It’s Thanksgiving weekend in the United States, and the Winnipeg Jets have much to be thankful for with the return of their beloved head coach Rick Bowness following an almost five-week leave of absence.
The man known affectionately as “Bones” will be back behind the bench for Friday night’s road game at Amerant Bank Arena when the Jets take on former head coach Paul Maurice and the Florida Panthers. A team spokesperson has confirmed Bowness is returning on a permanent basis.
Bowness officially began his leave on Oct. 23 after his wife Judy had a seizure the evening before. She was hospitalized for a few days prior to returning home to undergo further evaluation and testing.
During Bowness’s absence, associate coach Scott Arniel guided the Jets to a 9-2-2 record, good for third place in the highly competitive NHL Central Division.
Arniel also served as an interim head coach for the first nine games of the 2022-23 season when Bowness was sidelined with COVID-19, leading the Jets to a 5-3-1 mark.
Winnipeg goes into Friday’s game versus Florida on a season-high four-game winning streak, and is 7-2 during the month of November.
680 CJOB’s coverage begins at 5 p.m. CT with the pregame show, followed by the play-by-play with Paul Edmonds and Mitchell Clinton at 7 p.m. CT