‘It really hit me hard’ Bowness back on the bench, still recovering from bout with COVID By: Mike McIntyre Posted: 2:04 PM CDT Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 Last Modified: 3:40 PM CDT Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 Updates

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This article was published 22/10/2022 (1395 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Rick Bowness has faced plenty of tough opponents in his professional hockey career, which is closing in on a half-century. But the new head coach of the Winnipeg Jets says COVID-19 proved to be quite the stubborn foe during a week-long battle.

“It really hit me hard,” the 67-year-old said following Saturday’s morning skate at Canada Life Centre, ahead of his delayed debut behind the bench that would come a few hours later against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The symptoms have now subsided, so he’s finally got the green light to go back to work even if he admits to still not feeling 100 per cent.

“Weak. I don’t think I’d win too many fights right now,” Bowness said with a chuckle.

Winnipeg went 2-2-0 in the four games during his absence, with associate coach Scott Arniel and the rest of the staff taking on increased responsibilities.

“Very disappointing and very frustrating to sit at home and watch the games,” said Bowness, who used technology to stay in touch, including Zoom-ing into several meetings.

“Those guys did a wonderful job preparing the team. As you know, all our meetings, our coaches have involvement in everything we do. We are all involved. So as disappointing as it was to miss the games, I knew the team was in excellent hands.”

The first sign of trouble came on Oct. 12, just after the Jets had returned from a few days in Banff where their training camp came to a close.

“That’s when I knew, OK, we’re in a little bit of trouble here. I did three of them, they were all positive, so we knew we weren’t going too far. Those were a couple rough days.”–Rick Bowness

“I wasn’t feeling well,” said Bowness. When things got worse, not better, over the next 36 hours, a home test following the morning skate on Oct. 14 delivered some bad news,

“That’s when I knew, OK, we’re in a little bit of trouble here. I did three of them, they were all positive, so we knew we weren’t going too far. Those were a couple rough days,” said Bowness.

He watched on TV as the Jets downed the New York Rangers 4-1 that night, then didn’t join his group on the charter as they embarked on a three-game road trip which began in Dallas, the city that had been his hockey home for the past several years.

“You always want to go back into the old team, see everybody. But the game is the most important thing. Once the puck drops, I missed that. More than going back to Dallas. More than going back anywhere,” said Bowness. “When the puck drops and you’re behind the bench, there’s no better feeling.”

He had hoped to jump on a plane last Wednesday and join them in Denver for the rest of the trip, but COVID threw him one more curveball

“Woke up Wednesday morning and temperature was 102 and sweaty. It was unreal, from when I went to bed to when I woke up early in the morning. I knew then we weren’t going too far,” said Bowness.

“I went (back) to bed at nine in the morning and slept right through until one. It was unreal. I never sleep during the day. I don’t sleep four hours at night. So it was unreal, I woke up and was like ‘Wow.’”

Bowness finally started feeling better on Friday, going for a short walk.

“Give the players credit as well. They battled hard. I know we’re 2-2, but we’ve been in every game. They did fine.”–Rick Bowness

“That was the first time out of the apartment in a week and it felt good,” he said. “So right now, no symptoms, it’s over 10 days (since symptoms began) so I’m not contagious, I know I’m not spreading anything so we’re all good.”

Like anyone watching the Jets so far, Bowness saw a mix of good and bad.

“Give the players credit as well. They battled hard. I know we’re 2-2, but we’ve been in every game. They did fine,” he said.

“We have to cut down our chances against. When we are on our game, we’re not giving up those chances. That’s the consistency we’re looking for. We’re getting… there have been a lot of good things in every game but, and listen, the other team is out there too and they’re trying to win and they’re a really good team. They didn’t control us for 60 minutes and we didn’t control them for 60 minutes.”

Jets alternate captain Adam Lowry said it’s great to see Bowness on his feet and at the rink again.

“We’re happy he’s healthy and he’s back. We certainly missed him on the road, he’s a calming influence in the room. We’re certainly excited to have him back,” said Lowry.

“I think the coaching staff did a great job kind of taking over the various roles. It was as seamless a transition as possible without Rick there. It definitely helped. A credit to those guys, they put in a little extra work and took over those roles.”

Bowness is now excited to get back into the groove, saying it’s a much different experience at ice-level compared to what he’s seen of his team so far.

“The game looks very easy on television, and very easy looking up above. It’s very different on the bench and you’ve got to trust your instincts on the bench.”–Rick Bowness

“The game looks very easy on television, and very easy looking up above. It’s very different on the bench and you’ve got to trust your instincts on the bench,” he said.

What better way to debut, at least for the 2.0 edition of the Jets, then a Hockey Night In Canada date with Toronto on national television.

“Listen, all four games have been very, very tough. Great teams and Toronto is a great team. And we’ve got St. Louis coming in Monday, not that we’re looking ahead,” said Bowness.

“It’s a tough, tough schedule and (Saturday’s) game is going to be very, very tough. We know that. We’re just coming off four tough teams and we want to be in that conversation with the teams that are elite teams like that and are considered to be Stanley Cup contenders. If we want to be in that conversation, then we’ve got to find some ways to win some of these games.”

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg

Mike McIntyre
Reporter

Mike McIntyre is a sports reporter whose primary role is covering the Winnipeg Jets. After graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College in 1995, he spent two years gaining experience at the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 1997, where he served on the crime and justice beat until 2016. Read more about Mike.

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