COLUMBUS, Ohio -- General manager Doug MacLean wanted to see more progress in the Columbus Blue Jackets' third season. So he fired coach Dave King and gave himself the job Tuesday.

At 14-20-4-2, the Blue Jackets have the second-worst record in the Western Conference, just a point ahead of Nashville.

"Dave was certainly preaching the right things. There just wasn't a consistent performance,'' said MacLean, also the team's president. "I was extremely patient the last 2½ years.''

King, who came to Columbus after three seasons as an assistant with the Montreal Canadiens, leaves with a 64-106-21-13 record as the franchise's only head coach. He is the fifth NHL head coach to be fired since Dec. 1.

MacLean will be the interim coach for the rest of the season, giving him a chance to evaluate players from behind the bench rather than a luxury suite. He plans to hire a permanent replacement during the offseason.

"I was frustrated by the inconsistencies, good stretches, bad stretches and tremendous letdowns at times,'' MacLean said after leading practice Tuesday.

He has spent 17 years in coaching and front-office jobs with five NHL teams. Before joining Columbus, MacLean went 83-71-33 as coach of the Florida Panthers, leading the team to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1996.

After finishing with 71 points as an expansion team in 2000-01, Columbus stumbled to 57 points last season, fewest in the Western Conference.

The Blue Jackets have lost six of their last nine games, including 5-1 to Nashville on Monday night. Hours later, MacLean and owner John McConnell decided to fire King.

Players took the blame for the decision to dismiss King, who was in the final year of a three-year contract.

"He taught us everything. We just didn't get the job done for him,'' forward Jody Shelley said. "It's a business, and we've got to win to keep people's jobs.''

After acquiring a young scoring threat in Rick Nash and signing three veterans -- defensemen Scott Lachance and Luke Richardson and center Andrew Cassels -- MacLean thought the playoffs were possible.

"It's a shame the coach has to take the penalty for our mistakes,'' said Nash, the top pick in this year's draft.

King blamed the team's inconsistency on its lack of depth. Injuries also were a problem. Centers Espen Knutsen, Tyler Wright and Andrew Cassels all missed time.

"Behind the bench, sometimes you just look down and say, 'Gee, I wish we had another player or two who could make a difference,''' King said.

After going 7-5-1-1 for the franchise's best-ever start, the Blue Jackets went 7-15-3-1 since Nov. 12.

King had more success in his previous NHL coaching job, going 109-76-31 and winning two division titles with the Calgary Flames from 1992-95. But he was fired after Calgary lost in the first round of the playoffs for the third straight year.