The Winnipeg Jets on Sunday appointed Rick Bones as the eighth head coach in franchise history.
He became the third head coach of the Jets after moving the franchise from Atlanta in 2011.
“We are excited to appoint Rick Bones as the third head coach of Jets 2.0,” Jets General Manager Kevin Sheveldoff said in a statement. “Rick has brought a lot of experience and knowledge to the NHL coaching ranks and as a player and coach in the city of Winnipeg. Rick has a smart hockey mind and a good man and we are confident he will lead this team. New heights. “
Bones, 67, began his coaching career with the Jets, playing 28 games on the bench to close the 1988-89 season. The former right winger ended his NHL career with Winnipeg in the 1982 playoffs.
“I’m very excited to be back in Winnipeg,” Bones said in a statement. “I appreciate the opportunity given to me by Kevin Sheveldoff, Mark Chipman and the ownership group. We have an exciting group of talented young players with the Jets. So now my focus is on what to do to get back right away.
Bones has coached the Dallas Stars for most of the last three NHL seasons. He led them to the 2020 Stanley Cup Final in the playoff bubble in Edmonton, where the Stars lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning. In the first round of the playoffs this year, the Stars lost to Calgary in Game 7 overtime.
Despite not having a bonus deal this season, he said he was “moving away from the stars to give the organization a chance to move in a different direction as head coach.”
The Stars hired Pete Deborah to replace Bones last month.
Dave Lowry took over as Winnipeg’s interim head coach last season after current Florida coach Paul Morris stepped down in December. The Jets lost the playoffs, completing 39-32-11.
Bones has been on the NHL bench for a record 2,562 regular-season games as head coach or assistant for nearly four decades. Along with Winnipeg (1989), he has coached Boston (1991-92), Ottawa (1992-96), New York Islanders (1996-98), Phoenix (2004) and Dallas (2019-22). He was also an assistant in Vancouver and Tampa Bay.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.