They both agreed the timing wasn't right then. A big reason was the fact that Adam's NHL career was only 154 games old.
Now, with his son's NHL game ticker at 408 games and counting, Lowry felt the timing to join Maurice's staff was right.
The bonus of having his son on the team? Lowry has watched a lot of Jets hockey.
"One thing I like to do, when I do watch - and when I did watch - Winnipeg play, I like to sit back, I like to enjoy the game," Lowry said. "As a coach you're always watching what the tendencies are, what the systems are. You try to pick up as much information as you can."
Now he'll take that information and try to help in any way he can. He'll rely on his fellow coaches - including Maurice, Charlie Huddy, Jamie Kompon, and Wade Flaherty - to learn some specifics on how each player on the roster likes to learn.
That ability to communicate with players is something Lowry has seen change a lot since he broke into the NHL with the St. Louis Blues in 1988.
"The coaches have also evolved as well. How you communicate, how you get your message across and how you get your point across. Understand that there is a right way to do it," said Lowry.
"I look at the job Paul has done. I'm here to complement and help any way I can. Whatever I'm asked to do, I look forward to the challenge."
Lowry's coaching career began in 2005-06 as an assistant coach with the WHL's Calgary Hitmen. He became the team's head coach in 2008, then joined the Calgary Flames as an assistant the following season.
In 2012, he became the head coach of the WHL's Victoria Royals, a post he held until he was named to the Los Angeles Kings staff in 2017.
During his time with Victoria, Lowry served as an assistant coach with Canada at the 2015 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship - winning the gold medal. He took on the head coaching role for Canada at the 2016 event, falling to the eventual champions from Finland (a roster that included Patrik Laine and Sami Niku) in the quarterfinal.
He's had different roles depending on the staff he's worked on. Lowry wouldn't go into detail about what his exact role will be with the Jets, but Maurice said Lowry has expertise in a number of areas.
"He has worked in all aspects of special teams during his time as an NHL assistant coach, and in fact was part of a Los Angeles Kings team that saw a dramatic improvement of 25 goals at 5-on-5 in his first year there," Maurice said in a statement. "We're very excited to bring Dave on-board and join our staff."
This will only be the second time that Dave has coached Adam. The only previous time was during the NHL lockout in 2004-05 when the younger Lowry was in peewee hockey.
However, that doesn't mean the two haven't talked hockey together. It just isn't always on the front burner, even when Dave would have a night off from coaching the Wheat Kings and made the two-hour drive to Winnipeg to watch his son play.
"We'd talk more about how he's doing. Not how did he play, what happened here or what happened there," said Lowry. "Obviously with me being a coach, there were times when he wasn't happy with his game. Sometimes he or his brother would reach out, they ask questions, they ask what did I see?
"The coaching he's received up until this point has been second to none. I'm excited to be on a bench and watch him continue to grow as a player."
The start date for the 2020-21 season has yet to be finalized, but Lowry can't wait to get to work with his new team, even if his son might give him a hard time in the first couple practices.
"There may be some different looks he might give me," Lowry said. "But this is something we've both talked about and something we're comfortable doing going forward. I'm sure it's something we're going to enjoy."
