In ANAHEIM, California, Joel Quenneville achieved a significant milestone, becoming only the second coach in NHL history to secure 1,000 victories as his Anaheim Ducks orchestrated a comeback to defeat the Edmonton Oilers 6-5 on Wednesday evening.
Quenneville’s landmark triumph, occurring in the Ducks’ initial match following the Olympic hiatus, saw him enter an elite hockey fraternity alongside Scotty Bowman. Bowman had previously set the precedent, reaching this achievement with the Detroit Red Wings on February 8, 1997 – merely a month after Quenneville began his coaching career with the St. Louis Blues.
Quenneville’s Ducks clinched his win in a truly dramatic fashion: Anaheim overcame two separate two-goal deficits and yet another third-period shortfall before Cutter Gauthier netted the decisive tiebreaking goal with 1 minute and 14 seconds remaining. As the clock expired, Quenneville exchanged high-fives with each of his players at the bench prior to stepping onto the ice for a team photograph.
The 67-year-old Quenneville has made a successful reappearance in the NHL this season with Anaheim, following a four-year absence from the league after his resignation from the Florida Panthers in late 2021 due to his inaction during the Chicago Blackhawks’ sexual abuse scandal 11 years earlier.
Quenneville’s NHL prohibition was lifted in July 2024, and the Ducks enlisted him one year later to take command of a struggling franchise that had no playoff appearances in seven consecutive campaigns. Anaheim (31-23-3) has surged into the core of the Western Conference playoff contention in its inaugural season under Quenneville, who has guided his teams to the postseason in 20 of the 22 NHL seasons he completed as head coach.
After playing 13 NHL seasons as a formidable defenseman, instantly recognizable by the signature bristly mustache he has maintained throughout his adult life, Quenneville has served as an NHL head coach for portions of 26 seasons. He captured three Stanley Cup championships with the Blackhawks during a remarkable period of success from 2008 to 2017.
Quenneville attained his 1,000th victory in his 1,825th contest. Bowman concluded his tenure in 2002 with 1,244 victories across 2,141 regular-season games, also securing nine Stanley Cup titles as a coach.
After his playing days concluded in 1992, Quenneville earned a Stanley Cup ring as an assistant to Marc Crawford with Colorado in 1996. He secured his initial head coaching position with St. Louis midway through the subsequent season, leading the Blues to seven consecutive playoff berths before his dismissal.
Quenneville swiftly assumed the top role with Colorado in 2004, but his tenure lasted only three seasons despite producing two playoff-bound teams. He spent one month as a scout for the Blackhawks before taking over from Denis Savard behind their bench in 2008, and he guided the Original Six franchise to eight straight playoff appearances and three championships – including the 2010 Stanley Cup, which brought an end to the NHL’s longest active drought at 59 seasons.
Chicago discharged him in November 2018, and he joined the Panthers in April 2019 – but Quenneville’s third season in Florida concluded abruptly when the NHL banned him and former Blackhawks executives Stan Bowman and Al MacIsaac “as a consequence of their insufficient response upon being informed in 2010 of allegations that Blackhawks player Kyle Beach had been assaulted by the club’s video coach,” the league stated.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman determined Quenneville had expressed remorse for his inaction regarding the allegations that emerged amidst Chicago’s pursuit of a Stanley Cup title. Quenneville mentioned he also collaborated with advocacy organizations to study the appropriate methods for leadership in such circumstances.
Quenneville remained intently focused on the NHL during his four-year sabbatical from the bench, observing games nightly on television from his Florida residence and maintaining contact with his countless acquaintances in the sport. Among these friends was Pat Verbeek, his former teammate with the Hartford Whalers and the Ducks’ general manager in the midst of a prolonged rebuilding phase.
Verbeek dismissed Greg Cronin last spring despite a 21-point improvement in the coach’s second season, and he convinced owner Henry Samueli to undertake the potential gamble and the definite public-relations repercussion of employing Quenneville. The decision has proven splendidly effective on the ice thus far, with the Ducks significantly enhancing their record as a skilled young core gains another year of proficiency.
Bowman and Quenneville could be joined in the 1,000-win collective by two additional seasoned coaches within the next few seasons.
Paul Maurice, who secured the past two Stanley Cup titles with the Panthers, boasts 945 career victories across five teams. Lindy Ruff garnered his 933rd career victory Wednesday night with the Buffalo Sabres’ 2-1 triumph over New Jersey.
Both Maurice and Ruff have overseen more NHL games than Quenneville, and both possess sub-.500 career winning percentages – a metric that holds less weight in the era of overtime defeats.