Joseph Douglas Kowal (February 3, 1956 – July 25, 2023) was a Canadian professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

left wing who played 22 games in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

with the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Con ...

between 1976 and 1978. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1976 to 1981, was spent in the minor

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

. He was drafted in the second round, 33rd overall, by the Sabres in the 1976 NHL Amateur Draft, after his performance as part of the 1975-76 OMJHL

J. Ross Robertson Cup The J. Ross Robertson Cup is a Canadian ice hockey trophy. It is awarded annually in junior ice hockey to the champion of the Ontario Hockey League playoffs. It was donated by John Ross Robertson to the Ontario Hockey Association in 1910, an ...

and the

1976 Memorial Cup The 1976 Memorial Cup occurred from May 9 to 16 at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec. It was the 58th annual Memorial Cup competition and determined the major junior ice hockey champion of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). Participating ...

Champion

Hamilton Fincups The Hamilton Fincups were a Canadian junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League for 4 years, from 1974 to 1978. The team played in Hamilton, Ontario for three years, and in St. Catharines, Ontario for one. The Hamilton Fincu ...

, after previously playing junior in both OPJAHL

Whitby Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is on the Yorkshire Coast at the mouth of the River Esk, North Yorkshire, River Esk and has a maritime, mineral and tourist economy. From the Middle Ages, Whitby ...

and in

Oshawa Oshawa is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately east of downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the Greater Toronto Area and of the Golden Horseshoe. It ...

. Kowal died on July 25, 2023, at the age of 67. Former Buffalo Sabres forward passes away at 67-years-old
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Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* 1956 births 2023 deaths Binghamton Dusters players Buffalo Sabres draft picks Buffalo Sabres players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey left wingers Hamilton Fincups players Hershey Bears players Indianapolis Racers draft picks Nova Scotia Voyageurs players Oshawa Generals players Rochester Americans players Ice hockey people from Toronto Springfield Indians players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen {{canada-icehockey-winger-1950s-stub