The Winnipeg Jets announced today that the team has successfully hired Dean Chynoweth and Davis Payne as assistant coaches on head coach Scott Arniel’s staff.
Both Chynoweth and Payne will join returning assistant coaches Wade Flaherty and Marty Johnson. It is to be assumed that Chynoweth will handle the Jets’ penalty kill and defensive structure while Payne will handle the Jets’ power play and forward structure.
Chynoweth, 55, was an assistant coach for the Toronto Maple Leafs for the previous three seasons where he was in charge of the penalty kill which ranked 8th in 2021-22, 12th in 2022-23 and 23rd in 2023-24. He was an assistant coach for the Carolina Hurricanes from 2018-2021 and the New York Islanders from 2009-2012. When he was in Carolina, his penalty kill ranked 8th, 4th, and 3rd in his tenure with the team. His interesting penalty-kill philosophy will certainly be a welcome change in the 2024-25 season and beyond.
Before Chynoweth made it to the NHL, he became an assistant coach/general manager for the IHL’s Utah Grizzlies from 1998-2000. He served in various roles in the WHL since 2000 and served as a head coach in the AHL for the San Antonio Rampage and Lake Erie Monsters.
As a player, Chynoweth was a 13th overall draft pick by the New York Islanders in the 1987 NHL Draft. With 10 professional seasons under his belt, he suited up in 241 NHL games split between the Islanders and Boston Bruins where he posted 22 points (4G, 18A) and 667 penalty minutes.
Payne, 53, was an assistant coach for the Ottawa Senators for the past five seasons. The Kamloops, B.C. native has also served as an associate coach for the Buffalo Sabres, from 2017-19, the Los Angeles Kings as an assistant coach from 2012-2017, and the St. Louis Blues as a head coach from 2009-2012. During his tenure with the Kings, he won the Stanley Cup in the 2013-14 season.
Before making the NHL as a coach, Payne served as an assistant and head coach of the AHL’s Peoria Rivermen from 2007 until he became the head coach of the Blues. He started his coaching career in the ECHL serving as an assistant for the Greenville Growl in 2000-01 before becoming the head coach for the Pee Dee Pride from 2000-2003 and the Alaska Aces from 2003-2007. Payne won the Kelly Cup in 2006 as head coach of the Alaska Aces. His strong suit is working with forwards and power plays which has a long track record of successful players and top-10 power plays throughout his coaching tenure.
Payne was an Edmonton Oilers seventh-round (140th overall) draft selection in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft. He played 22 games for the Boston Bruins across eight professional seasons where he recorded one assist and 14 PIMs.
Both Chynoweth and Payne will overhaul the Jets’ current penalty kill, power play and defensive structure. With lots of decisions left to be made for the Jets’ off-season as they look to their 2024-25 opening night game.
