BIDDEFORD — Rick Kowalsky and his wife Debbie visited Portland in late August, just a few days after he was named the new head coach and general manager of the Maine Mariners. As a player, Kowalsky spent parts of three seasons playing for the Portland Pirates. He knows the city, but this was the first time he’d seen the changes that have occurred since he last played in Portland in 1999.
All the hotels on the edges of the Old Port are new to him, as are many restaurants. There are new signs over familiar storefronts. Can you believe how big those cruise ship are?
“We could not believe how busy it was,” Kowalsky said after Tuesday morning’s Mariners practice at the University of New England’s Alfond Forum.
There will be time to explore the new and old sights of Portland later. The Mariners began training camp Sunday. Kowalsky has a hockey team to build.
That’s was one of the attractions of the job, which opened when former coach/GM Terrence Wallin moved on to take an assistant coach job with the Allentown Phantoms of the AHL. Kowalsky has been a full-time coach since the 2005-06 season, when he was an assistant with the AHL’s Norfolk Admirals.
Kowalsky was a head coach in the ECHL for four seasons with the Trenton Titans before moving up to the AHL in 2010 as head coach of the Albany Devils, New Jersey’s top affiliate. He spent three seasons as an assistant coach in New Jersey before four seasons with the Bridgeport Islanders, the New York Islanders’ AHL team, the last two as head coach.
Kowalsky embraces the GM aspects of his new job. He has a good relationship with Providence Bruins head coach Ryan Mougenel and assistant coach Trent Whitfield, having played with both, and looks forward to developing players that could make the jump up to Providence. Signing players, talking to agents, even finding housing for Mariners, it’s all part of the gig and he’s enjoying it.
“There’s a lot more phone time than I’ve had the last five or six years,” he said.
Coaching is still the crux of the job, though. Once he signs the players, he has to help them become better. Forward Wyllum Deveaux is entering his second full season with the Mariners, and he likes what he’s seen so far.
“I thought the first three practices were intense. Very detail-oriented, and the execution’s gotten better every day,” Deveaux said. “He’s been in the NHL. He’s been in the AHL. He knows what it takes. That’s who you want to learn from. You want to listen to him and soak in as much as you can.”
Kowalsky’s playing career lasted 12 seasons, with 10 at least partly in the ECHL. He’s in the league’s hall of fame. He hasn’t been in the league as a coach in 15 years, but he knows the ECHL has become stronger since he was last involved.
“I think it’s better from a skills standpoint. You look at some of the affiliated players we have coming in. We have a former first-round draft pick,” he said, referring to Mariner forward Jacob Perreault, selected 27th overall in 2020 by the Anaheim Ducks.
Minor league coaches need to strike a balance. On one hand, they need to develop players who can succeed at the next level. On the other hand, they need to win games, too. Kowalsky said in Bridgeport, the lack of depth in the Islanders organization meant he was doing more developing and less winning.
“I do think when it’s done right, they go hand in hand. It’s a lot easier to come to the rink when you’re winning games and having fun,” he said.
Kowalsky is working with Brad Staubitz, the Mariners director of hockey operations, to develop small group skill development workouts rather than the typical cycle of practice, game, practice. Some of the Mariners are looking to advance to the AHL for the first time, and some are looking to get back. Kowalsky said it’s his job to make sure each realizes, no matter where you are in your career, if you put in the work and improve, the opportunity is there.
The regular season begins Oct. 18 in Worcester, with the home opener the following day against Reading. Kowalsky hopes to find time to explore the area a little more. He already went by his old apartment in Scarborough, and was happy to see it was still there.
Portland has changed a lot since Kowalsky was last here. The game that brings him back, that’s the same.
