Bill Cowher’s daughter to wed NHL tough guy
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WINDSOR, Ont. — A little bit of NFL mixed in with some NHL and a hint of hoops.
That’s the formula for an upcoming celebrity wedding.On Aug. 12, Los Angeles Kings enforcer Kevin Westgarth will tie the knot with his fiancee Meagan Cowher.
Westgarth and Cowher met at Princeton, where Westgarth starred for the hockey team and the six-foot-one Cowher played for the women’s basketball team.
Cowher twice lead the Ivy League in scoring and became the first Princeton player to be a first-team All-Ivy selection for three seasons, finishing as the third-leading scorer in school history.
“She’s actually the real athlete of the family,” Westgarth told Helene Elliott of the Los Angeles Times. “She’s the best player. I’m looking forward to having kids and retiring on what they end up doing.”
Cowher is also the daughter of former NFL coach Bill Cowher, who guided the Pittsburgh Steelers to victory in Super Bowl XL, and as tough as Westgarth is on the ice, he admitted to a sense of trepidation when it came time to meet his future father-in-law.
“I didn’t think it would be, until maybe five minutes before I was going to meet him the first time,” Westgarth told dailybreeze.com. “We were at a game in Pittsburgh, and the Steelers beat the Browns 41-0, so I think that made everything a little easier. He’s been a great guy to talk to over the years.”
As they got to know each other, it turned out that the two, both of whom had to fight and scrap for every opportunity as players, found they had much in common.
“He was one of those guys early in his football career that was really on the cusp of getting into the league, so he knows how the battles work,” Westgarth, who had 105 penalty minutes last season, said. “And my fiancee is a great sounding board, and has a great perspective on the game that helps set me straight.”
Regardless, asking the man with the famed sideline death stare for his daughter’s hand in marriage was no easy task. “He kind of messed with me a little,” Westgarth said. “He finally gave in and said: ‘Yes’.’ I think it took cajoling him more than it did Meagan.”
Though he’s taken on all comers in his rise to the NHL, Westgarth couldn’t imagine what it would be like to drop the gloves with the stern-jawed Cowher. “No,” he said. “We don’t even need to test that.”
Meagan also has proven to be a tough customer. Westgarth, known for his wild, flowing hair, admitted that his future wife will make the call on his wedding-day hair style. “Generally, about once a year, she just points to a spot and says, ‘Cut it to there,’” he said.
Windsor Star
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