Blue Jackets Fire Head Coach – But Could Land Top Prospect Connor Bedard For The Future

The Columbus Blue Jackets had about as disappointing a season as fans could have imagined – but it may all work out if they score a big piece for its future

Overall, the team finished second to dead last in the entire league with a 25-48-9 record in 2022-2023.

That led to the Blue Jackets announcing today that it has fired head coach Brad Larsen and opted not to renew the contract of goaltending coach Manny Legace.

Larsen first was hired by the Blue Jackets in July 2021 when it was rebuilding its organization – with low expectations to start.

However, that all changed when it was able to land one of the NHL’s leading scorers Johnny Gaudreau, also known as “Johnny Hockey” a year later.

While he had 74 points in 79 games, the Blue Jackets were likely hurt by the absence of another top goal scorer, Patrik Laine, who only appeared in 55 games.

But the biggest issue was the abysmal goaltending the Blue Jackets got last season, which explains the decision to part ways with Legace.

Goaltenders for the team only managed a combined .877 save percentage in 2022-2023 compared with .911 in the previous season, according to sports data company StatMuse.

That said, the miserable season could be a blessing in disguise for the Blue Jackets and its fans.

That’s because the team now has the second-best odds to land Connor Bedard, who is being touted as the best NHL prospect since Connor McDavid entered the draft in 2015 at 13.5 percent.

However, the Blue Jackets may regret winning Thursday’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, which could have landed them the best odds at 18.5 percent.

However, there will be a draft lottery conducted and it’s certainly not impossible for the Blue Jackets to get a little lucky.

But keep in mind since the new rules were put in place starting in 2021, the teams with the best odds has won the lottery both times.

The NHL draft lottery will be conducted on Monday, May 8, and can be watched on ESPN.