Rick Bowness was brought in by the Winnipeg Jets two seasons ago to change the culture within the locker room, and to implement a defensive structure that others around the league would take note of. In a very short time, he completed those goals and left a lasting impact on the Jets organization.
Bowness officially announced his retirement on Monday, May 6, wrapping up a stellar 38-year career as a coach in the NHL. Bowness’ impact on hockey will be dearly missed, but even more so, he will be remembered for the respect he has earned league-wide for being an incredible human being and giving his respect to others.
Rick Bowness Announces Retirement After 38 Seasons Coaching
Bowness’ 2,726 games coached are the most in NHL history, 802 of which he was the head coach for his teams. He was the head coach for the Jets, Dallas Stars, New York Islanders, Ottawa Senators, Boston Bruins, and Arizona Coyotes over the span of his 38-year career as coach. In his press conference, he mentioned how important his relationships with his players were to him as he reached the later stages of his career.
“I just loved the game,” Bowness said while fighting back tears during his press conference. “Right? And I respected the game. I love this league, I respect the league. I hope over my career, it’s not about winning the Stanley Cup, that’s always been important, but over the years, as you age, you hope you have an impact on your player’s lives. Off the ice, on the ice, and that’s been more important to me over the last 10 years.”
A big part of changing that culture was the decision to strip Blake Wheeler of the captaincy and go without a captain for a season, before handing the ‘C’ to Adam Lowry. Lowry was in attendance for Bowness’ retirement press conference, and shared the respect he had for his head coach of the past two seasons.
“Most games coached, ever,” Lowry said on Bowness’ career. “You talk about someone who left better than when he came in, I think Rick really embodies that.”
Related: Jets Head Coach Rick Bowness Announces Retirement
Lowry also took the time to explain how often Bowness checks in on him and the players throughout the room, and expressed the importance of having a coach who consistently shows that they care. Bowness mentioned this as being something that was within his control as a head coach, and it’s something he took great pride…
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