Former WHL head coach Dave Lowry joins Paul Maurice’s staff in Winnipeg

WINNIPEG — The Winnipeg Jets have hired Dave Lowry as an assistant coach.

The 55-year-old from Sudbury, Ont., joins the Jets after spending the 2019-20 season as head coach of the Western Hockey League’s Brandon Wheat Kings. 

He led the club to a 35-22-6 record and the Wheat Kings had clinched a playoff berth before the season ended March 18 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Lowry most recently worked in the NHL as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Kings from 2017-19. Previously, we was an assistant coach in Calgary from 2009-12.

Lowry has also been a head coach of Calgary and Victoria in the WHL.

Lowry’s son Adam is a forward with the Jets, whose 2019-20 season came to an end after a 3-1 loss to Calgary in a playoff qualifying series in Edmonton.

Dave Lowry won a gold medal as an assistant coach for Canada at the 2015 world junior championship before serving as head coach for in 2016, when the Canadians lost to Finland in the quarterfinals. 

He also served as an assistant coach for the WHL all-stars in the CHL Canada/Russia Series in 2012-13 and the head coach for their entries in 2014-15 and 2015-16.

As a player, Lowry was drafted by the Canucks in the sixth round (110th overall) in the 1983 NHL draft and went on to play 19 seasons for Vancouver, St. Louis, Florida, San Jose, and Calgary. He recorded 351 points (164 goals, 187 assists) and 1,191 penalty minutes over 1,084 career regular-season games.

“Dave brings a tremendous amount of experience to our coaching staff in a variety of different areas,” Jets head coach Paul Maurice said in a release. “His success working with young players in their development can’t be denied as he had an excellent season last year in Brandon and has coached the country’s top junior players. He has worked in all aspects of special teams during his time as an NHL assistant coach. 

“We’re very excited to bring Dave on board and join our staff.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 23, 2020.

The Canadian Press