NHL: Winnipeg Jets coach Rick Bowness has retired

WINNIPEG –

Rick Bowness walked off the ice after the Winnipeg Jets' final loss of the season, which eliminated them from the playoffs, unhappy with his performance and his team's performance and knowing it would be his last NHL game as coach.

“The coaches always told me … they always said you know when it's time,” Bowness said. “That's when it hit me: It's time.”

Bowness announced his retirement Monday after 38 NHL seasons, a distinguished career that included leading the Dallas Stars to the 2020 Stanley Cup Final and spending more time on the bench than anyone else in league history.

“When I'm gone, I just want to be remembered,” Bowness told reporters at a news conference in Winnipeg, fighting back tears. “I love the game, I respect the game. I love this league. I respect the league.”

Health issues for himself and his wife, Judy, played a major role in his decision, which came after a five-game losing streak to Colorado. In the end, Bowness did well enough the rest of the season to become a finalist for the Jack Adams Award as coach of the year for leading the Jets to a franchise-record 52 wins and their second straight postseason appearance. so many seasons at work.

Bowness had planned to retire in the summer of 2022 until Winnipeg general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff called to convince him to take another shot at winning the Stanley Cup. He didn't immediately return the call, but eventually decided to give it a go.

“We asked them to put their lives on hold to come to Winnipeg to help give this group another voice, another path, a stronger structure,” Cheveldyeff said. “I really wanted to come and thank Rick for the two years he's given us here.”

“We asked them to put their lives on hold to come to Winnipeg to help give this group another voice, another path, a stronger structure,” Cheveldyeff said. “I really wanted to come and thank Rick for the two years he's given us here.”

Bowness, 69, was the oldest head coach in the league. His retirement speech brought many well-wishes from people who have known him around the game for decades.

“Today I'm hearing from guys that I played with, it's a long time ago and from all over the world – just people you've coached,” Bowness said. “They're over in Europe, and I'm getting a letter from them. It's friendship and the people you meet.”

The Moncton, New Brunswick native has worked 2,726 games as a coach in some capacity, the vast majority of which has been as an assistant since 1984 in multiple roles. He is one of three Scotties Hall of Famers to coach in five decades. Bowman and Pat Quinn.

“A lifetime in hockey and well-respected by all his coaching peers, he also influenced the players in their careers, especially the younger defensemen in the league,” said Peter DeBoer, who replaced Bowness as the Stars' coach. “It's a who's who of the last 20 years. A great career, I feel lucky to have coached against him, I want him to retire and congratulate him on a great run.”

It was not immediately clear whether associate coach Scott Arniel, who has played several games this season in Bowness' absence for personal reasons, is being considered as a potential successor.

It happened several times to Bowness, who was a midseason trade for the original Winnipeg Jets, New York Islanders, Phoenix Coyotes and then the Stars in late 2019. He also coached the Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators and was a longtime assistant. The Vancouver Canucks and Tampa Bay Lightning have had long playoff runs.

The closest Bowness came to the Cup was Game 7 of the 2011 Finals against Vancouver under Alain Vigneault. As head coach, his Dallas team fell two wins short of the Cup against Tampa Bay in 2020 while playing on the bubble in Edmonton.

“It's not about winning a Stanley Cup: that's always been important, but as you get older, you hope to influence your players' lives on the ice, off the ice, and that's become more important to me the last 10 games. year,” Bowness said. “I've had a couple of Stanley Cup runs and things happen out of your control with injuries and everything, and then you lose the Cup and, well, it's all out of your control. What's under your control on a daily basis is the impact your players have on and off the ice.”