COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Columbus Blue Jackets are getting closer to naming their next head coach.
President and General Manager Don Waddell told 10TV's Dom Tiberi on Tuesday that they have narrowed their search down to three candidates. Waddell previously said he had 12 candidates.
Waddell didn't name them, but he hopes to officially announce the club's next leader within the next seven to 10 days.
"We are the only team in the NHL looking for a coach. So the coaches that are there today are going to be there tomorrow. We got to do our due diligence on all these guys," Waddell said. "This is going to be the most important hire that this franchise makes this summer, so we gotta get this right and I believe we will."
Waddell said that he knows all three candidates, but has not worked with them. He previously said he wants a veteran coach to fill the job.
"You gotta have somebody that has a presence. They walk into that locker room, there's respect immediately. Culture is an overused word, but you can't just say, 'We're gonna have a culture.' You gotta build a culture and it starts with the coach," Waddell said.
The head coaching search comes two weeks after Waddell fired Pascal Vincent, who was only on the job for one season.
The Blue Jackets finished last in the Metropolitan Division with a record of 27-43-12 and 66 points in 2023-24, missing the playoffs for the fourth straight season.
Vincent joined the team before last season as an associate head coach but was elevated after head coach Mike Babcock, two months on the job resigned on the eve of training camp after an investigation into the Stanley Cup-winning coach’s bizarre conduct of asking to see photos on players’ phones. Babcock had been hired to replace Brad Larsen, who was fired after two losing seasons.
Vincent's first season as an NHL head coach began just before training camp opened in September. The Blue Jackets then struggled with injuries that led Vincent to use 47 different players during the season. They finished with the worst record in the Eastern Conference.
Columbus opens the season on Oct. 10 on the road against the Minnesota Wild. The club's full schedule can be seen here.