Robert "Cowboy" Cowie (born November 3, 1967) is a Canadian former 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 ...

defenceman. He played 78 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

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The Kings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. ...

during the 1994–95 and 1995–96 seasons. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1991 to 2004, was spent in the minor leagues and then in various European leagues.

College career

Cowie was born in Willowdale,

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. As a youth, he played in the 1980

Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament The Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament () is an annual minor ice hockey event in Quebec City. The tournament was founded in 1960 to coincide with the Quebec Winter Carnival, and give an opportunity for international competition to p ...

with a

minor ice hockey Minor ice hockey or minor hockey is an umbrella term for amateur ice hockey which is played below the junior age level. Players are classified by age, with each age group playing in its own league. The rules, especially as it relates to body c ...

team from Goulding Park in Toronto. He was a four-year letterman for the

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...

Huskies between 1988 and 1991, scoring over 40 points each of his sophomore, junior and senior seasons. He finished his college career with 46 goals and 96 assists for 142 points in 139 games, and is the second leading scorer and fourteenth leading overall scorer in school history. He was named an All-

Hockey East The Hockey East Association, also known as Hockey East, is a college ice hockey conference which operates entirely in New England. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference. Hockey East came into existence in 1984 for ...

All-Star in 1988, 1989 and 1990, and was named an All-American in 1990.

Professional career

After his college career ended, Cowie signed with the

Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The Jets compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The te ...

and was assigned to their

Moncton Hawks The Moncton Hawks were a professional ice hockey team based in Moncton, New Brunswick. They played in the American Hockey League between 1987 and 1994, operating as a minor league affiliate of the Winnipeg Jets. Home games were played at the Mon ...

farm team in the

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 quickly established himself as an offensive defenseman in the minors, never scoring less than 11 goals in a full season for the whole of his minor league career. His best season as a pro came in the final season for the storied

Springfield Indians The Springfield Indians were two separate minor professional ice hockey franchises, originally based in West Springfield, Massachusetts and later Springfield, Massachusetts. The original Indians were founding members of the American Hockey Leagu ...

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

, when as an assistant captain for the club he scored 17 goals and 57 assists for 74 points and was named a First Team All-Star on defense. Following that season, Cowie signed with the

, and saw his first NHL action in 1995, splitting the 1995 and 1996 seasons between Los Angeles and the Kings' minor league affiliate, the Phoenix Roadrunners. Cowie's first NHL goal was assisted by his Kings teammate

Wayne Gretzky Wayne Douglas Gretzky ( ; born January 26, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for four teams from 1979 to 1999. Nicknamed "the Great One ...

. After the 1996 season, Cowie spent the rest of his playing career in Europe, most notably with

Eisbären Berlin The Eisbären Berlin (; English: ''Berlin Polar Bears'') is a professional ice hockey team based in Berlin, Germany. The team competes in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL), the highest level of play in professional German ice hockey, and is also ...

, for whom he played four seasons between 1998 and 2002. He retired after the 2004 season when he played in the Italian team Milano Vipers. Cowie's National Hockey League totals were 7 goals and 12 assists for 19 points in 72 games.

Post-professional career

Since retiring as a player, Cowie has remained active in the sport as a

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, first part-time for the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (N ...

and then as a full-time pro scout for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He is also a founder of Athletes Resource, a sports services organization. The company hosts an annual hockey prospects tournament and professional conditioning camps attended by players from the NHL and other professional leagues. In the private sector, Rob formed The Muskoka Group, a Real Estate group he runs in Scottsdale Arizona in conjunction with Prudential AZ Properties. Rob has won the Chairman's Circle Gold award, indicative of the top, for 2008, 2009, and 2010.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Awards and honors

* Cowie was inducted into the

Hall of Fame in 2005.

References

External links

*
Athletes Resource site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowie, Rob 1967 births Living people AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans Canadian ice hockey defencemen Eisbären Berlin players EV Zug players HC La Chaux-de-Fonds players HC Milano players Jokerit players Los Angeles Kings players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Moncton Hawks players New York Islanders scouts People from Willowdale, Toronto Phoenix Roadrunners (IHL) players St. Michael's Buzzers players SC Riessersee players Ice hockey people from North York Springfield Indians players Toronto Maple Leafs scouts Undrafted National Hockey League players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Finland