Winnipeg Jets head coach Rick Bowness announces retirement

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Winnipeg Jets head coach Rick Bowness announced his retirement Monday after nearly 40 years in hockey.

Bowness’ first NHL head coaching job was with the original Jets franchise as a mid-season replacement during the 1988-89 season. He has also served as the head coach with the Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, New York Islanders, Phoenix Coyotes and Dallas Stars plus assistant or associate roles with the Jets, Islanders, Coyotes, Vancouver Canucks, Tampa Bay Lightning and Stars.

His 2,726 games as a coach are the most by anyone in league history while his 309 wins as a head coach ranks him 54th all-time.

The 69-year-old Bowness was named a finalist for the Jack Adams Trophy for the first time this year after guiding the Jets to a 52-24-6 record during the regular season and finishing second in the Central Division and Western Conference with 110 points.

Bowness took a leave of absence from the team in October and was away for 11 games when his wife had a seizure. He also missed four games in March after undergoing a minor medical procedure.

The Jets were eliminated by the Colorado Avalanche in five games during the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Winnipeg won 7-6 during a wild Game 1 then lost four straight capped with a 6-3 defeat at home in Game 5.

He coached in the All-Star Game for the first time this year serving as the bench boss for Team MacKinnon.

Winnipeg was also eliminated during the first round last year falling in five games to the eventual Stanley Cup winners, the Vegas Golden Knights.

Bowness posted a 98-57-9 regular-season record over his two seasons with the Jets.

He had a mutual option on the third year of his contract he signed when he joined the team on July 3, 2022.

His career on the bench began as a player/coach with the Sherbrooke Jets of the American Hockey League for the 1982-83 season. After retiring as a player, Bowness was named an assistant coach for the Winnipeg Jets in 1984.