Rick Bowness had a minor medical procedure and was not on the bench for the Winnipeg Jets in their 4-2 win at the New York Rangers on Tuesday.
The 69-year-old coach returned to Winnipeg for treatment and will be back once his condition improves. Associate coach Scott Arniel is serving as coach while Bowness is out.
"I got a phone call the other night, two nights ago, with news on some issues," Arniel said Tuesday. "... [The doctors] know what it is. He's going to go home and get looked at. He might even be back at the end of the trip. We'll see how things work out. It's serious but it wasn't something that was going to be extended long term. We're just happy that [the doctors] found out what it is, and they'll get it looked after and get it worked on."
Bowness also was away from the team from Oct. 23-Nov. 22 after his wife, Judy, suffered a seizure Oct. 22. The Jets went 9-2-2 in his absence.
"We dealt with this earlier when Rick was away for an extended period of time with Judy, and I think it's important," Jets captain Adam Lowry said. "Family comes first and we all know that, and your health is so important, a major priority. We'll carry on.
"'Arnie' and the rest of the coaching staff have done a great job in his absence of getting us prepared, making sure our details are right and that the messaging stays the same. It's tough to lose the leader on the bench and in the room and everything, but we've got a great supporting staff with the coaches and the leadership group in this room. We're hopefully going to get off to a great start tonight and hopefully put Rick's mind at ease as he recovers."
Winnipeg (44-19-5), which has won the first two of a five-game road trip, is tied with the Colorado Avalanche for the Central Division lead, two points ahead of the Dallas Stars.
This is Bowness' second season as Jets coach after he spent the previous four seasons with the Stars, first as an associate and then as coach. He's 90-52-8 with Winnipeg.
Bowness has coached 788 NHL games over 14 seasons, going 301-403-36 with 48 ties. His coaching career began as an assistant with the Jets in 1983, and he's worked more games behind an NHL bench as a coach or assistant than anyone in League history.
"Our focus is just on the game and let Rick take care of himself and take care of his body and get back to being healthy," Jets forward Mark Scheifele said. "All we can do is focus on the game, play some good hockey and have him not stress about us too much. … His health comes first, so just make sure that he's all healthy, pray for him and hope that he comes back stronger than ever.
"We went through it this year already, so we know what to expect. We know what Arnie's like. He did a fantastic job then and it also comes from everyone. Just like when a guy goes down, we need the extra players to step up in his absence and just keep the thing going."
NHL.com staff writer Jon Lane contributed to this report
