Winnipeg Jets head coach Rick Bowness announced his retirement on Monday after spending the past two seasons behind the bench with the team.
His decision comes a week after the team's first-round exit against the Colorado Avalanche and just days Bowness was named as a finalist for the 2023-24 Jack Adams Award.
Coaching news out of Winnipeg this morning. It’s expected @NHLJets Head Coach Rick Bowness will announce his retirement today. Bowness has coached over 2600 games in the NHL and is a Jack Adams Award finalist for the first time. Great man. Great career.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) May 6, 2024
The Jets posted a 98-57-9 record over their past two seasons with Bowness as head coach. He oversaw a 15-point improvement this year that saw the team finish second in the Central Division with a 52-24-6 record.
Bowness has been behind an NHL bench for a record 2,726 games as either a head coach or assistant coach. He, along with Hall of Fame coaches Pat Quinn and Scotty Bowman are the only coaches with careers spanning five decades.
The 69-year-old got his first head coaching job with the first iteration of the Winnipeg Jets during the 1988-89 season and has a career 310-408-37 record with 48 ties split between both iterations of the Jets, Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, New York Islanders, Arizona Coyotes, and Dallas Stars.
Hockey won't be the same without you, Bones 💙 pic.twitter.com/7evocydmqK
— Winnipeg Jets (@NHLJets) May 6, 2024
Bowness took a leave of absence a couple of times last season. Bowness missed 13 games early in the season after his wife took ill and then missed five games in March after undergoing a medical procedure.
More details to follow.
