Joel Quenneville reaches 1,000 career NHL coaching wins

Joel Quenneville earned his 1,000th career NHL victory during a 6-5 comeback win for the Anaheim Ducks against Edmonton. He currently trails only Scotty Bowman for the most coaching wins in NHL history. The 67-year-old coach holds a 2-2-1 start with Anaheim after he replaced Greg Cronin in May to lead a young roster. This roster includes Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier, Mason McTavish, and Trevor Zegras. The Ducks finished sixth in the Pacific Division last season after a 35-37-10 campaign. Verbeek hired Quenneville to develop a team that resembles the young Blackhawks squad he led to three championships in 2010, 2013, and 2015.

Quenneville spent 25 NHL seasons behind various benches, including stints with the St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche, Chicago Blackhawks, and Florida Panthers. He won the Jack Adams Award with the Blues during the 1999-2000 season. He entered the league as the 21st overall pick in the 1978 NHL Entry Draft. His playing career included stops with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Colorado Rockies, New Jersey Devils, Hartford Whalers, and Washington Capitals.

The reason for his four year absence

Quenneville spent nearly four years away from the NHL after he resigned from the Florida Panthers in October 2021. An independent investigation determined the Chicago Blackhawks mishandled sexual assault allegations made by 2008 first-round pick Kyle Beach against video coach Brad Aldrich. The incident occurred during the 2010 Stanley Cup run. The league banned Quenneville and other executives for nearly three years. The NHL reinstated him in July 2024. You should recognize that the Ducks conducted background checks and spoke with Beach before they hired him. The investigation found that Quenneville and several senior staff members failed to prioritize the allegations in 2010.

The investigation, conducted by the law firm Jenner & Block, found that Quenneville attended a meeting on May 23, 2010, regarding Beach’s claims. At that time, Chicago won the Western Conference title and moved into the Stanley Cup Final. The investigation concluded that the team failed to prioritize addressing the allegations during the postseason run. Quenneville accepted responsibility for his role and engaged in educational activities. He stated he felt a lot of positivity within the Ducks organization since joining the team. The 2010 scandal also led to the resignations of general manager Stan Bowman and assistant GM Al MacIsaac, both of whom the league reinstated in July 2024. Bowman became the Edmonton Oilers’ general manager three weeks after his return. The Blackhawks reached a settlement agreement with Beach to resolve the lawsuit regarding the mishandled allegations.

Mixed reactions at the United Center

The reaction to Quenneville’s return to the United Center on Sunday night remained muted and mixed. A handful of fans cheered while roughly the same number of people booed when the public address announcer, Gene Honda, called his name. The investigation into the 2010 Blackhawks season determined that Quenneville and other senior staff members failed to respond appropriately to the allegations made by Kyle Beach regarding the conduct of video coach Brad Aldrich. Quenneville holds the rank of second-winningest coach in NHL history with 1,000 victories. He remains 244 wins behind the record held by Scotty Bowman.

Quenneville resigned from the Florida Panthers in October 2021 after he met with Commissioner Gary Bettman in New York. The Panthers released a statement saying it was no longer appropriate for him to serve as head coach. The Blackhawks paid a $2 million fine following the investigation. Aldrich, who resigned after the 2010 championship, later faced a conviction for assaulting a minor in Michigan in 2013. Quenneville previously coached the Blackhawks for over a decade and led them to three titles. The United Center held 19,717 seats, but only about half were occupied during the game. The Blackhawks reached a confidential settlement with Beach, though a second lawsuit from a former high school player remains pending. Will the mixed reception in Chicago persist as Quenneville continues his pursuit of Bowman’s record?