ANAHEIM, Calif. — Joel Quenneville is returning to the NHL with the Anaheim Ducks for his first head coaching job since the second-winningest coach in league history resigned and was banned for his handling of a sexual assault scandal.
Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek hired Quenneville on Thursday for the 66-year-old’s first coaching job since his resignation from the Florida Panthers 3½ years ago in the wake of his handling of the 2010 sexual assault scandal during his tenure with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Quenneville and Hawks executives Stan Bowman and Al MacIsaac were banned from the NHL for nearly three years after an independent investigation concluded the team mishandled allegations raised by former player Kyle Beach against video coach Brad Aldrich during the team’s Stanley Cup run in 2010. The trio was reinstated in July, and Bowman became the Edmonton Oilers general manager three weeks later.
Before his departure, Quenneville spent parts of 25 NHL seasons behind the benches of the St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche, Hawks and Panthers, establishing himself as his era’s most consistent winning coach.
He led the Hawks to Stanley Cup championships in 2010, 2013 and 2015. His 969 career victories rank second in NHL history, trailing only Scotty Bowman’s 1,244.
Quenneville’s reputation and career were badly damaged by his role in the Hawks’ handling of the accusations against Aldrich. After four seasons out of the sport, the 13-year NHL defenseman is getting another chance behind the bench — this time with a franchise in the middle of a lengthy rebuilding process.
Quenneville takes over a team that has missed the playoffs for seven consecutive seasons, the third-longest active absence in the NHL. The Ducks finished sixth in the Pacific Division this season at 35-37-10 after being in the bottom two for the previous four years.
He replaces Greg Cronin, whom Verbeek surprisingly fired at the end of the coach’s second season in charge. Cronin led the Ducks to a 21-point improvement in his second season, but Verbeek changed course for reasons he declined to reveal when he announced the firing.
While announcing the change, Verbeek said he expects the Ducks to make the playoffs next season. That’s a pronouncement the first-time GM never had made during his 3½ years in charge of owner Henry Samueli’s franchise.
And Quenneville has plenty of experience in getting teams to the postseason. His teams have made 20 Stanley Cup playoff appearances, reaching the postseason in all but two of the 22 seasons he finished.
Quenneville inherits a team with an ample stock of young talent. The roster includes former No. 2 draft pick Leo Carlsson, former No. 3 picks Mason McTavish and Beckett Sennecke, promising forward Cutter Gauthier, rising defensemen Jackson LaCombe and Pavel Mintyukov and several veteran forwards, including two-time All-Star Troy Terry and Trevor Zegras.
