assistant coach in 2019 after spending six seasons as the head coach of the Milwaukee Admirals in the American Hockey League. He is also a former assistant coach for the Washington Capitals.

Evason is a former fifth-round selection by the Capitals in the 1982 NHL draft as a center.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Blue Jackets introduce new coach Dean Evason