Stars officially name Rick Bowness as head coach

The Dallas Stars have officially named Rick Bowness as the team’s head coach, a decision that was expected after Bowness led the Stars to the Stanley Cup Final.

With the interim tag removed, Bowness becomes the 24th head coach in franchise history and ninth with the Stars.

“The Stars are very excited to officially announce Rick as the team’s head coach,” Stars general manager Jim Nill said in a team release. “After being called upon in a difficult situation, Rick stepped into the interim head coaching role seamlessly and used his unmatched experience to lead the team to a successful second half of the season and a spot in the Stanley Cup Final.

“Watching the team throughout our playoff experience, you really saw the team become his. His ability to connect with our players and our staff is remarkable, and it leads to a situation where everyone is competing for him because they want to see him win.”

Bowness was named interim head coach in December after the team dismissed Jim Montgomery, and then coached Dallas to a 20-13-5 record in 38 regular-season games before leading the Stars on their run to the Stanley Cup Final.

“This team is very special for me, that time in Edmonton was unlike any experience I have ever had in hockey, and it brought us together as a staff and as a team,” Bowness said. “We had a great run to the Stanley Cup Final, but we have some unfinished business left and we’re looking forward to the opportunity to build on what we started.”

Before joining the Stars, Bowness was an associate coach in Tampa with the Lightning for five seasons. In addition to his time in Dallas, the Moncton, N.B., native has been a head coach with the Winnipeg Jets, Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, New York Islanders and Phoenix Coyotes, and has a 143-302-48-8 record in 501 career regular-season games.

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