Call it 'Bowness Time.' Lured out of retirement, Blue Jackets coach enjoying playoff-race pressure

Age has its privileges, something Rick Bowness is fondly enjoying in the overtime of his coaching career.

At 71 and by his count twice retired, Bowness hasn’t lost the urgency to win in his latest interim job coaching the Columbus Blue Jackets. What he has also instead is that he is freed from the anxieties and fear of losing with Columbus in the thick of a tight race for the Eastern Conference’s final playoff spots entering the last week of the season.

“I’m probably more relaxed now,” Bowness said on Thursday, before a 5-0 loss at Buffalo.

Relaxed is a word Bowness would not have previously contemplated using upon reflecting on the early days of a career that’s spanned five decades and eight teams, including both iterations of the Winnipeg Jets.

“At 41, you’re worried about your career. You’re worried about your next job and everything,” Bowness said.

“Well, I’m not, right? And I had the same thing in Dallas,” he added, referring to his previous stint as the Stars interim coach. “I’m not worried about extending my career. Man, I’m good. So we’re just going to enjoy every day we can.”

Call it bonus time. Or, perhaps, “Bowness Time.”

Lured out of retirement to breathe life into the under-performing Blue Jackets in January by replacing Dean Evason, Bowness had nothing to lose in trying to push Columbus back into contention.

Under Bowness, the Blue Jackets have gone 20-9-5 to jump from being tied for last in the East standings to sitting two points out of third in the Metropolitan Division with three games remaining. His upbeat approach hasn’t wavered amid the Blue Jackets’ sudden 2-7-1 skid.

Asked what it will take for forward Kirill Marchenko to regain his scoring touch, Bowness said: “I’d like to see him smile a little bit more, loosen up.”

And he focused solely on the positives following the loss to Buffalo in a game the Blue Jackets outshot the Sabres, 37-24.

“That second period was one of the best periods we played all year. And we came out of it with nothing to show for it,” he said, before looking ahead to the next game at Montreal. “If we play like that again on Saturday, we’ll be fine.”

The Blue Jackets have bought in, crediting Bowness for his experience, clear messaging and steady approach.

“He gives us confidence the way he backs us. And you want to play for a guy like that. And we want to do well for him, honestly,” forward Charlie Coyle said. “It’s what we needed and it’s what he brought. I don’t think it’s any fluke that we started playing well.”

Bowness was a journeyman player who split six NHL seasons across four teams before turning to coaching in a career that’s spanned North America, from an AHL stint in his hometown of Moncton, New Brunswick, to stops with the Islanders, Phoenix and Vancouver.

He was the first coach of the Ottawa Senators, a franchise that struggled in its infancy, and was fired following a three-plus-year tenure. Success didn’t help Bowness in his first and only season in Boston, where he oversaw an injury-depleted team that reached the 1992 East final, only to be fired and replaced by Brian Sutter.

His career numbers are relatively modest, with a regular-season record of 330-417-42 and 48 ties, and 28-31 in the playoffs.

Some of Bowness’ most memorable highlights came with Dallas during the pandemic-shortened 2019-20 season, upon taking over as interim coach after Jim Montgomery was fired for unprofessional conduct. The Stars finished fifth in the West but turned it on to reach the Stanley Cup Final before losing to Tampa Bay.

Bowness was rewarded by being hired as the Stars' full-time coach before stepping down after his two-year contract expired. He spent the next two seasons in Winnipeg before announcing his retirement, citing health and family reasons.

Bowness said he’s retired twice, though he didn’t specify the first time.

And yet, the chance for one more comeback was difficult to pass up when Columbus called.

“I just love it. That’s why I came back,” Bowness said in January. “The one thing I missed was the interaction with the players. I loved that part of coaching.”

He had the same answer in Buffalo this week, especially with Columbus in the playoff mix.

“I love being in these races. What better time of year to be playing,” Bowness said.

“There’s enough teams in our league that aren’t playing meaningful games, right? We are,” he added. “Every day in this league is a blessing.”

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Columbus Blue Jackets coach Rick Bowness, center top, looks on during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Winnipeg Jets in Columbus, Ohio, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Paul Vernon)

WOODLAND, Calif. (AP) — Five people have been charged with murder in a deadly Northern California explosion at a fireworks warehouse that killed seven people, authorities said.

Yolo County Deputy District Attorney Clara Nabity said Friday the charges stem from a grand jury indictment that found five people, including a former Yolo County Sheriff lieutenant, responsible for the explosion.

The deadly fireworks explosion near the small farming community of Esparto in Yolo County sparked a massive fire and led to nearby Fourth of July celebrations being called off.

Those charged with murder include Samuel Machado, who owned the warehouse about 40 miles (64 kilometers) northwest of Sacramento. At the time, he was a lieutenant with the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office.

Kenneth Chee, owner of Devastating Pyrotechnics, whose illegal fireworks were being stored at the warehouse, has also been charged with murder and was arrested in Florida. He appeared in a Florida courtroom Friday and was told he will be extradited to California within the week, KCRA-TV reported.

Authorities also arrested Jack Lee, the operations manager for Devastating Pyrotechnic, and Gary Chan Jr., whose name is on the company’s federal license, the television station reported. Both also face murder charges. The fifth person charged with murder is Douglas Tollefson, who has not yet been arrested. Tollefson's role in the explosion was not immediately known.

“This is not a case just about fireworks,” Yolo County Deputy District Attorney Clara Nabity said. “They are devices that have so much more explosive fireworks than the law allows that they can’t be considered fireworks.”

Nabity said a total of eight people face 30 charges in the case, including murder, conspiracy to commit a crime and possession of illegal assault weapons.

Machado, Chee, Lee, Chan were arrested Thursday along with Craig Cutright, the owner of Blackstar Fireworks, which operated at the Esparto property owned by Machado and his wife, was also among those arrested. Cutright, was a volunteer firefighter for the Esparto Fire District and was also listed as an employee of Devastating Pyrotechnics.

One of Cutright’s employees, Ronald Botelho III, has been in custody since December. More than a dozen new charges were filed against him Thursday, jail records show.

Machado's wife, Tammy Machado, also faces charges and was arrested Thursday but was released after posting bail. She was a non-sworn administrative employee at the Yolo County Sheriff's Office. Both Samuel and Tammy Machado were put on leave after the incident.

At the time of explosion, people living nearby described the blast being so strong that it blew open the doors of homes.

Nisa Gutierrez told the Sacramento CBS affiliate KOVR-TV that she and her daughter were in their yard and were nearly knocked over as their pony and goats scattered.

“We hear like a big boom, and feel the wave,” Gutierrez said. “I thought it was a bomb.”

After the explosion, officials in nearby Sutter and Yuba counties announced they would find alternatives for Fourth of July celebrations after their fireworks were destroyed in the blast.

Smoke and flames rise during a fireworks warehouse explosion near Esparto, Calif., Tuesday, July 1, 2025. (Kent Porter/The Press Democrat via AP, File)