The NHL Redux: Jets rookie Adam Lowry discovering validation on NHL ice

Our fathers can be many things.

They are teachers, mentors and enforcers of what's right and wrong. They are our biggest fans, but can just as quickly become our greatest adversaries.

Unjustly, they also represent a measuring stick - a convenient standard to which generalizations are opined, and a point of reference for successes and failures to be instantaneously assessed. 

Dave Lowry spent 19 seasons in the NHL, wearing the sweaters of five different franchises. He was a serviceable player, but fell short of can't-miss. He stuck around for more than 1000 games, scoring 351 points and totaling 1,191 penalty minutes. He also reached two Stanley Cup Finals. 

Somewhere along the journey, Lowry produced what he would probably consider his greatest prize: two hockey-playing sons born 16 months apart.

Presumably, those boys, Joel and Adam, are now great hockey players. And that conjecture, of course, would be correct. Joel, a draft pick of the Los Angeles Kings, is in his senior season at Cornell University, while his little brother, Adam, made the Winnipeg Jets as a rookie out of training camp. 

Hockey is a game that has always leaned on the cliche. Between period retorts rarely deviate from the script, and first-career goals are invariably "the culmination of hard work and years of sacrifice."

Adam's first, which came in a win over the Carolina Hurricanes back on Oct. 21., included those inescapable elements, sure. But for a player who dreamed of following in his father's footsteps, and whose path to the would have been far less assured if it weren't for an NHL dad, it was much more than that.

"It validates that you belong - that you can cut it in this league and be successful," Lowry told theScore.

"You don’t really feel like you have made it until you contribute offensively." he added. "The goal made me feel like I belonged. It was nice to finally get - an important goal being the game winner."

Adam possesses the insecurities every rookie experiences coming into the league: a burning desire to prove himself, and the anxiousness of having far less of an impact than he's ever had before. 

A similar insecurity can be credited, in part, to the longevity Dave - now an assistant coach with the Calgary Flames - achieved in the sport. Adam describes his father as a player who was ceaselessly prepared and spent his entire career doing everything in his power to maintain relevance. 

The path Dave took clearly benefits his offspring. Adam already understands the life of a fringe NHL player, and is now better equipped to survive it. He owns a wealth of knowledge, both innate and taught, and is still absorbing invaluable counsel from his old man. 

"He has taught me to be a smart pro," Lowry said. "You have to put the work in on the ice as well as off the ice to be successful at this level. There are always people there trying to take your job, so you have to work to solidify your spot in the lineup."

Whether it's a rookie cutting his teeth, a hardened veteran beyond his best years, an Ivy League senior or a grade schooler, nothing changes - we all seek acknowledgement, praise and approval from the people who brought us into this world. 

Although Adam had that long before he deflected Grant Clitsome's point shot through the legs of Anton Khudobin, who doesn't want to be reminded now and then?

The purity of his celebration, coupled with the joy shared with his teammates, made for a wonderfully authentic moment for all hockey fans to experience, but what Adam will remember most was exclusive to the Lowry family:

The call home. 

"He told me how proud he was. To here it from him, after what he has gone through and the amount of time he put in the NHL - to have your parents tell you how proud they are... it was great."

The Next 48

Minnesota Wild vs. Montreal Canadiens: Saturday - 7 p.m. ET

Thomas Vanek's return to Montreal headlines Saturday action in the NHL as two of the top teams in their respective conferences, the Minnesota Wild and Montreal Canadiens, wage war at the Bell Centre.

The Canadiens and Wild started the season hot, combining for a 14-5-1 record in October, but have since had both their roll and scoring capabilities interrupted with the changing of the calendar. Montreal managed just three goals in three November games while the Wild have just a single tally over their last two. 

Both sides will look to get their season back on track, but goals will remain hard to come by with Carey Price and Darcy Kuemper expected to feature between the pipes.

Vancouver Canucks vs. Anaheim Ducks: Sunday - 9 p.m. ET

The main event comes in primetime Sunday night as the Vancouver Canucks meet former flame Ryan Kesler for the first time in a first-place showdown with the Anaheim Ducks. 

Kesler's divorce this offseason was well-documented. He spent 10 seasons - most of which were very successful - with the Canucks' organization before troubles with management, the media and with the locker room seemed to accumulate past the breaking point. 

He's now enjoying an easier life with one of the NHL's best teams, but the Canucks are also thriving without their long-time second-line center. 

The man wearing his No. 17 jersey, Radim Vrbata, is proving to be one of the top free-agent acquisitions of the summer. He has six goals and 13 points through 14 games flanking the Sedin twins. 

The Pylon

In basketball terms, this one was a lay up. 

Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Michael Del Zotto had a little run-in with the adult film industry this week after a well-known starlet (as they say) aired out his dirty laundry through social media. 

It's unfortunate really, seeing as Del Zotto is playing his best hockey in years in response to being thrust into an important role for the injury-torn Flyers. 

Let's hope, for Del Zotto's sake and fans of the Flyers, that his successes on the ice and in his personal life aren't mutually exclusive. 

Parting Shots

1) The best wingman in the league, by the way, resides in Philadelphia. Jakub Voracek, sensational so far this season, shares the league-lead in assists with 13.

2) Anti-bacterial sprays, wipes, creams, gels and every other antiseptic agent under the sun sorta needs to start becoming a thing in Anaheim.

3) For those criticizing Taylor Hall and blaming his injury on recklessness, give your head a long, drawn out shake. Would you prefer that he stopped using his speed to beat defenseman out wide, or just stopped trying all together?

4) Most players need to play a full season to earn top dollar in a contract year. Marc-Andre Fleury decided three weeks was enough, thanks.

5) Curtis Lazar apparently provided the right answer when asked whether he wanted to stay for the entire season with the Senators. That's the hockey equivalent of declining an invitation to a gift-less Valentine's Day. 

6) Dustin Tokanski made 31 saves in a win over the Sabres on Wednesday - at least according to the FOX Sports ticker. Which ran all night.

7) Peter Laviolette will wear a shiner better than any player this season. 

8) An infection-free Pekka Rinne is making for a healthier NHL. The Preds' netminder has been nothing short of sensational after his career was cast in doubt last season, posting a 8-2-1 record with a 1.89 goals against average and .932 save percentage. 

9) There are no longer words for Vladimir Tarasenko.

10) Models don't eat pizza.