Brian Murphy: If anyone can lead Columbus through tragedy, it's Dean Evason

Dean Evason’s low-key wave to an appreciative Minnesota Wild crowd early in the first period Thursday belied an emotionally charged season opener for his new and suddenly very shorthanded team.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are still grieving the unspeakable loss of star forward Johnny Gaudreau , who was killed along with his younger brother Aug. 29 by a suspected drunken driver while they were in New Jersey for their sister’s wedding.

It has been a preseason of memorials and processing that grief in and out of the dressing room, where Gaudreau’s No. 13 jersey hangs in memoriam both at Nationwide Arena and the road. The on-ice tributes continued last night with 13 seconds of silence before Minnesota’s 3-2 victory .

The Blue Jackets’ roster was dealt another body blow when the team announced pregame that captain Boone Jenner had shoulder surgery that would sideline him until March.

So much adversity, so soon for Evason, whom Columbus hired in July – eight months after Minnesota fired him after a horrendous start to the 2023-24 season. If anyone is capable to forging ahead through calamity it is the jut-jawed Evason, a journeyman player and coaching lifer who knows the value of second chances.

There he was on the video board at Xcel Energy Center during the initial television timeout in the first period intense as ever, looking like a man chewing shrapnel as the sellout crowd rose in unison to salute the Wild’s former bench boss.

“Of course there’s emotions,” said Evason. “It was very nice. I heard a majority of them cheering. Some probably weren’t. But, 100 percent, everyone likes to feel good.”

Wild coach John Hynes knows the drill. Minnesota is his third NHL stop, and he offered ample praise and respect for his predecessor.

“You know how hard coaches work,” Hynes said. “Great person. Great guy. Great coach. He put his heart and soul into the organization and the team. It’s nice to see the fans recognize the hard work and the type of guy that he is.”

Hockey coaches are equal parts field general, tactician and psychologist, massaging the skills and egos of young men who have so much destiny ahead of them. Which makes the Gaudreau family tragedy so painful, two lives cut short during what should have been a celebration weekend.

Evason had about six weeks of normalcy after Columbus’ new general manager, Don Waddell, chose him over experienced NHL coaches Jeff Blashill, Jay Woodcroft and Todd McLellan.

Evason had interviewed for openings in Winnipeg, Ottawa and Seattle but was passed over. He led Minnesota to three playoff appearances and a franchise-best .639 points percentage after succeeding Bruce Boudreau in February 2020.

None of Evason’s teams advanced past the first round, and a seven-game losing streak last November led GM Bill Guerin to mercifully pull the plug after his flailing players failed to save him.

Facing his former employer in the season opener was an irony too rich to mask his emotions when the schedule was released in the offseason. But the events of Aug. 29 changed everything, leaving Evason no choice but to meet the emotional challenge head on.

“There’s nothing we can do about who’s not in our lineup,” Evason said. “There is a lot we can do with who is in our lineup and how we play the game.”

The Blue Jackets played well without their captain, but the Wild did just a little bit more behind three points from Matt Boldy and 30 saves from Filip Gustavsson. It was enough to improve to 18-2-4 in home openers at the X.

For Columbus, it feels like another long season of rebuilding confidence and faith in a franchise that consistently takes two steps forward and three back since entering the NHL with Minnesota in 2000-01.

The Blue Jackets have had plenty of blue-chip coaches, from Doug McLean, Gerard Gallant and Ken Hitchcock to John Tortorella and Mike Babcock. But chronic drama and mismanagement have plagued them since their inception, not to mention tragedy.

In just their second season 13-year-old fan Brittanie Cecil died from a head injury after being struck in the temple by a deflected puck at Nationwide Arena. The only fan fatality in NHL history prompted the league to mandate protective netting behind each net in all arenas.

The Blue Jackets have only made the postseason six times, with one first-round victory to show for it. Their 767 wins and .483 points percentage rank dead last over the last 24 seasons.

Meanwhile, the Wild checked their first victory box of a season with muddled expectations after failing to make the playoffs in April. They’re relying on a stagnant roster to jump-start expectations for a team that has lost eight straight playoff series since 2015.

Returning to the postseason is a lighter lift than the heavy hearts their expansion cousins are in Ohio’s capital city.