Blackhawks Make Quenneville Extension Official
CHICAGO (AP) — Stan Bowman wanted to keep Joel Quenneville in Chicago, and the coach had no desire to leave.
After two Stanley Cup titles in four seasons, this was a no-brainer.
The Blackhawks announced a three-year contract extension for Quenneville on Friday, kicking off their annual fan convention with a crowd-pleasing move that keeps the coach in Chicago through the 2016-17 season.
The 54-year-old Quenneville is 222-106 in five seasons in Chicago. He led the Blackhawks to the Stanley Cup in 2010, ending a 49-year drought, and then coached them to another title this year.
"I think you always know what you're going to get with him and I think that's probably the biggest thing for us, why we have success," defenseman Duncan Keith said before Game 5 of this year's Stanley Cup finals. "He's level-headed, brings that even-keel attitude to the team."
Quenneville's deal was set to expire after the upcoming season, but general manager Bowman had said an extension was a priority and the coach talked all along about how much he enjoyed being part of the organization.
This is Quenneville's third stop as a head coach in the NHL. The former defenseman is 660-389-77 in 16 seasons with St. Louis, Colorado and Chicago. He won the Jack Adams Award, which is given to the head coach who has contributed most to his team's success, in 2000 with the Blues and was a nominee for the award again this year.
Quenneville led Chicago to a NHL-best 36-7-5 record this season. The Blackhawks earned at least one point in each of their first 24 games, setting an NHL record.
The Windsor, Ontario, native was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second round of the 1978 draft and played 803 games in parts of 13 seasons in the NHL. He is one of two men in NHL history to play in 800 or more games and coach 1,000 or more games.
He has recorded at least 40 wins in nine of his 10 full seasons as a coach. His best total was 52 victories with Chicago for the 2009-10 season.
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