Better Head Coaching candidates the Detroit Red Wings should Consider
By Bob Heyrman
Joel Quenneville is the top name on the market. He’s the most decorated coach available and is originally from the Windsor, Ontario area where he played for the Spitfires of the OHL.
He’s won three Stanley Cups as the Chicago Blackhawks bench boss (2010,2013,2015), he’s a big personality similar to Mike Babcock, but he’s earned the right to say his piece to management and have a say in roster decisions. Sometimes certain General Managers want to have all the roster control and have coached under them just coach. That won’t work with Quenneville, he will have a say who he wants to stay and who should go, but like in Chicago, the salary cap gets in the way.
There were rumors Joel wanted specific players to be resigned like Artemi Panarin and Niklas Hjalmarsson. Quenneville loved Hjalmarsson, he doesn’t have the skating ability or offense nose for the game as Duncan Keith, but he’s a shot-blocking machine, and he’s a tremendous penalty killer or a coaches dream.
He was just another victim of the salary cap in Chicago like Dustin Byfuglien, Patrick Sharp, Brandon Saad, Andrew Ladd, Andrew Shaw, and the list goes on. Thinking about it, it’s a good problem to have, but I think Joel believes he would have been in a better position to contend if Stan Bowman was able to keep Nik over Seabrook.
The 60-year-old head coach has sat since he was canned by the Blackhawks early in the season. He’s a coach that will be able to pick his spot, he likely won’t take the first job offered or he would have been signed the day after the was fired. He is under contract with the Hawks for one more season making 6-million dollars. My understanding is the signing team will have to endure that money and likely sign the bench boss to an extension.
Quenneville holds all the cards; he can pick his destination, work for the GM he respects and trusts and should receive a contract offer in which he fills out the amount paid on the cheque. I exaggerate yes, but he should be able to get a Mike Babcock type of payday if he wants it. Babcock is a terrific head coach, but coach Q has a better resume.
He would be a dream come true if the Detroit Red Wings could find a way to land him, but I suspect the franchise will not be willing to pay him what others will offer. If the Detroit Red Wings were only able to provide around half the amount that the Leafs ended up paying Babcock, do you really think Chris Ilitch will run to Quenneville with an open checkbook?
I strongly believe if Mike Ilitch was around and running the show Mike Babcock would still be in town and if he wasn’t the franchise would have a Quenneville type presence seeing this team through the current rebuild. Would Joel at the age of 60 be interested in coaching a team through a rebuild at this point of his career? I’m not sure he would but let me say this, with how Dylan Larkin and Andreas Athanasiou are playing it’s starting to become a destination. If the Wings happened to land Jack Hughes or Kakko in the NHL draft all bets are off, maybe the team could attract an established coach.
Through 1636 career games behind a bench as the head coach between Colorado, St. Louis and Chicago, his record is 890-532-77-137.