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Rick Bowness Named Stars New Long-Term Coach

Pierre LeBrun is reporting that the Dallas Stars and head coach Rick Bowness are finalizing terms of a new coaching deal.

Update:

The deal is now finalized and Bowness has been named the new full-time coach of the Dallas Stars. They announced the signing on their social media pages and official site and Bowness said of the deal, “This team is very special for me. That time in Edmonton was unlike any I ever had in hockey, and it brought us together as a staff and a team.” He added, “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.”

Related: Dallas Stars Draw Attention With New ‘Blackout’ Jerseys

Pierre LeBrun is reporting that the Dallas Stars and head coach Rick Bowness are finalizing terms of a deal that will see Bowness stay with the Stars organization and have his interim/associated coaching tag removed and replaced with a head coach tag and salary to go with it.

Related: Too Good to Be Too Old: Stars Rick Bowness Won’t Be Interim Long

There was a lot of talk as the NHL Playoffs were winding down that the Stars were ready to officially give the reigns to Bowness. He did a wonderful job getting the Stars to the Finals and GM Jim Nill was hoping Bowness would agree to stick around. That said, there was some concern Bowness might not opt to do so and that age, circumstances and salary would be a consideration.

As per LeBrun’s report on TSN Insider Trading Thursday, things have been worked out and the deal would be a long-term one. Terms and financials were not disclosed but talk is the deal will place Bowness somewhere in the middle of the pack as far as NHL coaching salaries go.

This is a reward well earned for Bowness. He was coaching under his old associate contract last season when he replaced Jim Montgomery. This is likely the last contract he’ll sign at his age.

Bowness Proved He’s Earned The Job

In less-than ideal circumstances, Bowness was forced to take the team and turn them into contenders. He took over as the Stars head coach early in December and the team played well, but it wasn’t necessarily expected they’d go all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Had he not wanted to stick around, no one would have faulted him. But, he did a lot of great work to simply walk away. It was speculated he would take the job, so this news shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone.

Next: Stars Sign Denis Gurianov to a 2-Year Contract Worth $5.1 Million

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