COLUMBUS — Rick Bowness has seen enough. Following Tuesday night's embarrassing 7-3 loss to the Florida Panthers, the Columbus Blue Jackets head coach delivered a pointed message to his players about their performance, discipline, and accountability. Five games into the season, Bowness is already growing frustrated with mistakes that continue to cost his team games.
The Blue Jackets entered the second period with a 1-0 lead before allowing six unanswered goals, including four on the power play. What began as a promising performance quickly deteriorated into one of Columbus' ugliest losses of the young season, and Bowness wasn't interested in making excuses afterward.
“You have to hope, you got to believe that performance tonight will embarrass them enough to stop this, right?” Bowness said. “Because if they're not embarrassed by that, we don't want them on the team. It's as simple as that.”
Those are strong words from a coach whose team entered the season with playoff aspirations. But with Columbus dropping three of its last four games and falling to 2-3-0, Bowness is becoming increasingly concerned about the manner in which his team is losing.
The Same Problems Keep Appearing
Saturday's 5-3 defeat in St. Louis featured several avoidable mistakes, and Tuesday's performance against Florida was considerably worse. The Blue Jackets repeatedly hurt themselves with unnecessary penalties, defensive breakdowns, and an inability to regain control once the Panthers began scoring.
“We beat ourselves in St. Louis. We beat ourselves tonight,” Bowness said, making it clear that he believes Columbus is contributing to its own struggles rather than simply being outplayed by better opponents.
The most glaring problem Tuesday was discipline. Florida converted four of its six power-play opportunities, including three during the second period, as Columbus struggled to contain a talented Panthers offense. Brady Tkachuk recorded a hat trick, while Matthew Tkachuk contributed five assists in a game that quickly spiraled out of control.
Mathieu Olivier's five-minute major for slashing Uvis Balinskis made matters worse. Olivier received a game misconduct, leaving his teammates to kill an extended penalty against an offense that had already found its rhythm. Following the game, Olivier acknowledged the severity of his mistake rather than attempting to justify it.
“I don't even have an explanation for it,” Olivier said. “It looked bad. It was bad, and that's on me.”
Although Olivier's penalty was particularly damaging, Columbus' problems extend beyond one player. The Blue Jackets have struggled with defensive assignments, unnecessary penalties, and stretches in which their execution disappears altogether. Those mistakes have contributed to 21 goals allowed through five games, an average of 4.2 per contest.
Bowness Still Believes His Team Can Respond
Despite his frustration, Bowness hasn't lost confidence in his players or the approach he's trying to establish. He believes many of the mistakes are correctable, provided the team accepts responsibility and commits to making the necessary adjustments.
“I know it looks bad, but I also believe in what we're doing, and I believe in them, and I believe we can fix the problems,” Bowness said.
The distinction is important because Bowness isn't questioning whether Columbus has enough talent to compete. He's questioning whether his players are consistently demonstrating the discipline and preparation necessary to turn that talent into victories.
Tuesday's opening period provided another example of what the Blue Jackets are capable of when they play responsible hockey. Columbus controlled enough of the action to carry a lead into the first intermission, but that effort quickly unraveled as penalties and defensive mistakes allowed Florida to take over.
With several new faces adjusting to their roles, some inconsistency was inevitable early in the season. However, Bowness clearly isn't willing to accept repeated mental mistakes as an unavoidable part of that adjustment period.
An Opportunity to Respond
The Blue Jackets have three days to address their problems before hosting the New York Rangers on Saturday at Nationwide Arena. The 7 p.m. matchup presents an immediate opportunity to demonstrate that Bowness' message has been received.
At 2-3-0, Columbus is hardly facing a season-defining crisis. There is plenty of hockey remaining, and the Blue Jackets have enough talent to recover from a disappointing start. But the recurring mistakes are becoming difficult to overlook, particularly for a team that entered the season expecting to compete for a playoff berth.
Bowness has made his expectations unmistakably clear. Now it's up to his players to show they were listening.
