After getting a chance to play in the NHL because the Toronto Maple Leafs were desperate for crease help in 1972, goalie Ron Low played steady and lasted eleven years in the league. He saw as much rubber as anyone during his era playing for such poor teams as the Washington Capitals, Detroit Red Wings, and New Jersey Devils.
Born in Birtle, Manitoba, Low played junior with the Dauphin Kings of the MJHL. He was selected 103rd overall in the 1970 Amateur Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs the spent two years developing in three different minor leagues. After the Leafs lost Bernie Parent to the WHA and Jacques Plante was showing his age, Low received a shot at the big leagues in 1972-73. He played 42 games for the weak club but showed flashes of strong play. When Toronto replenished its goalkeeping depth in the off-season, Low was sent to the CHL's Tulsa Oilers for the 1973-74 season and made the league's second all-star team.
The young netminder was claimed by the Washington Capitals in the 1974 Expansion Draft. He spent three years with the defensively weak club before serving as the Detroit Red Wings backup in 1977-78. That spring, he played four of the five playoff games when Detroit went up against the Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens in the first round. In 1978-79, the veteran netminder won a league-high 33 games with the Kansas City Red Wings and was named to the CHL first all-star team.
Low returned to the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques in 1979-80 and spent parts of four seasons with the improving Edmonton Oilers. He spent his last two and a half years in the NHL with the New Jersey Devils where he provided sound goalkeeping and leadership on the young club. He retired in 1985-86 after playing six games with the AHL's Nova Scotia Oilers and became the club's assistant coach. Two years later, he was named the team's head coach where he remained until he was promoted to the Edmonton Oilers as an assistant.
Late in the 1994-95 season Low was hired to replace George Burnett as the Edmonton Oilers' coach. He proved to be a prime motivator who managed to get the young players to buy into his system. Under his guidance the club was one of the most exciting in the NHL and reached the second round of the playoffs in 1997 and 1998. After he was dismissed by the Oilers, Low spent the 1999-2000 season as the coach and general manager of the IHL's Houston Aeros. On July 12, 2000, he was named the head coach of the New York Rangers and entered the 2001-02 season hoping to return to the post-season.
