This day in history: Detroit Red Wings coach Scotty Bowman wins 1,000th game in 1997
(CBS DETROIT) - On Feb. 8, 1997, Detroit Red Wings coach Scotty Bowman won his 1,000th regular-season game.
Bowman, 89, is a former head coach in the National Hockey League (NHL).
He coached minor league teams until 1997, when he started coaching the St. Louis Blues, an NHL expansion team. Bowman led this team to three Stanley Cup finals before moving on to coach the Montreal Canadiens in 1971.
According to Britannica, he led the Montreal Canadiens to five championships.
Bowman left the NHL for a while, and from 1979 to 1987, he was a television commentator for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's "Hockey Night in Canada."
In 1990 he was the director of player development for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Bowman helped lead the Penguins to win the championship in 1991 and did so again in 1992 when he took over responsibilities when the team's coach got sick.
He became the coach for the Detroit Red Wings in 1993. During his time coaching the Red Wings the team he had many accomplishments, including:
- Led the team to the Stanley Cup finals in 1995
- Set NHL record for most wins in a season (1995 to 1996 season)
- Broke Al Arbour's record for games coached (1,606 in the 1995 to 1996 season)
- Guided the Red Wings to win their first Stanley Cup championship in 42 years in 1997. He also became the first coach to win the Stanley Cup working with three different teams.
- Broke Hector Blake's record of eight Stanley Cup wins in 2002.
In addition to these accomplishments, Bowman won his 1,000th regular-season game, setting a new record in 1997.
Bowman retired at the end of the season in 2022.