Lowry gets nod as Royals coach

[pontcanna]

Lowry expected to get nod as Royals coach

Former NHLER led Calgary Hitmen to WHL final in 2008-09

The Victoria Royals will put into place the final piece of their on-ice management team this morning when the Western Hockey League club announces its new head coach.

The Times Colonist has learned former NHLer Dave Lowry is the new bench boss.
Lowry did not return calls Wednesday evening but was said to be en route to the B.C. capital.

Royals GM Cam Hope interviewed several people for the open head-coaching position, including Lowry and other former WHL coaches Mark Holick, Kris Knoblauch and Cory Clouston.

“I have no comment,” said former Brandon Wheat Kings coach Clouston, when reached Wednesday.

In an interview earlier this summer, Lowry expressed qualified interest in the Royals’ coaching vacancy. His son and 2011 NHL draft pick, Joel Lowry, played two seasons for the Victoria Grizzlies of the B.C. Hockey League.

Lowry was assistant coach of the NHL Calgary Flames before being let go at the end of last season. He played in the NHL from 1985 to 2004 and has one season of WHL head coaching experience in taking the 2008-09 Calgary Hitmen to a torrid 59-9-4 record and the league final.

Hope, the former New York Rangers assistant general manager who was named Royals GM on July 6, would not confirm the name of the new head coach.

“I interviewed extensively, either face-to-face or by phone, more than 10 people,” said Hope. “There were so many good candidates and we spent a lot of hours on this. We wanted to make sure this would be our right guy.”

Marc Habscheid vacated the Royals head coaching and GM positions on June 22, saying he would pursue non-hockey opportunities with the company that owns the Royals.

The 44-year-old Holick was in the pro ranks the last two seasons as assistant coach of the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League, which this summer switched its NHL affiliation from Anaheim to Tampa Bay.

With that comes a new broom as Rob Zettler was hired this week as assistant coach of the Crunch. In the three seasons previous to his Syracuse stint, head-coach Holick guided the Kootenay Ice of the WHL to an overall 120-75-21, including 43-24-5 in 2009-10 which earned him the Dunc McCallum Award as WHL coach of the year.

Island fans would better recall Holick as a visiting coach from this BCHL seasons behind the bench with the Vernon Vipers in 2006-07, South Surrey Eagles from 1996 to 2002 where he won the Royal Bank Cup Canadian Junior A title in 1998, Langley in 1995-96 and hometown Penticton in 1994-95.

Knoblauch was let go following last season as head coach of the Kootenay Ice after leading them to the 2011 WHL title.

Former ECHL Victoria Salmon Kings head coach and GM Mark Morrison, now assistant coach of the Winnipeg Jets' AHL affiliate, said earlier he is content in St. John’s.

[Ott]

So much for all the reports it was going to be Clouston. I'm thinking Clouston is done for a while as a coach. Kinda sad he seemed to have a promise future wonder where he went wrong or did his own stubborness and attitude do him in. Good luck to Lowery.

[CdnSailor]

Will be interesting to see how he can make minors play from professional coaching.
Big way of changing the mindset from where he has been for the last 7+ years. Calgary Hitmen then Calgary Flames.

[pontcanna]

Lowry brings 'entire package'

BY CLEVE DHEENSAW, TIMESCOLONIST.COM JULY 19, 2012 10:11 PM

Former NHLer Dave Lowry’s well-travelled hockey life comes to the Island.

“I like an up-tempo game but obviously will have to assess the personnel to see what style of play is conducive to us winning,” said Lowry, upon being named new head coach of the Western Hockey League’s Victoria Royals on Thursday.

He’s certainly got a line item on his resumé to back up the first part of that statement. The previous, and only time, Lowry was a head coach in the WHL, his 2008-09 Calgary Hitmen went 59-9-4, scored 330 goals and made the league final.

Lowry was assistant coach of the NHL’s Calgary Flames the past three years — accumulating a 118-90-38 record under Flames head coach Brent Sutter — before being let go at the end of last season as the Flames swept their bench clean.

The 47-year-old former role forward played in the NHL from 1985 to 2004 with 1,084 games clocked with the Canucks, Blues, Panthers, Sharks and Flames and 164 goals scored and 351 points accumulated. He played in 111 playoff games and two Stanley Cup finals in 1996 with the Panthers and 2004 with the Flames.

Lowry replaces Marc Habscheid, who was head coach and GM of the Royals last season before departing for a non-hockey role with the company that owns the club. Lowry said a key for him accepting the Victoria position is that the GM and head coaching positions will be separated, allowing him to concentrate on bench affairs while newly-minted Royals GM Cam Hope takes care of the managing.

“The concern I had was it would be one position or the two positions [head coach and GM] together,” said Lowry.

“Too much gets missed when those positions are combined. When told it would be two separate positions, that piqued my interest because I have no interest in doing the GM part of it. My strength is coaching and that’s what I wanted to do. It was a quick call and a quick process. It’s obviously going to be a whirlwind here the next couple of weeks but I’m excited and looking forward to it.”

Hope, the former New York Rangers assistant general manager who was named Royals GM on July 6, went outside his circle in hiring his head coach.

“I didn’t know [Lowry] at all,” he said.

“There were a lot of very qualified guys available and it was not any one thing [that sold Hope on Lowry] but the entire package. He’s a former NHLer and did a great job with that Calgary Hitmen team. That only happens when the coach knows what he is doing.”

Lowry recalled that blockbuster 2008-09 Hitmen campaign as one that wasn’t pre-ordained.

“It was actually supposed to be a rebuilding year because we had lost a lot of good players the season before,” he said, about a group that he knew well as Hitmen assistant coach from 2005 under Kelly Kisio.

“But when you establish good leadership and a good culture, the rest takes care of itself.”

About stepping down from the NHL Flames to the junior ranks, Lowry said: “The game is the same. The only difference is the pay scale.”

But junior allows more opportunity to impact lives, he said. After all, only about five per cent of juniors will go on to the NHL. That makes life lessons as crucial as hockey lessons.

“As coach, you leave an impression with these guys [juniors],” said Lowry.

“I’m very dialled in [to junior]. A lot of it is life skills and parent skills.”

Lowry has experienced it up close and personal — son and 2011 NHL draft pick, Joel Lowry, played two seasons for the Victoria Grizzlies of the B.C. Hockey League and has completed his freshman season at Cornell in the NCAA, while older son Adam Lowry is also an NHL draft pick who plays for Swift Current of the WHL. The Broncos will visit Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre on Dec. 8.

The Royals, who were seventh in the Western Conference last season, open training camp Aug. 23 and play their first exhibition game Aug. 30.