| Birth date | August 22, 1964 (age 62) |
|---|---|
| Birth place | Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada |
| Height | 5 ft |
| Height in | 10 |
| Weight lb | 175 |
| Position | Centre |
| Shoots | Right |
| Played for | Washington Capitals Hartford Whalers San Jose Sharks Dallas Stars Calgary Flames EV Zug EV Landshut |
| League coach | NHL |
| Ntl team | CAN |
| Draft (1982) | 89th overall |
| Draft team | Washington Capitals |
| Career start | 1983 |
| Career end | 1999 |
| Career start coach | 1999 |
Dean Clement Evason (born August 22, 1964) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. He previously served as head coach of the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). Evason was selected by the Washington Capitals in the fifth round (89th overall) of the 1982 NHL entry draft. Evason was born in Flin Flon, Manitoba, but grew up in Brandon, Manitoba.
Playing career
Selected by the Capitals in the 1982 NHL entry draft, Evason played in the NHL from 1983 to 1996 for the Capitals, Hartford Whalers, San Jose Sharks, Dallas Stars, and Calgary Flames. He was most successful as a member of the Hartford Whalers, where he compiled career highs with the team with 87 goals and 165 assists for 261 points. Evason was a 20-goal scorer twice with Hartford and was well known for his ability to get the puck to other players for goals during difficult situations on the ice.
Evason also played in Switzerland, for the Canadian National Team, and in the German Hockey League before retiring as an active player. In 803 NHL games, playing primarily as a defensive-minded forward, he had 139 goals and 233 assists.
International play
Evason first played for Canada junior team at the 1984 World Junior Championships, while during a terrific campaign for the Kamloops Junior Oilers. His selection to the squad was somewhat of a surprise,[1] but he proved to be a productive player, recording six goals and three assists for nine points in seven games for the fourth-placed Canadian squad.[2] The Canadians narrowly missed out on a medal to the third-placed Czechoslovakia junior team, losing 6–4 in their match against them that decided the medals. It would be 13 additional years before Evason was again selected to represent his country.
His final opportunity occurred in 1997 when Canada senior team's coach Andy Murray offered him a spot on the roster and the captaincy in exchange for playing a full season for the national team, which was then together for 10 months per year.[1] Evason was the only non-NHL player on the Canadian roster during the 1997 World Championships that won their first World Championships in three years, beating Sweden in the final, scoring two goals and adding three assists during the tournament.[3]
Coaching career
Before joining the Capitals as an assistant coach, Evason spent many years in the Western Hockey League in various coaching capacities, starting in 1999 as an assistant with the Calgary Hitmen. He then became the head coach of the Kamloops Blazers from 1999 to 2002 and the Vancouver Giants from 2002 to 2004. He returned to the Hitmen for the 2004–05 season as a co-coach.
In 2005, he was hired by the Washington Capitals as an assistant coach. In 2012, he was hired by the Milwaukee Admirals as head coach, where he served for six seasons to become the team's second-winningest coach in their history. In 2018, he was hired by the Minnesota Wild as an assistant coach.[4] On February 14, 2020, Evason was named interim head coach of the Wild.[5]
On July 13, 2020, the Wild dropped the "interim" tag from Evason's title and named him the fifth full-time head coach in franchise history.[6] After parts of five seasons with the team, the Wild fired Evason on November 27, 2023, after a 5–10–4 start capped by a seven-game losing streak.[7][8]
On July 22, 2024, Evason was hired as head coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets, succeeding Pascal Vincent.[9] On January 12, 2026, Evason and assistant coach Steve McCarthy were fired by the Blue Jackets, with Evason replaced by Rick Bowness.[10][11]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1980–81 | Cowichan Valley Capitals | BCJHL | 50 | 20 | 51 | 71 | 39 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1980–81 | Spokane Flyers | WHL | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1981–82 | Spokane Flyers | WHL | 26 | 8 | 14 | 22 | 65 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1981–82 | Kamloops Junior Oilers | WHL | 44 | 21 | 55 | 76 | 47 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1982–83 | Kamloops Junior Oilers | WHL | 70 | 71 | 93 | 164 | 102 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 18 | ||
| 1983–84 | Kamloops Junior Oilers | WHL | 57 | 49 | 88 | 137 | 89 | 17 | 21 | 20 | 41 | 33 | ||
| 1983–84 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1984–85 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 15 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1984–85 | Hartford Whalers | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1984–85 | Binghamton Whalers | AHL | 65 | 27 | 49 | 76 | 38 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 9 | ||
| 1985–86 | Hartford Whalers | NHL | 55 | 20 | 28 | 48 | 65 | 10 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 10 | ||
| 1985–86 | Binghamton Whalers | AHL | 26 | 9 | 17 | 26 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1986–87 | Hartford Whalers | NHL | 80 | 22 | 37 | 59 | 67 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 35 | ||
| 1987–88 | Hartford Whalers | NHL | 77 | 10 | 18 | 28 | 115 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1988–89 | Hartford Whalers | NHL | 67 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 60 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 10 | ||
| 1989–90 | Hartford Whalers | NHL | 78 | 18 | 25 | 43 | 138 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 22 | ||
| 1990–91 | Hartford Whalers | NHL | 75 | 6 | 23 | 29 | 170 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 29 | ||
| 1991–92 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 74 | 11 | 15 | 26 | 99 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992–93 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 84 | 12 | 19 | 31 | 132 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1993–94 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 80 | 11 | 33 | 44 | 66 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 12 | ||
| 1994–95 | Dallas Stars | NHL | 47 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 48 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 12 | ||
| 1995–96 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 67 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 38 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1996–97 | EV Zug | NLA | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 1997–98 | EV Landshut | DEL | 42 | 8 | 22 | 30 | 38 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 18 | ||
| 1998–99 | EV Landshut | DEL | 45 | 13 | 25 | 38 | 76 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| NHL totals | 803 | 139 | 233 | 372 | 1,000 | 55 | 9 | 20 | 29 | 132 | ||||
Head coaching record
WHL
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | Finish | W | L | Win% | Result | ||
| KAM | 1999–00 | 72 | 36 | 30 | 5 | 1 | 78 | 4th in West | 0 | 4 | Lost in first round (SEA) | |
| KAM | 2000–01 | 72 | 35 | 28 | 7 | 2 | 79 | 3rd in West | 0 | 4 | Lost in first round (SPK) | |
| KAM | 2001–02 | 72 | 38 | 25 | 5 | 4 | 85 | 1st in B.C. | 0 | 4 | Lost in first round (KEL) | |
| VAN | 2002–03 | 72 | 39 | 27 | 5 | 1 | 84 | 2nd in B.C. | 2 | 4 | Lost in first round (KOO) | |
| VAN | 2003–04 | 72 | 34 | 28 | 8 | 2 | 78 | 3rd in B.C. | 1 | 4 | Lost in first round (VAN) | |
| CGY | 2004–05 | 72 | 34 | 23 | 9 | 6 | 83 | 3rd in Central | 7 | 4 | Lost in second round (BDN) | |
| Total | 432 | 216 | 161 | 39 | 16 | 487 | 10 | 24 | 6 playoff appearances | |||
AHL
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | OTL | SOL | Pts | Finish | W | L | Win% | Result | ||
| MIL | 2012–13 | 76 | 41 | 28 | 4 | 3 | 89 | 2nd in Midwest | 1 | 3 | Lost in first round (TEX) | |
| MIL | 2013–14 | 76 | 39 | 24 | 6 | 7 | 91 | 3rd in Midwest | 0 | 3 | Lost in first round (TOR) | |
| MIL | 2014–15 | 76 | 33 | 28 | 8 | 7 | 81 | 5th in Midwest | - | - | - | Did not qualify |
| MIL | 2015–16 | 76 | 48 | 23 | 3 | 2 | 101 | 1st in Central | 0 | 3 | Lost in first round (GR) | |
| MIL | 2016–17 | 76 | 43 | 26 | 4 | 3 | 95 | 3rd in Central | 0 | 3 | Lost in first round (GR) | |
| MIL | 2017–18 | 76 | 38 | 32 | 4 | 2 | 82 | 6th in Central | - | - | - | Did not qualify |
| Total | 456 | 242 | 161 | 29 | 24 | 539 | 1 | 12 | 4 playoff appearances | |||
NHL
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | OTL | Pts | Finish | W | L | Win% | Result | ||
| MIN | 2019–20 | 12* | 8 | 4 | 0 | (16) | 6th in Central | 1 | 3 | Lost in qualifying round (VAN) | |
| MIN | 2020–21 | 56 | 35 | 16 | 5 | 75 | 3rd in West | 3 | 4 | Lost in first round (VGK) | |
| MIN | 2021–22 | 82 | 53 | 22 | 7 | 113 | 2nd in Central | 2 | 4 | Lost in first round (STL) | |
| MIN | 2022–23 | 82 | 46 | 25 | 11 | 103 | 3rd in Central | 2 | 4 | Lost in first round (DAL) | |
| MIN | 2023–24 | 19 | 5 | 10 | 4 | (14) | (fired) | — | — | — | — |
| MIN total | 251 | 147 | 77 | 27 | 8 | 15 | 4 playoff appearances | ||||
| CBJ | 2024–25 | 82 | 40 | 33 | 9 | 89 | 4th in Metropolitan | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| CBJ | 2025–26 | 45 | 19 | 19 | 7 | (45) | (fired) | — | — | — | — |
| CBJ total | 127 | 59 | 52 | 16 | — | — | — | ||||
| Total | 378 | 206 | 129 | 43 | 8 | 15 | 4 playoff appearances | ||||
- Season shortened due to the COVID-19 pandemic during the 2019–20 season. Playoffs were played in August 2020 with a different format.
Awards and achievements
- WHL West First All-Star Team (1984)
- Honoured member of the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame
References
- ^ Joyce, Gare, ed. Hockey Canada: Thirty Years of Going for Gold at the World Juniors. Toronto ON: Penguin Group (Canada), 2011. 18-21. Print.
- ^ "Elite Prospects - WJC-20 Stats 1983-1984". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
- ^ "Elite Prospects - WC Stats 1996-1997". eliteprospects.com. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
- ^ "Dean Evason Hired by Minnesota Wild as Assistant Coach". OurSportsCentral.com. 6 June 2018.
- ^ "Wild names Dean Evason Interim Head Coach". NHL.com. February 14, 2020. Retrieved February 17, 2020.
- ^ "Wild names Dean Evason full-time head coach". NHL.com. July 13, 2020. Retrieved July 13, 2020.
- ^ "Head Coach Dean Evason and Assistant Coach Bob Woods Relieved of Duties". NHL.com. 2023-11-26. Retrieved 2023-11-27.
- ^ "Evason fired as Wild coach, no replacement named". NHL.com. November 27, 2023. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
- ^ "Evason hired as Blue Jackets coach, replaces Vincent". NHL.com. July 22, 2024. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
- ^ "Evason fired as Blue Jackets coach, replaced by Bowness". NHL.com. January 12, 2026. Retrieved January 12, 2026.
- ^ "Blue Jackets part ways with head coach Dean Evason, assistant coach Steve McCarthy, name Rick Bowness head coach". NHL.com. January 12, 2026. Retrieved January 12, 2026.