Today’s News Clips Nov. 7, 2018

ChicagoBlackhawks.com

THREE THINGS: Colliton named Blackhawks

By Chris Wescott November 6, 2018

The Blackhawks had a big announcement on Tuesday, relieving of his duties and naming the newest head coach in franchise history. Here are three things to know about Colliton.

1. THE YOUTH MOVEMENT

33-year-old Colliton is now the youngest head coach in the NHL today, although not the youngest in history. That would be Gary Green, who was hired by the at the age of 26 in 1979.

Colliton is younger than four of his players on the roster today: Duncan Keith, Chris Kunitz, and Cam Ward.

Colliton is just a few seasons removed from his playing days, and actually skated with for Team Canada at the 2004 World Juniors, held in Helsinki, Finland. Canada earned silver in that tournament.

In talking with players around the locker room, it does not appear that his youth will be a negative.

"He brings a whole lot of energy," said Alex DeBrincat. "He's smiling out there, he's talking to us, he's trying to get to know us. I think that's a good thing to have that connection and start it as soon as today. It's good to have him here."

Jonathan Toews added, "It is different, considering what we're used to but from what I hear and what I've seen so far, Jeremy Colliton brings a lot of youthful energy to the game and he's got a lot of experience on the ice as well. I think he understands how to get through to guys and get through to each player and how to get the best from them. I've heard nothing but good things from the guys that played for him in Rockford last year. Looking to what he can bring to our team here."

2. LIMITED SAMPLE, BIG RESULTS

It's still very early in Colliton's coaching career, but the results thus far have been good.

With Mora IK in (Hockey Allsvenskan), Colliton originally took over as an interim head coach during the 2013-14 season. He led the team to a 98-18-57 record in his time there. In 2016-17, he steered the club to a league-best 35-4-13 record.

He took over as the Rockford IceHogs bench boss on May 18, 2017, and led them to a record of 40-28-4-4 in his first season. He then guided the Blackhawks primary affiliate to their first-ever appearance in the Western Conference Final. They swept the Wolves and the Moose in those playoffs

3. FORMER PLAYER

Colliton was selected in the second round, 58th overall, of the 2003 NHL Draft by the . He played in 57 NHL games during his career, scoring three goals and three assists.

He was a player overseas as recently as 2013-14, and skated in the AHL with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in 2011-12.

Being that fresh off the ice might give Colliton a unique perspective.

"You can tell he played for a long time and he's very approachable too," said Luke Johnson. "He understands how to manage the team. He's not that far removed from the game himself. I think he uses that to his advantage and I think his demeanor overall will definitely help us going forward," added John Hayden.

ChicagoBlackhawks.com

FEATURE: Players react to coaching change

By Chris Wescott November 6, 2018

The Blackhawks announced this morning that Joel Quenneville had been relieved of his duties and Jeremy Colliton has been named the 38th head coach in franchise history.

For the Blackhawks players, it was the first time they have experienced practice under different leadership. Here is what some of the players had to say after the skate about Quenneville, the change and Colliton.

We'll have a full feature story on the newest head coach and more coverage of the press conference later today on chicagoblackhawks.com.

JONATHAN TOEWS:

"You take responsibility for it. You always wonder and you're always looking for solutions when things aren't going the way you want them too, the way they are right now. If that's the decision that's been made, you have to move on but you wish you could have done something else with the group that you had. That includes the coaching staff as well."

"It is different, considering what we're used to but from what I hear and what I've seen so far, Jeremy Colliton brings a lot of youthful energy to the game and he's got a lot of experience on the ice as well. I think he understands how to get through to guys and get through to each player and how to get the best from them. I've heard nothing but good things from the guys that played for him in Rockford last year. Looking forward to what he can bring to our team here."

PATRICK KANE:

"I think there are a lot of different emotions that you can go through when something like that happens. I think it is a tough day for everyone."

"Obviously, we had a good start to the season and then just kind of the last five games we've had a little bit of a hiccup there. I think if you look at those five games you can think of things here or there we could have done better and this wouldn't have happened. That's the way it goes. We were 0-4-1 in that stretch and they felt a move needed to be made."

COREY CRAWFORD:

"I was pretty surprised this morning. We spent a lot of time here with Joel as the coach. The team has had three championships, obviously. You never want to see a guy leave, including the coaches. We've been through so much together. I think for me, personally, he's had a ton of confidence in me from the start and it's hard to hear that news. In this business, those things happen sometimes. It seems like coaches are maybe the first ones to go most of the time, but it's just hard to see him go."

BRENT SEABROOK:

"He means the world to me. I mean, 10 years, three Stanley Cups. What was I, 23 or 24 when he came here? He taught me a lot as a young man and player. The little things he always harped on I'll remember for the rest of my life I'm sure. But just the way he was with us, how he treated us professionally and as individuals, he was a guy who always liked to have some fun and what not but gave us our space and allowed us to be players. It was just a tough day today and I'll cherish the days and memories and all the stuff we had." "100 percent. It doesn't just fall on the coach, it falls on the players and the whole organization. I think as players and you go down the line. I think we're just as much at fault and we've got to take responsibility and be better as players."

JOHN HAYDEN: "I was shocked this morning. I know how much he's meant to this organization, winning championships with the older guys and really establishing a winning culture here. I know all the younger guys learned a ton from him. He gave us an opportunity to get our foot into this league. For me, he gave me an opportunity to come here, play regular season games, play in the playoffs, and for two straight training camps Joel showed that initial faith in me for me to be here. What I've learned from him over the last couple years I will carry with me."

"I just remember have a conversation with him before my first NHL game and him telling me I'd be great. I started my career on a line with Toews and I ended up playing the last 10 or 11 games and then playing in the playoffs. And for me to get that opportunity in the spring before my first NHL training camp was invaluable."

"[Colliton] understands how to manage the team. He's not that far removed from the game himself. I think he uses that to his advantage and I think his demeanor overall will definitely help us going forward. We're all excited to get going on Thursday. I think you could tell at practice that guys were pretty motivated to get this thing turned around."

LUKE JOHNSON:

"Definitely surprised. I didn't expect that really, but I think the blame isn't on one guy it's on all of us in here. Obviously, we haven't played well over the last little stretch here and we're looking to turn it around. Nobody was expecting it but we've got to move forward."

"I loved [Colliton] when I was in Rockford. He was really good for me and a lot of the young guys down there. I always thought that he'd get his chance one day in the NHL, whether it be in a few years or whatever. I wasn't expecting right away, but I'm very happy for him and I'm excited for him to work with us and get going here."

ALEX DEBRINCAT:

"I was pretty shocked. I know things haven't been going our way, but I didn't know if it would happen this early or whatever. I think shocked is definitely the word I would use."

"We want to play better, number one. I think it's definitely a wake-up call. We have to be better. It'd definitely not his fault. He's just taking the heat I think. It's on all the players and the way we've been performing and competing lately. I think it's definitely on us."

"I had that rookie tournament with him. I like him. He's a really good guy. I talked to him a few times and I think he knows what he's talking about. Good to have him here and we'll see what we can do with him."

ChicagoBlackhawks.com

RELEASE: Blackhawks make coaching change

By Media Relations November 6, 2018

The Chicago Blackhawks have relieved Joel Quenneville of his coaching duties and have named Jeremy Colliton the 38th head coach in franchise history. In addition, the Blackhawks have named Barry Smith an assistant coach on Colliton's staff. The Blackhawks have also parted ways with Assistant Coaches and . The rest of the Blackhawks coaching staff will remain with the team.

Jeremy Colliton, 33, becomes the youngest head coach currently in the NHL. He was 12 games into his second season with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League and led the IceHogs to a record of 40-28-4-4 in 2017-18. Rockford made it to their first-ever 2018 AHL Western Conference Finals after sweeping Chicago in the Division Semifinals and sweeping Manitoba in the Division Finals before losing to Texas, four-games-to-two. Colliton was named IceHogs head coach on May 18, 2017-his first coaching job in North America.

Prior to joining the Blackhawks organization, Colliton spent four seasons as the head coach of Mora IK in Sweden (HockeyAllsvenskan). A native of Blackie, Alberta, Colliton guided his team to a league-best 35-13-4 record and 105 points during the 2016-17 season. Following the regular season, he led Mora IK to promotion to the for the 2017-18 season after defeating Leksands IF in six games (4-2) of the best-of-seven series. Colliton joined the coaching ranks with Mora IK in an interim head coaching role during the 2013-14 season before taking over full-time the following season. In four seasons with Colliton behind the bench, Mora IK posted a 98-57-18 record.

Prior to becoming a coach, Colliton had an eight-year professional career primarily in the NHL and AHL. He appeared in 57 NHL games across five seasons (2005-09, 2010-11) with the New York Islanders, notching three goals and three assists. He was originally drafted by the Islanders in the second round (58th overall) of the 2003 NHL Draft.

He spent parts of six seasons (2005-09, 2010-12) in the AHL with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, recording 203 points (77G, 126A) in 326 career games. Additionally, he had stints with Rogle Angelholm (2009-10) in the Swedish Elite League and Mora IK (2013-14). He also had experience on the international stage, earning gold and silver medals while representing Canada at the 2005 and 2004 IIHF World U20 Junior Championships, respectively. Colliton and his wife, Jen, have two sons, Ben and Jack, and a daughter, Olivia.

Barry Smith, 66, is in his ninth season as a member of the Blackhawks Hockey Operations staff and joins Colliton's coaching staff as assistant coach. He served as Director of Player Evaluation for the last three seasons with Chicago. He has previously served as an assistant coach in the NHL with Arizona (2005 - 07), was an Associate Coach on 's staff with from 1994 - 2005 and served as an assistant coach with Pittsburgh from 1990 - 94. Smith has been a part of seven championships including two with the Blackhawks (2013 and 2015).

Joel Quenneville departs as the second-winningest head coach in Blackhawks history, registering a record of 452-249-96 in 797 games since 2008. He owns the best playoff record in Blackhawks history, compiling a record of 76-52 including three Stanley Cups (2010, 2013 and 2015). His Blackhawks teams made the playoffs in nine of ten seasons and he stood as the longest tenured head coach in the NHL, having been officially hired by Chicago on October 16, 2008. He is the second-winningest coach in NHL history with an all-time record of 890-532-214. He coached 1,636 career games, first among active NHL coaches and second all-time. Prior to joining the Blackhawks, he served as head coach for the (2005 - 08) and St. Louis Blues (1996 - 2004).

Kevin Dineen joined the Blackhawks coaching staff prior to the 2014-15 season and was in his fifth season with Chicago. He was a member of the Blackhawks 2015 Stanley Cup championship team in 2015. Ulf Samuelsson joined the Blackhawks coaching staff prior to the 2017-18 season and was in his second season with Chicago.

STATEMENTS FROM BLACKHAWKS OWNERSHIP AND EXECUTIVES ON COACHING CHANGES Blackhawks Chairman

"The Chicago Blackhawks front office has made a decision to release Joel Quenneville from his head coaching duties, doing so with my full support. As Chicago Blackhawks fans have seen over the last decade, this organization no longer shies away from making tough decisions or ones based on emotion. Those days are long behind us. Of course, Joel's was difficult, as it should have been. During his tenure as head coach to the Chicago Blackhawks, Joel brought the city of Chicago and our fans three Stanley Cups and an incredible era of hockey.

When Joel was originally hired into our 2008 season, we had great hope for his potential to take the team to new levels. He went beyond what anyone expected. As difficult as that decision in 2008 was, this one was tougher. But as we look to a future history not yet defined, we believe the change we made today, will provide the Chicago Blackhawks a critical element in achieving our goals of Championships in the future, including this season.

I wish Joel and his family well and thank him for his incredible leadership and results. Nothing will ever take away the success he brought our franchise, our fans and my family. Joel will forever be etched into the most memorable era in Chicago Blackhawk hockey. And for that, we will always be connected and always eternally grateful."

Blackhawks President & CEO John McDonough

"This was an extremely difficult decision, given our respect for Joel and all that he has brought to the Chicago Blackhawks organization the last 10 years. His leadership during three Stanley Cup championships speaks for itself and there is no way to adequately express what he has meant to this organization. He will always be a significant member of the Blackhawks family. We have a deep appreciation for how he helped establish our standard and the Blackhawks culture and certainly wish he, Kevin and Ulf only the best in their future."

Blackhawks Senior Vice President/

"This is certainly a very difficult decision. But I believe it is in the best interests of the Blackhawks organization. We need to maximize each and every opportunity with our playoff goals in mind and create continued growth and development throughout our roster at the same time. After much deliberation the last several days, with great respect to what Joel has meant to the Blackhawks, we knew we had to make a change. Along with our appreciation for everything Joel has accomplished for our franchise, we also thank Kevin and Ulf for their many contributions and wish them success in the future.

We are extremely fortunate to have Jeremy Colliton in the Blackhawks organization and feel strongly that he is best positioned to continue leading our players here in Chicago. All of those associated with Jeremy strongly believe he possesses many of the tools that will make him a successful head coach in this league. He has been very impressive as a communicator, a leader, and coach. He knows the Blackhawks system, understands our players and our culture and we believe he gives us the best opportunity to have success and grow as a team."

ChicagoBlackhawks.com

RELEASE: King named Rockford's interim coach

By Chicago Blackhawks Media Relations November 6, 2018

The Chicago Blackhawks announced today that will serve as interim head coach with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League. Assistant Coach will remain as assistant coach. King replaces Jeremy Colliton who was named head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks earlier today.

King, 51, was named assistant coach of the IceHogs on July 7, 2016 and is currently in his third season with the team. Prior to joining the Blackhawks organization, he worked as assistant and associate coach with the Marlies of the AHL from 2009-15. With the Marlies, he helped the team win one Western Conference Championship (2012) and three North Division Championships (2012, 2013, 2014).

The Hamilton, , native had a 14-year career that began with the New York Islanders during the 1986-87 season. After 11 seasons with the Islanders, King also played with the and . His last stop in the NHL came during the 1999-2000 season, playing for the St. Louis Blues.

King totaled 261 goals and 351 assists in 830 career NHL games. In 47 career games, he recorded 21 points (4G, 17A). He was originally selected as the 13th overall pick in the 1985 NHL Draft by the New York Islanders.

NBCSportsChicago.com BREAKING: Blackhawks fire Joel Quenneville; name Jeremy Colliton head coach

By Charlie Roumeliotis November 6, 2018

All good things must come to an end.

The Blackhawks announced on Tuesday morning that they have relieved head coach Joel Quenneville of his duties, who will forever go down as one of the greatest coaches in Chicago sports history.

Quenneville guided the Blackhawks to nine playoff appearances, five Conference Finals and three Stanley Cups in 10- plus seasons with Chicago. He compiled a 452-249-96 record in 452 regular-season games and 76-52 record in the postseason, and became the second winningest coach ever with 890 wins.

But after missing the playoffs last season for the first time since 2007-08 and losing five in a row (0-4-1) following a 6-2-2 start, the Blackhawks are moving in a different direction and named Jeremy Colliton the 38th coach in franchise history. The Blackhawks also parted ways with assistant coaches Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson, but the rest of the coaching staff will remain with the team.

Statement from Blackhawks chairman Rocky Wirtz:

“The Chicago Blackhawks front office has made a decision to release Joel Quenneville from his head coaching duties, doing so with my full support. As Chicago Blackhawks fans have seen over the last decade, this organization no longer shies away from making tough decisions or ones based on emotion. Those days are long behind us. Of course, Joel’s was difficult, as it should have been. During his tenure as head coach to the Chicago Blackhawks, Joel brought the city of Chicago and our fans three Stanley Cups and an incredible era of hockey.

When Joel was originally hired into our 2008 season, we had great hope for his potential to take the team to new levels. He went beyond what anyone expected. As difficult as that decision in 2008 was, this one was tougher. But as we look to a future history not yet defined, we believe the change we made today, will provide the Chicago Blackhawks a critical element in achieving our goals of Championships in the future, including this season.

I wish Joel and his family well and thank him for his incredible leadership and results. Nothing will ever take away the success he brought our franchise, our fans and my family. Joel will forever be etched into the most memorable era in Chicago Blackhawk hockey. And for that, we will always be connected and always eternally grateful.”

Statement from Blackhawks President & CEO John McDonough:

“This was an extremely difficult decision, given our respect for Joel and all that he has brought to the Chicago Blackhawks organization the last 10 years. His leadership during three Stanley Cup championships speaks for itself and there is no way to adequately express what he has meant to this organization. He will always be a significant member of the Blackhawks family. We have a deep appreciation for how he helped establish our standard and the Blackhawks culture and certainly wish he, Kevin and Ulf only the best in their future.”

Statement from Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman:

“This is certainly a very difficult decision. But I believe it is in the best interests of the Blackhawks organization. We need to maximize each and every opportunity with our playoff goals in mind and create continued growth and development throughout our roster at the same time. After much deliberation the last several days, with great respect to what Joel has meant to the Blackhawks, we knew we had to make a change. Along with our appreciation for everything Joel has accomplished for our franchise, we also thank Kevin and Ulf for their many contributions and wish them success in the future. We are extremely fortunate to have Jeremy Colliton in the Blackhawks organization and feel strongly that he is best positioned to continue leading our players here in Chicago. All of those associated with Jeremy strongly believe he possesses many of the tools that will make him a successful head coach in this league. He has been very impressive as a communicator, a leader, and coach. He knows the Blackhawks system, understands our players and our culture and we believe he gives us the best opportunity to have success and grow as a team.

Colliton becomes the youngest head coach in the NHL at 33 years of age. He led the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League to a 40-28-4-4 record in his first year as head coach in 2017-18 and guided the club to their first-ever Western Conference Finals.

NBCSportsChicago.com Ready or not, Blackhawks entering new era with hiring of 33-year-old Jeremy Colliton as head coach

By Charlie Roumeliotis November 6, 2018

After missing the playoffs last season for the first time since 2007-08, the Blackhawks made it clear that changes would be made if the results didn't as well going into the 2018-19 season.

The Blackhawks started out 6-2-2 and did so without Corey Crawford for the first five games, which gave the city of Chicago hope that 2017-18 may have been a blip.

But since then, they've lost five in a row (0-4-1) and the same issues that were magnified last season are still there: the power play remains near the bottom of the league, they've given up the second-most high quality scoring chances at even strength and the depth scoring has been a non-factor.

Something needed to change.

In an effort to do that, the Blackhawks relieved the second winningest coach in NHL history and three-time Stanley Cup winner Joel Quenneville of his duties and named Jeremy Colliton the new head coach.

By no means is Quenneville at sole fault for what has transpired over the last several seasons. There's certainly blame to go around everywhere. But the Blackhawks know they can't sit back and let another season pass without being in contention during the prime years of and Jonathan Toews, both of whom are off to their best starts of their careers in Year 12.

Quenneville was in his 11th season in Chicago, by far the most of any active head coach; for reference, is now the new leader in his seventh season with the . That's how spoiled the Blackhawks have been with Quenneville, who will forever be known as one of the greatest coaches in Chicago sports history.

By bringing in Colliton, the Blackhawks are hoping a new voice can help change the fortunes of this season and beyond but also instill new philosophies in a game that's constantly evolving. At 33 years of age, Colliton becomes the youngest active NHL head coach.

Colliton led the Rockford IceHogs to their first-ever Western Conference Finals after compiling a 40-28-4-4 record in his first season as an American Hockey League head coach in 2017-18. Before that, he spent four seasons as head coach of Mora IK in Sweden, where he guided his team a league-best 35-13-4 record and 105 points during the 2016-17 campaign.

People around the league have raved about Colliton's projection as an NHL head coach one day, but perhaps didn't see it coming this soon.

Core players have been traded. Assistant coaches have been fired. Quenneville was the perfect coach to oversee a well- oiled machine for the last decade. But times have changed.

In the middle of a retooling period, the Blackhawks felt it was time to part ways with the future Hall of Fame coach and hand the keys to somebody with no NHL coaching experience, but has a new way of thinking.

Ready or not, welcome to a new era.

NBCSportsChicago.com Blackhawks players react and accept responsibility for Joel Quenneville's firing

By Charlie Roumeliotis November 6, 2018

The Blackhawks arrived at MB Ice Arena on Tuesday morning to find out that three-time Stanley Cup winner Joel Quenneville was relieved of his head coaching duties. Not only did it shock the hockey world, but it surprised players inside the locker room.

While they all understand it's a results-oriented business, the theme was consistent. The Blackhawks all took ownership of missing out on the playoffs last season and the recent five-game skid after a 6-2-2 start that played a role in their head coach losing his job.

"It was a shock to wake up to the news this morning for sure," Jonathan Toews said. "I think everyone, as players in the locker room, you take responsibilities. But at the end of the day, whether it's trades, changes, coaches being relieved of duties, those decisions are above your head and you have to respect them and you have to acknowledge them and move on with the decisions that have been made. But there's no doubt that there's going to be some shock there especially for guys like myself and the other guys in this room who have played for him for a long time."

Patrick Kane, who missed the first of three road games last week because of an illness, admitted he started playing the "what if" game in his head after learning on the news.

"To be honest with you, this is just kind of a me thing, but when I first heard the news I'm just kind of thinking I wish I wasn't sick in Vancouver or I wish I maybe felt better on the road trip and could have played better and then maybe something like this doesn't happen," Kane said. "Just thoughts running through your head. Also, [Duncan Keith] got kicked out two minutes into the game in Calgary. Maybe that makes a difference in the game as well. Different things run through your head as players.

"I think Joel actually got a lot out of this group as players the last couple years. He's done a great job of bringing the younger guys along and developing them. Same thing for this year as well. Obviously, missing the playoffs didn't help. A lot of answers I don't have. Definitely a tough morning for everyone for sure."

The core leadership group has been here for all 11 years of Quenneville's tenure in Chicago, which included three Stanley Cups, five Conference Final appearances, two Central Division titles and a Presidents' Trophy. But it's the personal bond they each developed that will never be forgotten.

"He means the world to me," Brent Seabrook said. "10 years, three Stanley Cups. What was I, 23, 24, when I came here? He taught me a lot as a young man, as a young player. Little things he always harped on that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. Just the way he was with us, how he treated us professionally and as individuals. He was always a guy who liked to have some fun and what-not, but gave us our space and allowed us to be players. It was just a tough day today and you cherish the days and memories and all the stuff we did together."

Said Corey Crawford: "We spent a lot of time here with Joel as the coach, and the team has had three championships, obviously. You never want to see a guy leave, including the coaches. We’ve been through so much together. For me, personally, he’s had a ton of confidence in me from the start, and it’s hard to hear that news. In this business, those things happen sometimes. It seems like coaches are maybe the first ones to go most of the time. It’s just hard to see him go."

NBCSportsChicago.com weighs in on the firing of Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville

By Cam Ellis November 6, 2018

The news of Joel Quenneville's firing from the Blackhawks this morning took a lot of people by surprise. Consider Eddie Olczyk one of them.

Olczyk, who was drafted by the Blackhawks and played their for the first three years of his career, sat down with David Kaplan to talk about the decision.

"You feel for any coach, even more so for Joel Quenneville," Olczyk said. "He's a friend and he's someone that's brought so much to this franchise."

"... yeah, I'm surprised. I'm shocked. But I know the business and the Blackhawks are doing what they feel is best at this particular time," he added. "Let's not underestimate the impact that Joel Quenneville has had on this team and the city."

NBCSportsChicago.com

Who is Jeremy Colliton, the Blackhawks new head coach?

By Michael Allardyce November 6, 2018

After a rough start to the 2018-19 season, the Blackhawks "relieved" Joel Quenneville and assistants Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson of their coaching duties. The rest of the staff will remain on the team and Jeremy Colliton has been named the 38th head coach in franchise history.

But who exactly is Jeremy Colliton?

He was most recently the head coach of the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League, 12 games into his second season before being named Blackhawks head coach. He led the IceHogs to the 2018 AHL Western Conference Finals for the first time last season.

And at 33 he will become the youngest head coach currently in the NHL. He is also younger than Duncan Keith, Chris Kunitz, Corey Crawford and Cam Ward. He is also just four months older than Brent Seabrook.

More from the Blackhawks statement on the coaching changes:

Prior to joining the Blackhawks organization, Colliton spent four seasons as the head coach of Mora IK in Sweden (HockeyAllsvenskan). A native of Blackie, Alberta, Colliton guided his team to a league-best 35-13-4 record and 105 points during the 2016-17 season. Following the regular season, he led Mora IK to promotion to the Swedish Hockey League for the 2017-18 season after defeating Leksands IF in six games (4-2) of the best-of-seven series. Colliton joined the coaching ranks with Mora IK in an interim head coaching role during the 2013-14 season before taking over full-time the following season. In four seasons with Colliton behind the bench, Mora IK posted a 98-57-18 record.

Colliton was drafted in the second round of the 2003 NHL Draft by the Islanders and played 57 games with the New York Islanders over five seasons (2005-09, 2010-11).

He spent parts of six seasons (2005-09, 2010-12) in the AHL with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, recording 203 points (77G, 126A) in 326 career games. Additionally, he had stints with Rogle Angelholm (2009-10) in the Swedish Elite League and Mora IK (2013-14). He also had experience on the international stage, earning gold and silver medals while representing Canada at the 2005 and 2004 IIHF World U20 Junior Championships, respectively.

Colliton has big shoes to fill, following Quenneville who led the team to three Stanley Cups. But young managers are working in baseball, the NFL and college football. The Blackhawks are hopeful Colliton can have the same effect on the Blackhawks.

NBCSportsChicago.com

Jamal Mayers reacts to Joel Quenneville’s firing

By Paul Aspan November 6, 2018

Count former Blackhawks Stanley Cup Champion forward and NBC Sports Chicago Blackhawks analyst Jamal Mayers among those who did not see the Hawks firing of head coach Joel Quenneville coming.

“Well obviously it’s gotta be shock, you think about what Joel’s done in his time here,” Mayers told NBC Sports Chicago when asked about his initial reaction to the news.

Mayers, who played seven seasons under Quenneville in St. Louis, before his two seasons with him in Chicago, went on to list the coach’s Hall of Fame credentials that weren’t enough to save his job - 3 Stanley Cup championships in 10-plus seasons as Blackhawks head coach, second winningest coach in the history of the NHL - while also relaying his own personal gratitude.

“Certainly (I) feel indebted to Joel, for bringing me back to play for him in Chicago and a chance to win a Stanley Cup and actually make it happen in 2013."

As for the timing of the move, which comes on the heels of an 0-4-1 stretch, Mayers pointed to the 4 day break between games and – while qualifying that he would only be speculating – the sense of urgency for a playoff push, just over 5 weeks into the season.

“I think (the Blackhawks front office) sees that there’s so many teams clustered together, that the team needed to make a move here in the next six weeks, (and that they think that stretch) is that critical to making the playoffs, and I guess they thought a change needed to be made."

As a former player, Mayers was also quick to out that the Blackhawks players will bear the burden of this decision.

“I know that the leadership group will be disappointed in themselves, that they let him down," Mayers said. "The reality is that you can’t fire 23 players. It’s the easiest way to shake up a team. I think they’ll take ownership of it. I think they’ll take responsibility. And I think they’ll be upset enough to help change the course of the way things have been going the last five or six games.”

NBCSportsChicago.com

A timeline of Joel Quenneville's tenure with the Blackhawks

By Slavko Bekovic November 6, 2018

The biggest questions stemming from the Blackhawks firing of Joel Quenneville are “why now?” and “what now?”

We don’t know the answer to the latter, but we can piece together the reasons for the former. Here’s a timeline of Quenneville’s career with the Blackhawks:

Summer 2008: After mutually parting ways with the Colorado Avalanche, Joel Quenneville joins the Blackhawks organization as a scout.

October 16, 2008: The Blackhawks fire head coach after a 1-2-1 start to the season and name Quenneville head coach.

April 4, 2009: The Blackhawks clinch their first playoff berth since the 2001-2002 season with a 3-1 win over Nashville.

June 9, 2010: Patrick Kane scores the game-winner in game 6 against the Flyers, clinching the Blackhawks first Stanley Cup in 49 years.

2013: Following the NHL lockout, Quenneville’s Blackhawks set an NHL record with a streak of 24 straight games with a point to start the season.

June 24, 2013: Quenneville becomes the first head coach in franchise history to win multiple Stanley Cups after the Blackhawks complete a miraculous 17-second comeback in Boston.

June 1, 2014: Blackhawks lose in overtime of game 7 of the Western Conference Finals to the Kings after a puck deflects off and into the Blackhawks net.

June 15, 2015: With a 2-0 win on home ice, the Blackhawks clinch their third Stanley Cup victory in six seasons.

January 14, 2016: Quenneville passes for second all-time in NHL history with 783 regular season head coaching wins.

April 25, 2016: The Blackhawks are eliminated in the first round of the playoffs with a 3-2 loss in game 7 against the St. Louis Blues.

April 20, 2017: After claiming the Western Conference’s top seed, the Blackhawks are swept in four games by the in the first round of the playoffs.

March 21, 2018: For the first time since 2009, the Blackhawks are officially eliminated from contention and miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

November 6, 2018: Joel Quenneville is fired as head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks.

Quenneville leaves the Blackhawks as the NHL’s second winningest coach with 890 wins, trailing only Scotty Bowman’s 1244. He is second in Blackhawks franchise history with 452 wins behind Billy Reay’s 516 but leads the organization with 76 playoff wins. He is one of 11 head coaches in league history to win 3-or-more Stanley Cups.

So the question for both Quenneville and the Blackhawks remain: “what now?”

NHL.com

Blackhawks veterans saddened by Quenneville firing

By Scott King November 6, 2018

Joel Quenneville being fired as coach of the Chicago Blackhawks after 11 seasons Tuesday came as a shock to his players, especially those who won three Stanley Cup championships under him.

"I think there's a lot of different emotions that you kind of go through when something like that happens," said forward Patrick Kane, a key member of the Cup-winning teams in 2010, 2013 and 2015. "It was a tough day for everyone."

Jeremy Colliton, at 33 the youngest coach in the League, will make his NHL coaching debut when the Blackhawks host the at on Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCH, FS-CR, NHL.TV). It will be the first game Chicago will play without Quenneville since Oct. 16, 2008.

"The guy breeds winning," Kane said. "Coming in as a young player, I think there's lessons you probably thought you knew at the time that you had to learn along the way and he wasn't afraid to teach them to you, whether it was playing both ends of the ice or not being afraid to sit you if you made a mistake, take a bad , things like that.

"The one thing that just sticks out is his passion and his excitement to try and win hockey games, so that will definitely be a void that we'll try to fill in here."

Quenneville, 60, was 452-249-96 with Chicago. His 890 wins in 22 seasons with the St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche and Blackhawks are second in NHL history behind Scotty Bowman (1,244). Quenneville has coached 1,636 NHL games, also second to Bowman (2,141).

But following five straight losses to fall to 6-6-3 this season, two points behind the Avalanche for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference, Chicago fired Quenneville, the second-winningest coach in Blackhawks history behind Billy Reay (516).

"He means the world to me," defenseman Brent Seabrook said of Quenneville. "Ten years, three Stanley Cups, what was I, 23, 24, when I came here? He taught me a lot as a young man, as a young player. Little things he always harped on that I'll remember for the rest of my life, for sure.

"Just the way he was with us, how he treated us professionally and as individuals. He was always a guy who liked to have some fun and what-not but gave us our space and allowed us to be players. It was just, you know, a tough day today, and [I'll] cherish the days and memories and all the stuff we did together."

Goalie Corey Crawford, who won the Cup twice under Quenneville, said he was caught unaware when he arrived at practice Tuesday.

"I was pretty surprised this morning," Crawford said. "We spent a lot of time here with Joel as the coach, and the team has had three championships, obviously. You never want to see a guy leave, including the coaches.

"We've been through so much together. I think for me, personally, he's had a ton of confidence in me from the start, and it's hard to hear that news. In this business, those things happen sometimes. It seems like coaches are maybe the first ones to go most of the time. Like I said, it's just hard to see him go."

NHL.com

Quenneville turned Blackhawks into Stanley Cup champions

By John Kreiser November 6, 2018

Joel Quenneville, the second-winningest coach in NHL history, was fired Tuesday by the Chicago Blackhawks.

Quenneville, 60, has 890 wins, more than any other NHL coach except Scotty Bowman (1,244). He was in his 11th season with the Blackhawks and led Chicago to the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015.

Here's a timeline of Quenneville's career:

June 15, 1978 -- Quenneville, a defenseman coming off a 103-point season with Windsor of the , is selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second round (No. 21) of the 1978 NHL Draft. He makes his NHL debut Oct. 22 against the and scores his first NHL against the on March 3, 1979.

Dec. 29, 1979 -- The Maple Leafs trade Quenneville to the Colorado Rockies as part of a package for forward Lanny McDonald.

March 21, 1981 -- Quenneville has an assist in the Rockies' 3-1 loss to the . It's the last game he plays in what turns out to be his best offensive season; he finishes with 34 points (10 goals, 24 assists) in 71 games.

July 5, 1983 -- Two weeks after being traded to the by the , Quenneville is traded to the Hartford Whalers with defenseman Richie Dunn for defenseman Mickey Volcan. Quenneville plays seven seasons with the Whalers.

Oct. 3, 1990 -- The Whalers trade Quenneville to the Washington Capitals for cash. He plays nine games for the Capitals in 1990-91, his final season in the NHL. He finishes with 190 points (54 goals, 136 assists) in 803 NHL games.

July 30, 1991 -- Quenneville signs with the Maple Leafs. He spends the 1991-92 season as a player/assistant coach with St. John's of the American Hockey League.

Jan. 6, 1997 -- After serving as an AHL coach (Springfield) and an NHL assistant ( Nordiques/Colorado Avalanche), Quenneville gets his first NHL coaching job with the St. Louis Blues. He replaces Jim Roberts, who had replaced 18 days earlier. The Blues finish 18-15-7 under Quenneville and advance to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but they lose in six games to the in the Western Conference Quarterfinals.

April 9, 2000 -- The Blues finish the season 51-19-1 with 11 ties, winning the Presidents' Trophy for the first time. The 114 points remain a St. Louis record. However, the upset the Blues in the Western Conference Quarterfinals, winning the series in seven games. Quenneville wins the as the NHL's top coach.

Feb. 24, 2004 -- With the Blues in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time since 1978-79, Quenneville is fired. He is 307-191-18 with 77 ties in 593 games with St. Louis. His 307 wins remain a Blues record.

July 7, 2004 -- Quenneville returns to the Avalanche when he's hired as coach, replacing . When the NHL resumes play in 2005 after the lockout, Quenneville guides the Avalanche to the second round of the playoffs. They fail to qualify in 2006-07 despite matching their point total in 2005-06 (95). Quenneville gets the Avalanche back to the playoffs in 2007-08, but after they're eliminated in the second round by the Red Wings, he's fired May 9, 2008.

Oct. 16, 2008 -- One month after being hired by the Blackhawks as a pro scout, Quenneville is named to succeed Denis Savard as coach. The Blackhawks, who haven't qualified for the playoffs since 2002, go 45-22-11 under Quenneville, finish second in the Central Division and reach the Western Conference Final before being eliminated by the Red Wings, who go on to win the Stanley Cup. June 9, 2010 -- The Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1961 when Patrick Kane's overtime goal in Game 6 of the Final gives them a 4-3 victory against the Flyers. The victory ends a streak of five consecutive losses in the Final and gives Quenneville his first championship as an NHL coach.

June 24, 2013 -- Quenneville becomes a two-time Cup winner with the Blackhawks when Chicago rallies to defeat the 3-2 in Game 6 of the Final. The victory caps a season when the Blackhawks finish first in the regular season (36-7-5) after getting at least one point in each of their first 24 games (21-0-3).

June 15, 2015 -- The Blackhawks win the Cup for the third time in six seasons when they defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-0 in Game 6 of the Final at United Center. It's the first time the Blackhawks win the Cup at home since 1938, and he becomes the third coach in Chicago sports history to win at least three championships, joining George Halas of the NFL's Bears and Phil Jackson of the NBA's Bulls.

Jan. 14, 2016 -- The Blackhawks defeat the Canadiens 2-1 at Bell to give Quenneville his 783rd NHL victory, moving him past Al Arbour into second place. On April 3, the Blackhawks defeat the Bruins 6-4 to give Quenneville his 800th win.

March 10, 2018 -- Quenneville coaches his 1,608th NHL game, passing Arbour for second place behind Bowman (2,141). It comes in a 7-4 loss to the Bruins. The Blackhawks finish the season 33-39-10 and miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2007-08.

Nov. 6, 2018 -- With the Blackhawks off to a 6-6-3 start after being swept on a three-game trip through Western Canada, Quenneville is fired and replaced by Jeremy Colliton. He finishes his time in Chicago 452-249-96 (.627) in 797 games with a 76-52 mark in the playoffs and is the only coach in Blackhawks history to win the Stanley Cup three times. His overall record is 890-532-137 with 77 ties.

NHL.com

Colliton becomes coach of Blackhawks, youngest in NHL

By Tracey Myers November 6, 2018

Jeremy Colliton, named coach of the Chicago Blackhawks after Joel Quenneville was fired Tuesday, has gotten successful results quickly with his previous teams.

But taking over the Blackhawks (6-6-5), who have lost five straight and are sixth in the Central Division, Colliton has to adapt much faster.

"The challenge is to hit the ground running," Colliton said. "... It's just communication with everyone, as early as possible, with as many as possible, so that everyone is on the same page and we know what the plan is. We plan to win. That's the priority right now."

Colliton, at 33 the youngest coach in the NHL, takes over for Quenneville, 60, who is second in NHL wins with 890 (Scotty Bowman, 1,244). Quenneville was 452-249-96 in 11 seasons with the Blackhawks and won the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015.

Assistants Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson were also fired Tuesday. Goaltending coach Jimmy Waite and assistant will remain on Colliton's staff, and Barry Smith, formerly the Blackhawks director of player evaluation, will be an assistant.

Colliton in his first season coached Rockford of the American Hockey League to its first Western Conference Finals, where it lost to Texas. The Blackhawks believe Colliton can have the same impact in the NHL.

"Watching the way his teams play and watching the way that he handles the team and his strengths as a coach are things which I think are going to help our group get to the next level," Chicago general manager Stan Bowman said. "... Jeremy [has] had a lot of success for a guy who doesn't have a long number of years as a coach, not only last year with our Rockford team, but previous to that."

Colliton coached Mora IK in Sweden for four seasons, was 98-57-18, and helped it get promoted to the Swedish Hockey League in his final season (2016-17). He was hired by Chicago to replace Ted Dent in Rockford.

"It was similar to what we were asking him to do in Rockford: Take a young group, walk a fine line and get wins in Rockford, but most important make sure these guys are developing to move up to Chicago," Rockford general manager Mark Bernard said.

"The one thing I loved about Jeremy is the positivity he brings to the rink. Win or lose the night before, the players came into the rink next morning knowing it was going to be a positive environment. We're going to move forward, we're going to learn from it, grow and get better. Sometimes players walk into a room not knowing what to expect. This is a guy who wants to succeed and wants them to get better and is willing to work with them."

Blackhawks forward John Hayden played 24 games for Colliton last season with Rockford, plus 13 in the playoffs.

"I just remember the locker room having the right vibes all the time," Hayden said. "The most recent memory for me was our success in the playoffs, how he managed our team, players individually and the team overall. And he's not that far removed from playing pro hockey himself, so I think he can use that to his advantage." Colliton had six points (three goals, three assists) in 57 games during five seasons as a center with the New York Islanders from 2005-11, and will make his NHL coaching debut Thursday when Chicago plays the Carolina Hurricanes at United Center (8:30 p.m. ET; NBCSCH, FS-CR, NHL.TV). "Jeremy's a very calm individual," Bernard said. "I really never saw him upset. He handles things well and takes everything in stride. He's calculated. I think he'll take a deep breath tonight and enter his real, full workday [Wednesday]. He's vibrant, full of energy and ready to make this team his own."

ESPN.com Who is Jeremy Colliton? 6 things to know about the new Blackhawks coach

By Emily Kaplan November 6, 2018

Here's what we know about new Chicago Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton: He's 33 years old and was selected in the 2003 NHL draft, the same class as Chicago defenseman Brent Seabrook. Actually, the two know each other quite well: Colliton played in a summer league with Seabrook when they were 11.

"We sort of followed the same career path," Seabrook said. They played in the against each other and were teammates for Team Canada on two World Juniors teams. Afterward is where their careers diverged.

While Seabrook was taken No. 14 overall by the Blackhawks and has now skated in 1,019 NHL games and counting, Colliton was drafted in the second round by the New York Islanders, but played in only 57 NHL games over five seasons. He struggled to latch onto a team after the 2012-13 lockout and signed with Mora IK in Sweden. Colliton played only three games before retiring, still feeling effects of post-concussion syndrome. He transitioned into coaching, staying in Sweden.

The Blackhawks became enamored with Colliton and hired him to coach their AHL team before last season. Here's what else we know about Colliton: He and his wife just welcomed a new daughter on Thursday, five days before his NHL appointment. (The couple also has two sons). We know that Colliton was known in Rockford as being a great communicator. We know GM Stan Bowman and team president John McDonough think highly of him. But in a nearly 40- minute introductory news conference during which Colliton sat beside his bosses and team owner Rocky Wirtz, we didn't learn much about the man tasked with succeeding Joel Quenneville, the NHL's second-winningest coach of all time.

Colliton only briefly referenced his notes, a page from a spiral notebook. He was soft-spoken, if not deferential. The youngest coach in the NHL will be a mystery to many, and his impact on the team remains to be seen. In the meantime, here's everything we know about the state of the Blackhawks, including the important questions that need to be explored.

Veterans' guilt

Parting with Quenneville was never going to be easy, but the veterans who won three Stanley Cups with the coach took the firing especially hard.

"Definite shock," Jonathan Toews said. "I didn't think there was going to be a change for a while."

The Blackhawks got off to a quick start but earned only one of their last possible 10 points, including a winless Western Canada road swing immediately before the firing.

"When I first heard the news I was thinking. 'I wish I wasn't sick that game in Vancouver,'" Patrick Kane said. "I wish I felt good on that road trip and could have played better and something like this doesn't happen. ... Also, Duncs [Duncan Keith] got kicked out two minutes into the game in Calgary; maybe that makes the difference in the game as well. There's different things that run through your head as a player."

Quenneville, many felt, was the fall guy. "To say directly the coach is at fault is pretty rough," goalie Corey Crawford said, adding Quenneville was the coach who had faith in him from the beginning. "We just weren't performing the way we should, I guess, and in sports unfortunately the coach takes the fall first most of the time."

Blackhawks management disputed that the dreadful Western Canada swing was the sole reason for the firing, but it was certainly the impetus. Management saw a situation where the season could spiral, as Wirtz said. "We want to make sure that we're able to salvage this season and do everything we can to make this right," McDonough said. "I've said this before: People always want to talk about what is the right time? Is June 7 the right time? Is Dec. 10 the right time? There is no right time."

Denials of a power struggle

There have been rumblings of a power struggle between the coaching staff and management for years, and Bowman especially wanted to quash any rumors.

"There's no truth to that whatsoever," the GM said. "Quite the contrary. Joel's been great to me the entire time we've been together. I would say we have a very good relationship. Do we agree on everything over 10 years? No, we don't. But we see the game very similarly and I think that's one of the reasons we were able to have as much success as we did together. So there's just no truth to that at all."

McDonough said the team didn't consider firing Quenneville last season, considering Crawford was out and the loss of Marian Hossa was significant. The team's performance -- missing the playoffs for the first time in a decade -- wasn't an indictment on Quenneville considering the hand he was dealt. Wirtz, however, seemed to hint that the group considered a change last season.

"John came to me and Stan, and we talked about this," Wirtz said of the decision to fire Quenneville. "We talked about it last year. We talked about it this year. You have to put the team, the organization and the company first."

McDonough said he did not consider firing both Quenneville and Bowman, reiterating his faith in Bowman's roster construction. It should be noted that McDonough has a bigger say in hockey operations matters than most team presidents.

'He's a guy that you can talk to'

So why exactly does the team have so much faith in Colliton? It was clearly invested in his development, but the promotion felt rushed; Colliton was only in his second season in the AHL. Despite success -- the team made it to the Western Conference finals this past season -- it's not like he was a coveted asset the Blackhawks needed to secure before another team snatched him up.

Blackhawks management repeatedly called Collision a good communicator, and it got a bit defensive, clarifying that it wasn't saying there was a communication breakdown with Quenneville.

Young players who came through Rockford rave about the coach. Consider 26-year-old defenseman Erik Gustafsson, who had a cup of coffee with the Blackhawks last season before being sent back down. "When I got sent down last year, my confidence wasn't great," Gustafsson said. "I guess you could say I had a hard time. He talked me through it."

When asked if it was Colliton who initiated the talks or Gustafsson, the player said: "He came to me. I came to him, too. We met halfway there."

Gustafsson has since become an NHL regular, playing in 15 games this season and averaging 21 minutes per game.

"He does a good job of understanding all of his players and understanding where the team is at physically and emotionally and managing that," said John Hayden, who began with the Blackhawks but finished the season with Rockford last season. "Yes he's young, but he uses that to his advantage. He's relatable. He's not that far removed from playing in the NHL and playing pro hockey."

Bowman cited veterans Lance Bouma and Cody Franson buying into Colliton's system -- despite being disappointed they weren't on the NHL -- as a reason he thinks Colliton can lead a team with eight players who are 30 or older. Different style

Colliton's first practice was definitely up-tempo. He seemed to use a lot of the same line combinations we've seen recently, but again, it was Day 1. Will he implement new systems? Based off his comments, don't expect anything drastic, at least not right away. "Yeah, there'll be some things that we adjust," Colliton said. "I don't think we're going to have a huge amount of change. It's, 'Can we push on a few things, detail-wise, that can give us a little jump start?' And then once we get our hands dirty here and we know [one another] a little better and play some games, then, yeah, things are going to come up and we'll feel more comfortable and have a better feel for what we have to do."

The Blackhawks also fired two assistant coaches -- Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson -- and only added one: 66-year-old Barry Smith, who had been on the Blackhawks' hockey operations staff. (Smith has been an assistant coach on three teams, but was last behind an NHL bench in 2007). Bowman said he doesn't have plans to hire another assistant.

When asked how the new staff would divvy up duties -- Dineen, for example, was in charge of the power play -- Colliton said that has yet to be determined. "So we're sharing everything right now," the new coach said. "We just started. That's kind of an ongoing conversation."

More moves on the way?

The Colliton hiring certainly signals the Blackhawks are embracing their youth movement. It's only one month into the season and plenty of time to make up ground, but if the Blackhawks continue to flounder, it's fair to wonder if a big shake-up is coming. For the record, management reiterated the goal is to still win this season. When asked if he anticipates roster moves if the team stands as it is, Bowman vaguely said he's always looking for ways to improve the roster. He wasn't going to tip his hand.

But say the team still struggles -- who could be moved?

Kane is likely untouchable. At 30, he is still producing at a superstar level and shows no sign of regression. A trade of captain Toews would be shocking and might cause irrevocable harm in the locker room and among the fan base.

That leaves defensemen Seabrook and Keith. Seabrook's is the name most circulated among fans, though his cap hit (6.85 million) and term (through the 2023-24 season) make his contract almost too cumbersome to move. Any trade involving Seabrook would likely include other players. Keith ($5,538,462 million through 2022-23) is far more attractive to other teams, though the Blackhawks would demand a huge return.

Brandon Saad has struggled in his second stint, but trading him would mean Bowman admitting mistake; and just like when this issue sprouted up last season, it would entail Chicago selling low.

But after the team fired a coach who won three Stanley Cups for the franchise, it's tough to say that anything would be truly shocking at this point.

ESPN.com Answering the big questions on the Blackhawks' firing of Quenneville

By Greg Wyshynski November 6, 2018

Every NHL coach expects to be fired one day. Yet there's still something jarring about the Chicago Blackhawks firing coach Joel Quenneville after 797 games as head coach, having posted a .627 winning percentage. The Blackhawks won three Stanley Cups under Quenneville in six seasons, from 2009-2015. They had won three Cups in their previous 82 seasons before that.

What's next for all involved? A look at the future for the Blackhawks and Quenneville.

Why fire Joel Quenneville?

After a brief resurgence earlier this season, the Blackhawks have dropped down the standings. Their past two weeks have been particularly brutal: an 0-4-1 run against the Oilers, Canucks, Flames and the Blues, who routed them 7-3. They have a 6-6-3 record overall and a minus-10 goal differential. The Blackhawks have 15 points through the first 15 games of the season, their fewest at this point since 2010-11.

The Blackhawks have also been disastrous on special teams, with a terrible power play (27th) and a below average penalty kill (22nd), which is why assistant coaches Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson are out the door with him.

That performance is only part of the "why." The clashes between Quenneville and Blackhawks management, in particular general manager Stan Bowman, have been many. It's a relationship that could find tenuous peace in the good times, but a run of failure for the franchise -- two first-round exits followed by a 76-point season outside the playoffs in 2017-18 -- has broken that peace. Bowman outlasted his coach.

Whether or not this season is salvageable, there's another reason why Quenneville was fired, and it's the reason most decisions are made in the NHL: money. He's signed for $6 million annually through next season. The chances he gets a new job by the time you read this sentence, and comes off the Blackhawks' books, is rather high. If Chicago is going to be a bad team again, it might as well be one with Jeremy Colliton's salary behind the bench.

Why hire Jeremy Colliton?

When it comes to coaching experience, Colliton isn't exactly Joel Quenneville. From 2014-17, he was head coach for Mora IK of the HockeyAllsvenskan in Sweden after a playing career that spanned from 2005-14. He appeared in 57 games in the NHL, all with the New York Islanders.

He was named head coach of the AHL Rockford Ice Hogs in 2017, and coached the Blackhawks' minor league affiliate until replacing Quenneville. At 33, he's the youngest head coach in the NHL. To put things in perspective, he was drafted by the Islanders in the same year the Blackhawks drafted current defenseman Brent Seabrook.

What does he bring to the team, besides an obvious cost savings? Relatability. Quenneville is 60 years old and one of the most accomplished bench bosses in NHL history. Colliton isn't far removed from being one of the boys. There are 15 players under the age of 30 on the Blackhawks roster, with a youth movement ongoing. Going younger in the hopes of energizing the supporting cast is a time-honored NHL tradition -- look no further than the Boston Bruins and last season.

"To play in the NHL, you can't just go up there and try to survive," Colliton told NHL.com in March. "You can't just try to get rid of the puck. You've got to have some confidence to make some plays, be physical when it's necessary, win a battle when it's necessary. It's just part of their process to be the guy that makes a difference. We're trying to give them a little bit of that edge, a little bit of personality to their game, and hopefully that will serve them well." Those who know Colliton rave about his hockey acumen and demeanor. Clearly, given his trajectory, the Blackhawks feel they have something special to have named him head coach, rather than interim.

What's next for Joel Quenneville?

Quenneville would bring a Cup-winning pedigree to any team that would hire him. AP Photo/Matt Slocum

Really, anything he'd like. It's rare a coach of this caliber becomes available, one that will have teams that are otherwise comfortable with their coaches asking "what if?" while teams that are contemplating a change are running budget numbers.

Teams that immediately come to mind that might be in the Quenneville business:

The St. Louis Blues, where he used to coach and where isn't getting results with a veteran roster.

The Philadelphia Flyers, where he could take over a roster on the upswing with a team that could pay him handsomely.

The , a highly hyped team that's currently last in the Eastern Conference. , their general manager, hired Quenneville in Chicago and helped build their dynastic team.

The , whose coach Randy Carlyle is in his last contractual season and who are being kept on life support by goalie John Gibson's play.

The , who fired coach John Stevens on Monday and have as an interim coach.

The , who could view him as a significant upgrade over second-year coach Phil Housley. Owner missed out on when he signed with the Leafs; what would he pay to land Quenneville?

There are also two long-term options for him: The Detroit Red Wings, who are rebuilding while coach watches the clock tick on his tenure; and, potentially, the Seattle expansion franchise that could begin playing in 2020- 21. Perhaps Quenneville could sit by and collect some salary before making things official there and taking on a fun new challenge?

But the most intriguing option: The . Coach Todd McLellan's job was saved -- for now -- by a recent streak up the standings. Quenneville has excelled while coaching dynamic talent in the past, and they don't come more dynamic than Connor McDavid. He also has deep Hockey Canada ties with management in Edmonton, including team CEO Bob Nicholson.

What's next for the Blackhawks?

What's the future of Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane in Chicago? Rob Grabowski/USA TODAY Sports

The timing of this might have seemed sudden, but if the Blackhawks are going to kick-start their season, it had to happen now. Beginning Thanksgiving week, they face a stretch that features some of the league's best: three games against Winnipeg, two against Nashville, and battles against Eastern powers like Tampa Bay, Washington and Pittsburgh during a 15-game run. If they aren't playing better by then, they'll be eaten like a stuffed turkey.

But beyond this season, this is still a problem of construction over coaching. Joel Quenneville didn't inflate the team's payroll to the point where a collection of outstanding players -- Niklas Hjalmarsson, Artemi Panarin, Teuvo Teravainen among them -- were jettisoned out of financial considerations. The Blackhawks will remain in salary cap hell next season, with $61.1 million already committed to 14 players, six of whom have no-move protection. That currently leaves just over $18 million for nine other players. Hence, youth movement down the roster.

So the essential questions now for Chicago: Does Jeremy Colliton lead a renaissance back to championship contender status while Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith still have something left? If not, how long before Stan Bowman pays for these diminishing returns with his own job?

Chicago Tribune Who is Jeremy Colliton? 6 things to know about the new Blackhawks coach

By Tim Bannon November 6, 2018

The Blackhawks on Tuesday stunned the city on Election Day, firing Joel Quenneville and naming Jeremy Colliton as their new coach. Many Hawks fans probably have never heard of Colliton. So here are some things to know.

1. He is 33 (born Jan. 13, 1985), making him the youngest coach in the NHL.

When he took over as Rockford IceHogs coach last year, he addressed his age. “I don’t know if it’s the age that’s the advantage,” he said. “I think what is a positive for me is I’ve been in these guys’ shoes. I know what it’s like to play in the American League and try to break through and become and everyday NHL player. Hopefully I can use that experience as a way to help communicate the message, the information these guys need to reach their dreams.” (The youngest coach in Hawks history was Paul Thompson, who was 32 when he took over in 1931. He led the team until 1939.)

2. Born and raised in Blackie, Alberta, Colliton was selected by the Islanders in the second round (58th overall) of the 2003 draft.

He appeared in 57 NHL games, posting three goals and three assists. He also spent parts of six seasons (2005-09, 2010- 12) in the AHL with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. He retired from professional hockey at 29 because of post-concussion symptoms after playing parts of five seasons with the Islanders.

3. On the issue of concussions, Colliton was asked last year what he would tell a young player who is concerned about them.

“The main advice is to be careful,” he said. “It’s better to wait one extra shift or one extra period or one extra game and be sure, maybe (be) a little overcautious than to be in denial and play when you shouldn’t and all of a sudden it turns into months, not days.”

4. Colliton was named coach of the IceHogs (the Hawks’ AFL affiliate) on May 18, 2017.

It was his first coaching job in North America. He was 12 games into his second season with Rockford before getting the surprise promotion. His record last season was 40-28-4-4. Before that, he spent four seasons coaching Mora IK in Sweden and helped lead the team to a promotion to the Swedish Hockey League after a 35-4-13 record in his last season.

5. Last year, Colliton described himself as “pretty even keel.”

“Honesty and clarity is something I pride myself on, and it’s important to build the relationship with the players so they believe you’re doing everything you can to help them get better," he said. "If they believe that and they think that’s true, then it’s a lot easier to help them to take those next steps in their career."

6. Colliton and his wife, Jen, have two sons, Ben and Jack, and a daughter, Olivia, who was born Thursday.

Chicago Tribune ‘You can’t ask for a better guy, a better coach’: What Blackhawks players said about Joel Quenneville’s firing

By Jimmy Greenfield November 6, 2018

When the Blackhawks hired Joel Quenneville on Oct. 16, 2008, a core group of players who would go on to win three Stanley Cup titles was already in place.

On Tuesday, many of them were in the Hawks locker room to begin the painful process of saying goodbye to their longtime coach, who was fired 15 games into his 11th season with the team.

If anybody loves winning as much as Quenneville, it is Jonathan Toews. The Hawks captain is competitive in every practice and game, and in Quenneville he found a kindred spirit.

“He cared about his players,” Toews said after practice at MB Ice Arena. “He cared about the game. He’d let you know every time you came off the ice after a win because nobody loves winning more than he does. He had so much experience and, playing for him for such a long time, you know you’re playing for one the best coaches in history of the game.

“I remember growing up watching him on the bench in St. Louis and Colorado. Some days I still kind of thought it was kind of crazy that I was playing for him. It was definitely a special time. I can’t be more thankful what I’ve gone through playing for him and winning championships. You can’t ask for a better guy, a better coach.”

There were no visible tears as reporters spoke with players after practice, but Patrick Kane seemed to be fighting his emotions the most. Kane had a hard time bidding farewell to Denis Savard — whom Quenneville replaced 10 years ago — as well.

Despite leading the NHL in goals much of the first month of the season, Kane focused on what more he could have done to help Quenneville keep his job.

“When I first heard the news I’m just kind of thinking I wish I wasn’t sick in Vancouver or I wish I maybe felt better on the road trip,” said Kane, who sat out against the Canucks during the Hawks’ winless five-game trip. “Could have played better and then maybe something like this doesn’t happen. Just thoughts running through your head. Also (Duncan Keith) got kicked out two minutes into the game in Calgary. Maybe that makes a difference in the game as well. Different things run through your head as players.”

Brent Seabrook was drafted in 2003 and had just begun to establish himself in the NHL when Quenneville arrived. Still, he was only 23 and had never played in a playoff game.

“I remember Joel’s presence,” Seabrook said. “We were all young kids back then and all knew who Joel was and right from day one he had that presence. Just looking around the room, everyone was glued to the coach. The way Joel carried himself, how he treated us, I’m trying to find the word, but just his presence, how he’d talk and get points across and how he wanted it to be fun and let us do our thing.

“We had a fun, young team, and he let us have our fun. But also (he expected us to) be ready and be prepared and play the right way. His first couple of years he established the winning culture around here, and that’s one of the legacies that we’ll continue with this team. And hopefully we can honor him that way, by continuing that winning culture and … trying to compete for more Stanley Cups.” Corey Crawford was still nearly three years from becoming the Hawks’ starting goalie when Quenneville took over. Despite Crawford making his NHL debut in 2005 and having been in the organization more than seven years, Quenneville took a leap of faith during the 2010-11 season by giving him the starting job after veteran Marty Turco struggled.

“We’ve been through so much together,” Crawford said. “Personally, he’s had a ton of confidence in me from the start, and it’s hard to hear that news. In this business, those things happen sometimes. It seems like coaches are the first ones to go most of the time. It’s just hard to see him go.”

Toews was still trying to process the magnitude of the change. There was no anger, just a typically professional response that Quenneville no doubt received when he replaced Savard in 2008.

“It was a shock to wake up to the news this morning for sure,” Toews said. “I think everyone as players in the locker room, you take responsibilities, but at the end of the day whether it’s trades, changes, coaches being relieved of duties, those decisions are above your head. I guess at the end of the day you have to respect them and acknowledge them and move on with the decisions that have been made.”

Chicago Tribune Looking for a 'fresh start,' Blackhawks fire 3-time champion coach Joel Quenneville

By Jimmy Greenfield November 6, 2018

As Joel Quenneville made clear countless times during his decade with the Blackhawks, NHL coaches are in the winning business.

After a remarkable run that included three Stanley Cup championships, the inability to win enough finally caught up to him.

The Hawks fired coach Joel Quenneville on Tuesday and named 33-year-old Jeremy Colliton to replace him, making him the 38th coach in franchise history.

Quenneville, 60, is the second-winningest coach in the histories of the Hawks and the NHL. He went 452-249-96 with the Hawks, behind only Billy Reay’s 516 wins. He’s 890-532-77-137 overall, behind Scotty Bowman’s 1,244 victories.

The team also fired assistant coaches Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson and named Barry Smith an assistant on Colliton’s staff. The rest of the coaching staff will remain.

The Hawks failed to make the playoffs last season for the first time during Quenneville’s tenure. They are 6-6-3 this season and have lost five straight after a winless three-game trip to western Canada.

“A decision like this isn’t made on one game, one play, or one specific thing,” general manager Stan Bowman said during Tuesday’s press conference at MB Ice Arena, the Hawks’ practice facility. “It’s sort of a collection of things. Certainly the road trip was concerning. But I think even heading into that there were some elements to our game where they weren’t where they needed to be. It’s not just based off the record of the team, so it’s more a totality of circumstances than it is just based on one specific game.”

The Hawks haven’t won a playoff series since winning the Stanley Cup in 2015. Quenneville, who took over as Hawks coach five games into the 2008-09 season, was under contract through 2019-20 at a reported $6 million per season.

Owner Rocky Wirtz and team President John McDonough signed off on the decision to make a change.

“Sometimes, as painful as it is, you need a fresh start,” McDonough said.

That fresh start will be led by Colliton, 33, who is the youngest head coach in the NHL. He was 12 games into his second season with Rockford of the American Hockey League. Last year, the IceHogs went 40-28-4-4. Colliton, a native of Blackie, Alberta, was named IceHogs coach on May 18, 2017 — his first coaching job in North America after he spent four seasons as the coach of Mora IK in Sweden.

Colliton, whose NHL playing career comprised 57 games in five seasons for the Islanders from 2005-06 to 2010-11, is younger than four Hawks: Chris Kunitz, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and Corey Crawford. But Colliton rejected the idea his age will hinder his ability to lead the Hawks.

“Ultimately, it’s about winning,” Colliton said. “I have to earn their trust by them believing that I can help them win, that I can help them be better individually, that we as a staff can put together a plan so they can have success. So if I can do that, there’s no problem. It doesn’t matter how old I am.” While Quenneville took the fall for not getting enough out of this team, Bowman assembled the roster. However, McDonough said that during this process he did not consider firing Bowman. “(Bowman’s) body of work is excellent,” McDonough said. “I want him to succeed. I want our roster to succeed. This is the first head coach that Stan Bowman has hired and I’m excited about that. Stan has been very high on Jeremy for a long time and I’m anxious to see how this is going to play out.”

Colliton has experience working with the Hawks players during the last 18 months. He’s been with the veterans during training camp and the prospects at development camp and in Rockford. After Tuesday’s practice, Jonathan Toews spoke of his reverence for Quenneville but immediately accepted and embraced the changes.

“We're going to look for some more energy, a different look to our game,” Toews said. “I’m sure from the outside looking in, a guy like Jeremy can identify some of the things maybe if you're up too close to the action, you can’t see the forest through the trees.”

McDonough made clear he believes the Hawks, currently in sixth place in the Central Division, are a playoff team. And with 67 games remaining in the regular season, there is plenty of time for Colliton to get them there. Or not.

“The challenge is to hit the ground running,” Colliton said. “We don’t have much time. We play Thursday. We had a good practice today, good energy. We pushed on some things that we want the guys to focus on. It’s just communication with everyone, as early as possible, with as many as possible, so that everyone is on the same page and we know what the plan is.

“We plan to win.”

Chicago Tribune Blackhawks need to get bad — really bad — and the sooner the better

By Joe Knowles November 6, 2018

Bundle up for a long cold spell, Blackhawks fans. Winter is coming. Or at least, it had better be.

If you have been on the Hawks bandwagon for only a short time, this climate change could be jarring. For those of you with longer loyalties, it may seem familiar but no less uncomfortable.

The firing of Joel Quenneville effectively ends the greatest era in modern Hawks history. What’s next is likely a painful descent, first to mediocrity and then, hopefully, to depths lower still.

Why hopefully? Because all the way down is the only way up.

How were the Hawks able to draft transformational players such as Jonathan Toews (third overall in 2006) and Patrick Kane (first in 2007)? Simple. They bottomed out.

The Hawks are still selling hope, even short-term hope, if you believe the statements from team President John McDonough and Chairman Rocky Wirtz. Fans should pray that they’re just blowing smoke.

The Hawks need to get bad — really bad — and the sooner the better.

And history tells us they may have the perfect “fall” guy in 33-year-old Jeremy Colliton, Quenneville’s replacement.

Starting with the 1997-98 season, the dark ages before the Rocky renaissance, the Hawks missed the playoffs nine times in 10 years. The lone playoff appearance in that span came under , who previously had been a coach in St. Louis (four years), Boston (three years) and Calgary (three years).

The other coaches during that barren period were first-timers like Colliton — Craig Hartsburg, , Lorne Molleken, Alpo Suhonen, and Denis Savard. Of those six, only Hartsburg was hired as an NHL head coach again.

Colliton is another novice with no NHL coaching experience. In contrast, Quenneville had been an NHL head coach for 11 years before replacing Savard. Rather than hoping Colliton somehow leads the current team to a playoff spot, Hawks fans should be hoping he’s merely a custodian for the teardown.

Colliton is the youngest coach in the league and younger than several of his players, including Duncan Keith, Corey Crawford and Brent Seabrook. If the Hawks do this rebuild right, those 30-somethings won’t be around for long. They’ll be cut loose or dealt for prospects, draft picks and cap space. The future belongs to players who aren’t here yet, along with the likes of Alex DeBrincat, Henri Jokiharju and Adam Boqvist.

Are they the foundation of a future Hawks championship team? Will Colliton be around to see it? This would be the best-case scenario for the Hawks — a brief plummet and then a dramatic return to the NHL’s elite. In the worst-case scenario, Colliton is what Tim Floyd was to the post-dynasty Bulls, the first in a succession of failures and false starts that lingers for decades.

Like Floyd, Colliton is seen as a progressive coach who can relate to younger players. Quenneville, who turned 60 in September, was perceived by some as a hardheaded, old-school leader who didn’t trust anyone under 30. But that was never a fair assessment. He trusted young players who proved they could compete and rightfully shunned those who couldn’t. During his second Cup run with the Hawks, Quenneville showed plenty of faith in 20-year-old , 21-year-old and 22-year-old Marcus Kruger, not to mention his then-24-year-old superstars Kane and Toews. But year after year, Quenneville had to watch players he trusted depart, most of them in salary-cap-motivated moves. He reportedly was especially displeased with the trade of defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson before last season, a deal that made the Hawks younger but not better. He couldn’t have been any happier about the moves general manager Stan Bowman made this past offseason, which accomplished neither.

You have to wonder if Quenneville’s impatience with Nick Schmaltz this season was a tipping point in his dismissal. Schmaltz, a player Bowman often touted as a future star, was a healthy scratch during the recent winless trip. A first- round pick in 2014, Schmaltz scored 21 goals last season but has just one in 14 games this year. Some thought Quenneville was sending a message to his team. Maybe he was sending a message to his boss.

Colliton takes over a roster that is badly flawed but with too much high-priced talent to fail spectacularly. Bowman needs to fix that. To reach rock bottom, the Hawks will have to find a way to move their top players and their no-trade contracts. They likely will have to take on someone else’s bad contracts in the process. But this is where we find out just how creative and effective a GM Bowman really is.

Bowman may have three Cups on his resume, but his predecessor, Dale Tallon, assembled the core of those teams. Bowman’s record on trades and free-agent signings has been spotty, to be kind. Yes, he was painted into a corner by the salary cap, but Bowman was holding the brush — or the pen, really — when he signed some of the contracts that got him there.

By firing Quenneville, the Hawks effectively put the pressure on Bowman to dig his way out of this hole. Now all they need is the courage to let him get all the way to the bottom if they want to reach the top again anytime soon.

Chicago Tribune What's next for Joel Quenneville? 6 NHL teams that could hire the former Blackhawks coach

By Jimmy Greenfield November 6, 2018

With a resume that includes three Stanley Cups and the second-most wins in NHL history, there’s no doubt Joel Quenneville will land another job.

The only questions will be if he wants to resume his Hall of Fame head coaching career — and where he’ll end up.

Here are six possible landing spots for the former Blackhawks coach.

1. St. Louis Blues

Quenneville's first NHL head coaching job was with the Blues where he went 307-191-77 over eight seasons from 1996- 2004. The Blues are a talented team that would seem to be a good fit for Quenneville, who probably wouldn't go to a team in a rebuild.

They have been underachieving all season under second-year coach Mike Yeo, whose job is believed to be in jeopardy. But the Blues have won three of four games and are showing signs of turning their season around.

2. Florida Panthers

Panthers general manager Dale Tallon hired Quenneville once and it worked out pretty well. At least for Quenneville. Tallon departed for the Panthers before the Hawks won the Stanley Cup in 2010 and has had limited success there. Current head coach is in his second year with the Panthers, but the team is off to a 3-5-3 start.

3. Los Angeles Kings

The Kings became the first NHL team to make a head coaching change this season when they fired John Stevens Sunday and handed Willie Desjardins the job, albeit with an interim tag. The Kings would have been far more attractive to Quenneville a couple years ago, but they’re aging more rapidly than the Hawks are and aren’t likely to contend for a few years.

4. Buffalo Sabres

Of all the teams that could be in the market for a head coach, the Sabres seem to mirror Quenneville’s first Blackhawks teams the most. They have outstanding young players in forward Jack Eichel and defenseman Rasmus Dahlin and their their head coach is former Sabres star Phil Housley. Sound familiar?

5. Anaheim Ducks

It’s questionable whether the Ducks would launch head coach Randy Carlyle after consecutive 100-point seasons, but they are off to a 6-7-3 start. Quenneville only has to recall two weeks ago when the Hawks easily handled the Ducks in a 3-1 win at the United Center.

6. Edmonton Oilers

The Oilers are an up and coming team for approximately the 100th season in a row, but this time it looks like they’re for real. They have the best player in the world in Connor McDavid and a supporting cast that’s finally puling their weight. They’re only 8-6-1 — and two of those wins came against the Hawks. Todd McLellan, in his fourth season with the Oilers, could be in danger if his team falls into an extended slump.

Chicago Tribune The one thing new coach Jeremy Colliton can't afford screw up with Blackhawks players

By Steve Rosenbloom November 6, 2018

On the day that Joel Quenneville was fired as coach for the mistakes made by Stan Bowman, the Blackhawks GM’s new coach said all the right things.

Of course he did. You expected that from the Hawks, who are as much brand as hockey organ-I-zation, who are better at media manipulation than the power play.

One of the things that Jeremy Colliton talked about was earning the respect of his new team. He’s 33, younger than four of his new players, but he has to act like he’s in charge, so, yes, earning the respect of Hawks core players with three Stanley Cup rings is vital for the guy with three career NHL goals.

That respect might come in practice. Colliton says he wants practices to be up tempo, same as his predecessor. Quenneville made it clear immediately that he wanted everything done fast, even mistakes so players could recover and get the puck back quickly.

Whatever pace Colliton wanted at his first practice Tuesday apparently was realized.

“We had a good practice today, good energy,’’ Colliton said. “We pushed on some things that we want the guys to focus on. It’s just communication with everyone, as early as possible, with as many as possible, so that everyone is on the same page and we know what the plan is.

“We plan to win.”

It’s always good to have a plan. Always good to communicate it, too. Bowman highlighted communication as Colliton’s greatest asset.

Bowman said he had seen positive signs when Colliton coached a Swedish second-division team into a promotion to the top division. Bowman said he also saw Colliton’s communication up close when he coached the Hawks’ top minor-league team in Rockford deep into the playoffs last season.

Communication is a great asset. Of course, it also can expose a person. The more someone talks, the greater the chance that something wrong or naïve will plop out like a playoff pizza thrown by or Eric Gustafsson.

But here’s where I imagine Colliton will fly or die as a relative kid coaching decorated adults: On the bench during a game.

Quenneville was a master bench coach. Still is. In fact, that was the reason Hockey Yoda Scotty Bowman wanted Quenneville installed in Denis Savard’s job in 2008. Bowman noted that Quenneville was excellent at matchups, and Bowman should know. He’s arguably the best bench coach in history. Bowman indicated Quenneville had better bench smarts than Savard to deal with the division’s accomplished coaches that included Mike Babcock, , and .

What Quenneville did — what the best bench coaches do — is coach the game that was there, the game that was in front of him. Players know what kind of game is in front of them. Players know when a coach is seizing a moment or blowing a matchup opportunity. Reacting the right way in the heat of the moment — reflecting a deep and instant knowledge of both a coach’s players and the opponent’s and then, in a nanosecond, making a better move than the guy on the other bench — is an ability that can prompt players to follow a coach.

Or flame him.

You don’t need a secret Uber video to know hockey players can harbor weapons-grade disrespect for a coach and an organ-I-zation.

The Hawks brass knows this. I suspect that’s one of the reasons that Scotty Bowman’s longtime ally Barry Smith was installed as an assistant coach. Whatever Smith can do on the bench in the glare of a game to prevent Colliton from creating a losing matchup that could start grumbling among players is a step forward.

Colliton catches a break Thursday. The Hawks play at home against the Hurricanes, so the new Hawks coach with the unknown NHL bench chops will get the last change. It’s an opportunity to control the game.

Or get pantsed.

Chicago Tribune The one thing new coach Jeremy Colliton can't afford screw up with Blackhawks players

By Steve Rosenbloom November 6, 2018

The firing of coach Joel Quenneville Tuesday has some former Blackhawks — and a fake mustache — fired up on Twitter.

Brent Sopel, who played three seasons for the Hawks and was a member of the 2010 Stanley Cup champs, tweeted that general manager Stan Bowman “should be fired” and called him a “terrible GM.”

Brent Sopel

@brent_sopel

Replying to @ScottKingMedia

Stan should be fired. Terrible GM

Brent Sopel

@brent_sopel

With Q getting fired it showed again they don’t care about you unless you are making them money.

The response from , who won a Stanley Cup with the Hawks in 2013, was more focused on praising Quenneville than ripping the decision to fire him.

Carcillo tweeted Quenneville was “the most respected coach amongst players I’d ever played for” and shared a story about the tragic day they learned former teammate committed suicide.

Daniel Carcillo

@CarBombBoom13

#Quenneville deserves better. A mans man.

He was the most respected coach amongst players that I’d ever played for.

If this desperate move doesn’t help the @NHLBlackhawks Hockey Operations ppl will begin to be relieved of their duties next.#Blackhawks

Daniel Carcillo

@CarBombBoom13

The firing of #Quenneville is nothing more than John McDonough, Stan Bowman & Al MacIsaac’s (Hockey Operations) desperate attempt to save their jobs.

There has always been tension between Joel & the above men mentioned. Barry Smith is best friends with Scotty Bowman #Blackhawks

Daniel Carcillo

@CarBombBoom13

#Blackhawks I’d ask that everyone share their favorite story about #Queneville here is mine

1/ It’s Feb. 15th 2015 I’m about to walk into the room to get dressed. My phone is ringing off the hook. I answer. It’s a friend crying on the other line saying Steve’s gone. Steve’s gone

Daniel Carcillo

@CarBombBoom13

Replying to @CarBombBoom13

3/ I skated off the ice & ran down the tunnel into Coach Q’s office. He had just heard. I was crying. He was crying. He hugged me in my equipment. I was a mess. I couldn’t play. He said he understood. He comforted me. He listened. He didn’t force me to play. I’m forever grateful

Chicago Sun Times Blackhawks fire coach Joel Quenneville along with 2 assistant coaches

By Madeline Kenney November 6, 2018

Tuesday marked a new era for the Blackhawks.

Before practice, the Hawks announced a coaching staff overhaul, which included the firing of coach Joel Quenneville and his assistant coaches, Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson.

Rockford IceHogs coach Jeremy Colliton replaced Quenneville as the 38th head coach in Hawks’ history.

The Hawks also named Barry Smith, who most recently served as the director of player evaluation for the Hawks, as an assistant coach on Colliton’s staff. The rest of the coaching staff is expected to stay with the team.

There’s no doubt that Quenneville, who has a Hall of Fame resume, is one of the most successful coaches in the history of both the Hawks franchise and NHL. His three Stanley Cups in six seasons speak for themselves. But after missing the playoffs last season, which was Quenneville’s first losing campaign in his 21-year coaching career, and a slow 6-6-3 start through 15 games this season, something had to give.

General manager Stan Bowman said the decision to part with Quenneville, the second-winningest coach in franchise history (452-249-96 in 797 games since 2008), was “very difficult.” He also clarified that Quenneville’s firing wasn’t based on one specific incident, although the Hawks’ most recent road trip was “concerning.”

Bowman also shut down the idea that there was a power struggle between him and Quenneville.

“No truth to that at all,” Bowman said of the rumored friction. “We have a very good relationship. Did we agree on everything over the last years? No we didn’t.”

Chairman Rocky Wirtz echoed Bowman and said that he believes this was the best decision for the franchise moving forward.

“As Chicago Blackhawks fans have seen over the last decade, this organization no longer shies away from making tough decisions or ones based on emotion,” Wirtz said in a statement. “Those days are long behind us.

“When Joel was originally hired into our 2008 season, we had great hope for his potential to take the team to new levels. He went beyond what anyone expected. As difficult as that decision in 2008 was, this one was tougher. But as we look to a future history not yet defined, we believe the change we made today, will provide the Chicago Blackhawks a critical element in achieving our goals of Championships in the future, including this season.”

At 33, Colliton is currently the youngest head coach in the NHL. He was just 12 games into his second season with Rockford. Last season, he led Rockford, who went 40-28-4 last season, to its first-ever AHL Western Conference Finals.

“[Colliton is an] excellent communicator,” McDonough said. “That is one of the things that really, really sticks out.”

McDonough also said he’ll make sure the Colliton gets “everything he needs to succeed.”

Chicago Sun Times Blackhawks players feel partially responsible for Joel Quenneville’s firing

By Madeline Kenney November 6, 2018

After the first practice since the Blackhawks unceremoniously fired coach Joel Quenneville on Tuesday, the dressing room was somber. Players sat at their lockers with their heads bowed down.

“You can go on and on with stories that you had, not all of them are shareable here in front of the camera,” captain Jonathan Toews said. “We’ve had some pretty crazy highs and you remember all the good stuff, so it’s tough to see a coach and a friend like Joel go.”

Players were shocked when they first heard the news that Quenneville, the second-winningest coach in NHL history, was let go.

But while the Hawks’ front office pointed the finger at Quenneville for the team’s recent mishaps, players only blamed themselves.

Patrick Kane and Toews — along with several other veterans — said they felt partially responsible for what happened. And Kane went so far as to call Quenneville the “fall guy” for the team missing the playoffs last season and going 0-5-1 over the last six games.

“When I first heard the news, I’m just kind of thinking I wish I wasn’t sick in Vancouver or I wish I maybe felt better on the road trip I could have played better and then maybe something like this doesn’t happen,” Kane said. “Just thoughts running through your head.”

Said Toews: “As players in the locker room, you take responsibilities, but at the end of the day … those decisions are above your head and I guess at the end of the day you have to respect them and you have to acknowledge them and move on with the decisions that have been made.”

Despite his outwardly intense nature and often terse public comments, Quenneville proved to be a players’ coach who commanded and received respect from everyone around him.

“The guy breeds winning,” Kane said. “The one thing that just sticks out is his passion and his excitement to try and win hockey games, so that will definitely be a void that we’ll try to fill in here.”

General manager Stan Bowman, team president John McDonough and chairman Rocky Wirtz parroted one another in statements, calling the decision “difficult.”

But while the front office believes the move to fire Quenneville, who went 452-249-96 over the last 11 seasons with the Hawks, was in the “best interests of the Blackhawks organization” moving forward, the stunning news sent a shockwave through the Hawks’ community.

“It was definitely a shock,” Toews said. “I didn’t think whoever it was, there was going to be a change or it wouldn’t be for a while. Given what we’ve gone through last year, I think it’s still early in the season to try and find solutions and see if we try to change the way things have been going these last five games. So it’s not easy, but we’ve got to go forward the best we can an make the right adjustments.”

The Hawks replaced Quenneville with Rockford IceHogs coach Jeremy Colliton. Last season, Colliton led Rockford to its first-ever AHL Western Conference Finals appearance.

At 33, Colliton is the youngest current NHL coach and is younger than four of the players on the team’s roster. Kane seemed optimistic that the team would keep an open mind when it comes to welcoming their new coach. But asked if the Hawks’ problems are fixable, Kane seemed unsure.

“Yeah, I think so. I don’t know,” Kane said. “As players you just have an open mind to everything and hopefully we can be better as players too. I don’t know if it was really a system thing or anything like that. We didn’t really get the job done and [Quenneville] has to be fall guy for it.

“Time will tell.”

Chicago Sun Times Blackhawks front office puts own reputations on line by firing Joel Quenneville

By Steve Greenberg November 6, 2018

It was a nice thought from Patrick Kane in regard to the winless trip the Blackhawks finished over the weekend. If only he hadn’t been sick during the trip, if only Duncan Keith hadn’t missed nearly an entire game after being ejected, if only all the players had dug a little bit deeper — maybe, just maybe Joel Quenneville would still be their coach.

Alas, Quenneville — on the Mount Rushmore of Chicago coaches and one of the greats of his era in the NHL — was fired Tuesday, 15 games into his 11th season with the Hawks and with the team in an 0-4-1 slide that took the shine off a 6-2- 2 start.

Replacing Quenneville, 60, who was the league’s longest-tenured coach, is Jeremy Colliton, 33, who instantly became its youngest. Colliton, a native of Blackie, Alberta, was in his second season as coach of the Hawks’ AHL affiliate in Rockford.

“A decision like this isn’t made on one game, one play or one specific thing,” general manager Stan Bowman said. “It’s sort of a collection of things. Certainly, the road trip was concerning. But I think even heading into that, there were some elements to our game where they weren’t where they needed to be.”

It’s a move that will be debated in bar rooms and re-litigated in the media for years to come. Given the longstanding friction that many believe existed between Bowman and the man who led three Hawks teams to Stanley Cup titles, though, is also smacked of inevitability.

Under Quenneville — the second-winningest coach in NHL history, behind Bowman’s father, Scotty — the Hawks won 452 regular-season games and 76 postseason games and raised the Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015.

But the team lost first-round series to St. Louis and Nashville, respectively, in 2016 and 2017 — the sweep by the eighth- seeded Predators was especially gruesome — and missed the playoffs for the first time under Quenneville in 2018.

Team president John McDonough called Quenneville “the greatest coach in the history of our franchise.” Yet he threw his “full support” behind Bowman, who put his own reputation on the line emphatically.

Bowman, who was promoted to GM nine months after predecessor Dale Tallon hired Quenneville, disputed the common characterization of his relationship with the coach as a power struggle.

“There’s no truth to that whatsoever,” he said. “Quite the contrary. Joel has been great to me the entire time we’ve been together I would say we have a very good relationship. Do we agree on everything over 10 years? No, we don’t. But we see the game very similarly, and I think that’s one of the reasons we were able to have as much success as we did together.”

The Hawks often sputter offensively nowadays and seemingly have fallen off a cliff defensively. The power play has been a nagging problem through the years. Some of that clearly is on Quenneville and his staff, including Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson, who also were jettisoned in this seismic shakeup.

Roster decisions have blindsided Quenneville at times, though, and that’s on Bowman. The impacts of the trades of Artemi Panarin and Niklas Hjalmarsson have been felt nightly at opposite ends of the rink.

“We’re all accountable for this,” Bowman said. “This is not just on one person today, or just on Joel or the other coaches. We all play a role in this, and we have to get better.” According to McDonough, no consideration was given to removing Bowman instead of, or in addition to, Quenneville. McDonough expressed the front office’s firm belief in the current roster — a sentiment many Hawks fans might disagree with in the strongest terms — and down the use of the word “rebuilding.”

“We want to win,” he said. “We want to ‘re-win.’ ”

Doing that again — ever — at the level achieved on Quenneville’s watch will be mighty difficult. There was George Halas. There was Phil Jackson. There was the magnificently mustachioed man known as “Q.” That’s the sort of company Quenneville keeps now, his run of excellence in this town officially over.

Chicago Sun Times New coach Jeremy Colliton’s message to Blackhawks: ‘Come ready to learn, listen’

By Steve Greenberg November 6, 2018

Jeremy Colliton’s performance at the United Center can only get better.

His one and only time there, in 2011, he was in his final cup-of-coffee stint with the Islanders. A center who appeared in all of 57 NHL games, Colliton skated 22 mostly miserable shifts in a 5-0 Blackhawks victory.

“I did score a goal, but they called it off,” the Hawks’ new coach recalled. “Goalie interference.”

Thursday night at the UC against the Hurricanes, the challenge of Colliton’s hockey life will begin in earnest.

Until a year and a half ago, he’d never even held a coaching job in North America. At 33, he’s suddenly the youngest coach in the NHL. And all he’s doing is replacing a surefire hall-of-famer in Joel Quenneville, who was fired 15 games into his 11th season with the Hawks despite having guided them to the NHL mountaintop in 2010, 2013 and 2015.

“I have a huge amount of respect for Joel,” said Colliton, who coached the Hawks’ affiliate in Rockford to the AHL conference finals last season and had the IceHogs off to a strong start in Year 2. “Those are huge shoes to fill. I won’t try to fill them. I’ve got to be myself.”

Who is Colliton? A patient and excellent communicator, the Hawks say. A high-energy guy. A proponent of hockey played at a fast pace, with maximum pressure on the puck, and a staunch believer in hockey analytics.

Altogether, he’s no Quenneville.

“Joel and Jeremy are different, for sure,” general manager Stan Bowman said. “Their styles are not the same. I don’t think there’s only one style you can win with, but that [communication] has been what I’ve been impressed with relative to the way Jeremy has coached.”

After his first team practice Tuesday at MB Ice Arena, Colliton — whose third child was born last Thursday — let his players know that he realized some of them were hurt and/or stunned by Quenneville’s dismissal. He was considerate and respectful, with a dash of warning.

“Come ready to learn; come ready to listen tomorrow,” he told them. “Bring your minds.”

Brent Seabrook, the all-time leader in games played by a Blackhawks defenseman, happens to have a history with Colliton that goes back to their pre-teen playing days in Western Canada. But Seabrook also is especially fond of Quenneville.

“Today was a tough day,” Seabrook said. “Tomorrow’s going to be a little different.”

Colliton isn’t the youngest coach the Blackhawks have had. Paul Thompson was 32 when he transitioned from player to coach in 1939. Frank Eddols (in 1954) and Keith Magnuson (in 1980) each was 33 when he took the job. But none of those three replaced a Quenneville.

“Ultimately, it’s about winning,” Colliton said. “And I have to earn their trust by them believing that I can help them win, that I can help them be better individually, that we as a staff can put together a plan so they can have success.

“So if I can do that, there’s no problem. If doesn’t matter how old I am.”

Chicago Sun Times Joel Quenneville’s ending fitting for a coaching legend

By Rick Telander November 6, 2018

We’re going to miss “The ’Stache.”

Good old Joel Quenneville, the longtime Blackhawks coach, was fired Tuesday because, basically, the glory years are over and somebody had to take the fall.

What’s that old saying? You can’t fire the team, so fire the coach?

It won’t take long for nostalgia over those three Q-led Stanley Cup crowns in six years — from 2010 to 2015 — to infest fans’ minds and remind them of what they once had. They’ll think about Quenneville’s trademark mustache and his stern, gravelly, near-whisper of a voice with Canadian overtones and think, “Man, we had some hockey in this town.”

Quenneville came in as coach early in the 2008-09 season, and that’s exactly when the Hawks’ rise to success began.

Old-fashioned owner had died, his older son, Rocky, had taken over, new president John McDonough came in from the Cubs and a couple of whisker-less kids named Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews had arrived like ice presents from the great hockey stork.

“We had some pretty crazy highs,” is how Toews described the Quenneville years.

Boy, didn’t we.

Two million people for a hockey victory rally in June 2010? Why, that’s almost three-quarters of the population of Chicago. And there was a point where even Chicagoans who didn’t know a blue line from a beer line raptly followed every Hawks playoff game on TV.

Times were so good, and Q was so good, but everything ends.

Kane is playing as well as ever, but he’ll turn 30 on Nov. 19. “Captain Serious” Toews, a rock of a leader, is already 30.

Once stellar Corey Crawford is 33, and sometimes he seems to be in the game physically but miles away mentally.

And Quenneville himself, the man with the Fuller Brush front grille — once black, now almost snow white — is 60. That might not seem old when thinking about, say, baseball managers or CEOs, but it does when you’re replaced by a coach who is 27 years your junior.

General manager Stan Bowman did the axing, with McDonough’s and Wirtz’s blessing, and because Quenneville was so beloved in this town, there had to be a dramatic change.

What better way to make that point than by hiring a guy like Jeremy Colliton, 33, the untested-in-the-big-time former Rockford IceHogs coach who suddenly is the youngest coach in the NHL?

Colliton is the same age as Crawford, which is strange. And he’s younger than Duncan Keith, 35, and two other Hawks.

So salute to youth, rebuilding, new times and God knows what else. Mired in a five-game losing streak, the Hawks have fallen to sixth place in the Central Division. They missed the playoffs last year and were ousted in the first round in 2016 and ’17.

There’s another ancillary saying in sports: You can’t fire the whole front office, so fire the coach. Remember, Q didn’t make the trades, the draft picks, the salary-cap decisions, etc.

Oh, well, he’ll be unemployed for about as short a time as he desires. Maybe he wants to go fishing and play shuffleboard in Florida. But I doubt it.

Isn’t this how it always seems to end, the great times going down in a slow parade of wistfulness and regret, with a touch of anger?

How did it work out for Phil Jackson after his six titles with the Bulls? In some ways, it was incredible that he would leave/be forced out in rancor in 1998 — along with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen — after winning that sixth NBA championship.

Mike Ditka — the only Super Bowl-winning coach in Bears history — was abruptly fired in 1993 after 11 years at the helm. He choked back tears at the news conference, quoting scripture and stating, “This, too, shall pass.”

Ozzie Guillen? The only manager to lead the White Sox to a World Series championship since 1917 and the only one in White Sox history to lead the team to more than one division/league title was fired after eight seasons at the helm. His relationship with GM Ken Williams was intolerable, but Guillen went out mouth blazing.

“They should f—— fire me,” he said in his typical fashion. “Look at what I did. I got a great team that play like s—.”

At least Quenneville didn’t get the news the way longtime Hawks coach Billy Reay did. Reay came home from a road trip just before Christmas in 1976 to reportedly find an envelope under his office door that said he was no longer employed.

Good bye, Joel Quenneville.

You’re a good man in good company.

Chicago Sun Times A winner and class act, Joel Quenneville deserved better than what he got

By Rick Morrissey November 6, 2018

This is a sad day.

Joel Quenneville didn’t die, but a part of the Blackhawks did. Too sentimental? Too gooey? Three Stanley Cup titles and a whole bunch of ridiculous fun say no.

The Hawks fired their coach Tuesday, replacing him with 33-year-old Jeremy Colliton, who had been coaching the franchise’s American Hockey League franchise in Rockford.

Quenneville deserved better than to be canned 15 games into this season or any other.

Professional sports coaches have the shelf life of a gallon of milk, and by those standards, Coach Q’s 10 years-plus with the Hawks look like a monarchy’s long reign. Felt like it, too. So many crowns. So many trophies. So much hardware. And three championship parades? Chicago’s Department of Streets and Sanitation didn’t know whether to hug him or hand him a bag to help with confetti pickup.

He deserved better than what he got Tuesday.

I get it: There is no such thing as “deserved’’ in pro sports. I can donate a lung screaming that Quenneville, given all his success, deserved to coach the Hawks for as long as he wanted. It doesn’t work that way. Joe Maddon accomplished the unimaginable by managing the Cubs to a World Series in 2016, yet he’ll work through the last year of his contract in 2019 and hope it’s enough to get a new deal after that.

But 15 games into a season, Quenneville tossed aside as if he were a disposable razor? No, that’s wrong.

He steered a franchise to the most success it had ever had, and he did it with grace and class and that gravelly Canadian accent. Whether players were responding to him is for another time. I know this: Players past and present didn’t always agree with him, but he was theirs. They respected him. He was ours, too.

Behind the bench, he usually wore one of two looks – death-stare intense or I’ve-been-wronged indignation. And we’ll always have his crotch-grabbing moment during a 2014 playoff game, when he showed displeasure with the officiating by placing a hand on his private parts and lifting.

“It wasn’t appropriate at all,’’ he said later. “It was a bush-league move on my part.”

No, worries, Q.

We appreciated his fire, and his players did, too.

It’s a truth in sports that general managers almost always outlast their coaches. So even if you’re tempted to say that GM Stan Bowman deserved to be fired for the roster he gave Quenneville, you’re wasting your breath. It doesn’t work that way.

Quenneville is 60. It will be up to him if he wants to coach again. He’s that good, that respected.

He deserved better. I hope he gets it somewhere else, if that’s what he wants.

Daily Herald 'It was a tough day.': Blackhawks players react to Quenneville firing

By John Dietz November 6, 2018

Utter and complete shock.

That was the overwhelming emotion emanating from the Blackhawks locker room on the day Joel Quenneville was fired after 10 seasons as the team's head coach.

"Tough, you know?" said a subdued and thoughtful Brent Seabrook. "I don't know how to really describe it. We've been with Joel for a long time and any time you lose a coach, it's tough."

Seabrook, Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith grew as NHLers and learned how to win under Quenneville from the moment he was hired four games into the 2008-09 season.

Now Quenneville's gone, replaced by 33-year-old Jeremy Colliton.

"There's no doubt there's going to be some shock, especially for guys like myself and the other guys that have played for him for a long time," Toews said. "Obviously there's strong bonds and strong relationships there with the success that we had.

"You always form deep friendships with not only your teammates, but you can say the same with your coaching staff. Joel was our leader for three championships and a lot of success in-between. So it's definitely a tough day to come to the rink and (realize) he's not here today."

All of the veterans know they could have done better to keep this from happening, with Kane especially remorseful for not being 100 percent on the recently completed road trip that saw the Hawks lose three straight.

Said Kane: "When I first hear the news I'm just kind of thinking, 'I wish I wasn't sick that game in Vancouver. I wish I maybe felt good on the road trip and could have played better and maybe something like this doesn't happen.'

"I think Joel actually got a lot out of this group the past couple years. He's done a great job of bringing the younger guys along and developing them and same thing as this year as well. Obviously missing the playoffs (last season) didn't help. There's a lot of answers I don't have, but definitely a tough morning for everyone for sure."

It's fair to wonder if players can start to tune out a coach who has been around for so long. In the same breath, however, the NHL has changed drastically in the last few years and it's also fair to wonder if Quenneville failed to adapt to a game that is almost all about speed.

"The respect has always been there for Joel," Toews said. "At the same time, sometimes when you're so close to the action for so long and the same problems keep coming up, a new look is what you need. We'll just go forward knowing that Jeremy Colliton's our guy."

As for practice, it definitely felt like the players were going through the motions at MB Ice Arena.

There wasn't much talking, not much celebrating after a goal or a big save and an overall feeling that everyone knew an era had just ended.

"Practice was, we were all sort of … it was a tough day," said Seabrook, searching for the right words. "Today was today and tomorrow, I'm sure (Colliton will) throw some more stuff at us and go after some different things.

"We have to be ready to work, to listen and learn some new stuff and go from there."

Daily Herald 'Chicago Blackhawks fire coach Joel Quenneville in effort to 'salvage' season

By John Dietz November 6, 2018

As last season came to a unceremonious thud, Chicago Blackhawks president and CEO John McDonough told a small group of reporters that Joel Quenneville and Stan Bowman would be returning for the 2018-19 season.

"I believe in Stan. I believe in Joel," McDonough said on April 5. "I believe in them together and I believe in their future."

As it turns out, that belief lasted all of 15 games because McDonough and Bowman -- with the full support of chairman Rocky Wirtz -- fired Quenneville and his entire coaching staff after the Hawks limped home from a three-game road trip at 6-6-3 and in sixth place in the Central Division.

Jeremy Colliton, who was hired to coach the Rockford IceHogs last year, takes over and becomes the youngest coach in the NHL at 33.

"We've got to get this going in the right direction," McDonough said. "We want to make sure that we're able to salvage this season and do everything we can to get this right."

And in their opinion, that meant letting go the second-winningest coach in NHL history. One who brought the Hawks their first Stanley Cup in 49 years in 2010. One who brought two more in 2013 and 2015. And one who will go down with Phil Jackson, Mike Ditka and George Halas on the Mount Rushmore of Chicago coaches.

"This is all based on feel and experience and a lot of dialogue and conversation with some really smart people -- as well as our owner -- before we could get to this point," McDonough said. "I think this is a very patient group. We are built on continuity.

"Joel was here as our coach for 10 years. I've been here going on 11. Rocky took over the team 11 years ago. Stan has been here for 10 years. Loyalty plays a big role in this, but it has to be loyalty tethered to results."

It was a somber and quiet Hawks dressing room after the team held its first practice with Colliton and new assistant Barry Smith.

"There's no doubt there's going to be some shock, especially for guys like myself and the other guys that have played for him for a long time," Jonathan Toews said. "Joel was our leader for three championships and a lot of success in between. So it's definitely a tough day to come to the rink and (realize) he's not here today."

Last season, the Hawks were without goalie Corey Crawford for more than half the season and missed the playoffs after going 33-39-10.

Before that campaign began, I asked McDonough if Quenneville had reached a level akin to Bill Belichick in the NFL or perhaps Red Auerbach in the NBA where he could basically call his own shots and decide when to walk away.

Here was McDonough's answer: "I think all of us are accountable. All of us. Certainly me. I'm accountable and I'm responsible. And I would never put myself in a position that I would say, 'Well I'm going to be able to call my own shots.'" But is this all Quenneville's fault?

Bowman certainly has made many debatable moves that some would say have decimated the Hawks' roster. Brent Seabrook's contract carries a $6.875 million cap hit and is an unmovable albatross; Teuvo Teravainen and Vinnie Hinostroza are gone, largely because of cap problems; was traded for two underwhelming veterans; and, perhaps most significantly, reverberations still are being felt from the losses of Niklas Hjalmarsson and Artemi Panarin.

Was there any consideration to letting Bowman go too?

"No, I did not consider both," McDonough said. "I believe in this roster, I believe in Stan. Stan is meticulous. He's very thorough and when you breakdown free agents (or) trades, some work, some don't. You'd like most to go your way and over time, they may. But his body of work is excellent.

"I want him to succeed. I want our roster to succeed."

There are, of course, examples of Quenneville not fully utilizing players Bowman brought in like defensemen Trevor Daley and Michal Kempny. Both won championships during the season in which they were traded.

Before this year began, McDonough emphatically stated that he believes this roster has what it takes to make the playoffs.

"Put yourself in a position to make a run," he said just days before training camp opened.

The Hawks' brass obviously didn't think that's what was happening. The power play is a mess. Opponents continue to pepper Crawford and Cam Ward with prime scoring chances. There's little to no production among players not named Toews, Patrick Kane, Alex DeBrincat and Brandon Saad.

And finally, Quenneville and his staff made a tremendous gaffe in Calgary on Saturday when they forgot to put a player in the penalty box after Duncan Keith drew a five-minute major that included a game misconduct. Because the fifth player must come from the box after a penalty expires, the Hawks skated 5-on-4 for nearly extra two minutes.

As for Colliton, he came to the IceHogs last year after spending four seasons coaching Mora IK in Sweden. Rockford went 40-28-4-4 and advanced to the Western Conference final.

It will be interesting to see how Seabrook, Toews, Kane, Duncan Keith, Corey Crawford and Chris Kunitz react to being led by someone 27 years younger than Quenneville.

"Ultimately, it's about winning," Colliton said. "And I have to earn their trust by them believing that I can help them win, that I can help them be better individually, that we as a staff can put together a plan so they can have success.

"So if I can do that, there's no problem. It doesn't matter how old I am. That's my challenge. But my age, I don't think affects that. After today, it won't be an issue."

What remains an issue is whether or not the Hawks are rebuilding or if they really can win now.

McDonough steadfastly believes it's the latter.

"I (said) today it's more of a remodeling," he said. "We still have Hall of Fame players. My expectations are that this is a playoff team, and if you get in anything can happen. …

"We want to win. We want to rewin. We want that building filled, we want our fans to see an exciting brand of hockey.

"And sometimes, as painful as it is, you need a fresh start."

Daily Herald Quenneville's Blackhawks era shall not be forgotten

By Barry Rozner November 6, 2018

The Blackhawks are heartless, gutless and clueless.

Those were among the words used to describe Hawks management 10 years and three weeks ago, when head coach Denis Savard was fired only four games into the season and replaced by someone named Joel Quenneville.

Media and fans alike were heavily invested in the Hall of Fame player and angry that he had been treated so unfairly, his friends in the press corps leaving behind all semblance of objectivity to skewer the Hawks.

But the reality is he didn't belong behind an NHL bench at that point in his coaching career, having never been fully trained for the job by Bill Wirtz and Dale Tallon, who then did Savard a second great disservice by hiring him to coach as a publicity stunt.

Nevertheless, few in Chicago knew anything about Quenneville and most were very unhappy about the change.

They didn't know about his success in other places, didn't realize he maneuvered a Colorado team into the postseason five months before that after losing his three best players -- , and Ryan Smyth -- at the same time.

They didn't know Scotty Bowman brought him to Chicago after he was foolishly fired by the Avalanche, and had him waiting for that very moment.

Joel Quenneville was a brilliant, established and professional coach and it didn't take him long to earn the trust of Chicago hockey fans, and -- much more significant -- the respect of his players.

There was never an unkind word or thought from the coach or GM in the days before Quenneville, no discipline when praise, promotion and protection were the order of the day.

But Quenneville entered and changed that quickly, bringing order to the proceedings.

Less than a month into his tenure, he had already benched Patrick Kane more than once, and in a game in Arizona he sat both Kane and -- his two leading scorers -- for the entire second period for taking selfish penalties.

There was a new sheriff in town and it was time to start taking your job seriously.

The rest, of course, is the best of Blackhawks history, the best decade of hockey the franchise has ever known, and will ever know.

In the days ahead, there will be time to dissect the decision the Hawks made Tuesday to fire Quenneville, to decide blame, to fire missives and missiles, to learn about a new coach and wonder about the futures of everyone involved.

But for a few hours Tuesday -- for just a few hours -- what felt right was to think of what Quenneville meant to this generation of Hawks fans and players.

He's the best coach the team has ever had and one of the best in NHL history, a certain Hall of Famer who will find work again quickly if he chooses to do so.

No coach is perfect and Quenneville was not. They all have flaws and Quenneville has his. But at his best, wow was he good.

Dozens of moments come immediately to mind, but you think of the 2011 playoffs against Vancouver, when the Hawks didn't belong on the ice with the Canucks, but after being down 3-0 he kept his players playing, and they somehow got to overtime of the seventh game. You think of 2015, when he so ridiculously out-coached Bruce Boudreau in the conference finals against a better Anaheim team, taking him apart with matchups and line combinations from the puck drop of Game 7 -- on the road.

If you'll allow for a personal favorite, it was in Boston after the Hawks stole the Stanley Cup at the end of Game 6.

Late into the night on June 24, 2013, or maybe even morning at that point, Quenneville wiped tears from his eyes and had trouble reaching for words.

We stood on the ice at TD Garden and watched his players celebrate, and the head coach who could look so ferocious -- the only man in NHL history to play in 800 games and coach in twice that many -- was reduced to an emotional mess.

He choked up when explaining that he didn't think Bryan Bickell would even dress in the series.

He thought Andrew Shaw and Michal Handzus shouldn't have played.

He wondered how Sharp, Johnny Oduya, Jonathan Toews, Marian Hossa and had skated through their injuries.

He couldn't believe Patrice Bergeron played Game 6 with a separated shoulder, broken ribs, torn cartilage and a punctured lung.

"I'm just in awe of what these guys have done," Quenneville said, sniffing back the tears. "I think you have to commend the effort of both teams. The series was something very special."

And in 2015 at the UC after a Game 6 win over Tampa in the Cup Final, he talked of a brutal Nashville series two months prior, the "test of our lives against Anaheim," and the young Lightning that had no fear of Chicago.

"It's two months of playing so hard," he said, having to gather himself again. "Every game, every shift, it's so important. This group of players is really something special."

So was Quenneville.

For a decade so classy, so professional, so demanding and so honest, always with a truthful answer in a sports world where there is so little of that.

All good things must come to an end, but it doesn't diminish in any way what Joel Quenneville accomplished in Chicago.

What a great ride it has been.

And at least for a few hours, it should be celebrated.

Daily Herald Blackhawks fire 3-time Stanley Cup-winning coach Quenneville

By Jay Cohen – Associated Press November 6, 2018

Joel Quenneville knew the deal. After three Stanley Cup titles and nine playoff appearances with the Chicago Blackhawks, the longtime coach figured this was a big season for him.

"I only think we're in the winning business and we better win," Quenneville said on the first day of training camp.

Two months later, it was over.

The Blackhawks fired Quenneville on Tuesday, ending a wildly successful run that returned the franchise to the top of the NHL after years of heartache.

"We want to win," team president John McDonough said. "We want to re-win. We want our building filled and we want our fans to see an exciting brand of hockey. Sometimes, as painful as it is, you need a fresh start."

The move comes in the wake of a winless three-game trip, extending Chicago's losing streak to five in a row heading into Thursday's home game against Carolina. The power play, a persistent problem, ranked 27th in the NHL heading into Tuesday. The Blackhawks (6-6-3) also are allowing an unseemly 3.73 goals per game.

"A decision like this isn't made on one game, one play, or one specific thing," general manager Stan Bowman said. "It's sort of a collection of things. Certainly the road trip was concerning. But I think even heading into that, there were some elements to our game where they weren't where they needed to be."

Assistants Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson also were let go. Jeremy Colliton was hired as the 38th head coach in franchise history, and Barry Smith, 66, moved from Chicago's front office to the bench as an assistant coach.

Colliton goes from Chicago's American Hockey League affiliate in Rockford, , to the NHL's youngest head coach at 33. Blackhawks forward Chris Kunitz, defenseman Duncan Keith and Corey Crawford and Cam Ward are older than Colliton, and defenseman Brent Seabrook also is 33.

"I have a huge amount of respect for Joel," Colliton said. "Those are huge shoes to fill. I won't try to fill them. I've got to be myself. And we're different people, so I'll bring different things to the table, different ideas to the table."

The 60-year-old Quenneville was the longest-tenured head coach in the NHL. He had another year left on a three-year contract extension he signed in 2016 that pays him $6 million per year, second highest in the NHL behind Mike Babcock in Toronto.

He also was the second coach fired in the past three days after the Los Angeles Kings dismissed John Stevens.

Whenever Quenneville wants to get back to work, he likely will have plenty of suitors.

The former NHL defenseman has 890 wins in 22 years as a head coach with St. Louis, Colorado and Chicago. Scotty Bowman, Stan's father and a senior adviser with the Blackhawks, is the only man with more regular-season victories.

Quenneville took over Chicago four games into the 2008-09 season, replacing Denis Savard after the Hall of Famer was let go by former general manager Dale Tallon. What followed was an unprecedented run for one of the NHL's franchises. Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Keith and Seabrook blossomed with Quenneville behind the bench, and the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015. They also made it to the conference finals in 2009 and 2014. "He's going to be an icon in Chicago for the longest time, the great things he's done for this organization, winning three Stanley Cups, so that will never be forgotten," Kane said.

Toews said the players learned of the move Tuesday morning.

"We've had some pretty crazy highs and you remember all the good stuff, so it's tough to see a coach and a friend like Joel go," the captain said.

The pressure on Quenneville began to ramp up when Chicago was swept by Nashville in the first round of the 2017 playoffs after the Blackhawks finished with the best record in the Western Conference. Then they missed the playoffs entirely last season for the first time in a decade.

Quenneville finishes with a 452-249-96 record with Chicago. He also went 76-52 in the playoffs with the Blackhawks for the best record in franchise history.

The dismissal turns up the heat on Bowman, who has made a couple of questionable moves that helped hasten the Blackhawks' decline. He traded Artemi Panarin to Columbus and Teuvo Teravainen to Carolina in part because of salary- cap issues, and each player has put up big numbers with his new club.

"I believe in this roster, I believe in Stan," McDonough said. "Stan is meticulous, he's very thorough and when you break down free agents, when you break down trades, some work, some don't. You'd like most to go your way and over time, they may. But his body of work is excellent. I want him to succeed."

The Athletic What you need to know about new Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton

By Scott Powers November 6, 2018

Mora IK sporting director Peter Hermodsson had no doubt Jeremy Colliton would be the Blackhawks head coach one day when Colliton left Sweden for an NHL opportunity.

Hermodsson had made the risky decision to turn Colliton from a player into a head coach at 29 years old, and that paid off handsomely. One former player even said the town of Mora wanted to build Colliton a statue. Having witnessed Colliton’s masterful hand with Mora over four seasons, Hermodsson felt the Blackhawks were making a much less risky decision and would someday also benefit greatly.

“Congratulation to the Chicago organization, they have the most promising coach I’ve seen for many, many years,” Hermodsson said after Colliton was hired as Rockford IceHogs head coach in May 2017. “If they treat him well, they should have an NHL coach in a few years’ time.”

Hermodsson couldn’t be more on the money. Twelve games into his second AHL season, Colliton was named the Blackhawks head coach Tuesday, replacing Joel Quenneville.

Here’s what you need to know about the 33-year-old Colliton:

Age ain’t nothing but a number

Colliton came about coaching via a different path. He had signed to play for Mora IK in Sweden’s second division as a player but wasn’t able to play due to injuries. He developed a relationship with Hermodsson, and Hermodsson took a chance by making Colliton, who had no head coaching experience and had just turned 29 years old, his head coach early in the 2013-14 season.

The decision paid off. Colliton coached Mora to promotion to Sweden’s top division and accumulated a 98-18-15 record over four seasons.

“The second year (after he was hired), he coached a lot, everything from how we practice on ice, off ice, what kind of players we want to bring in,” Hermodsson said. “We planned for three years. ‘I do this and you do this.’ We really worked hard in the three-year plan. It’s amazing we went to the first league. We had almost the smallest budget in the league. We had 700,000 dollars in the budget.

“He managed to do everything he said he would do. He built a strong core, trusted the guys, treated them like men, they respected him off the ice and they gave him everything back. I think the team atmosphere was key. They really wanted to fight for him. It was a nice thing to see the development over the three years how he changed everything from the team sport-wise from half professional to full professional.”

Colliton knows people look at how young he is, but he’s learned to accept it.

“Obviously the question gets asked,” he said. “My opportunity came quickly. Stuff like that gets brought up all the time. I think if you do a good job and prove yourself, then it doesn’t matter.”

Colliton’s young age has worked out for him with his players.

“The good thing is he’s a young guy,” Tomas Jurco said last season. “He could be our teammate. He’s on the same kind of wave. He’s not old school or anything. He’s got the new stuff. That’s helping the young players. He’s a great guy. I think that was working really well for us.”

Pace of play Colliton wants to play fast.

“I think what we’re looking for to begin with is to increase the pace of play,” Colliton said last season. “We want to skate. We want to pressure. We want to be an aggressive team all over the ice and be relentless about getting the puck back as soon as we can as far up the ice as we can. I think for the most part they’ve embraced that. We’ll continue to get better at it, but so far they’ve done a great job.

“It’s hard work. It’s not easy. I mean there’s a lot of demand. There’s a high demand on each player to be full speed for the full length of the shift and also we want them to win their 50/50 situations. I keep going back to it, but we want to have the puck and then the game is a lot easier. Yeah, it’s difficult, but it’s fun to win, so …”

Aggressive defensive play

To add to that, Colliton wants his defensemen to play the same way. He asks for them to step forward into the opponents’ attack, not backpedal from it. It’s something a number of IceHogs defensemen had to get accustomed to the last couple seasons.

“To start the season, I wasn’t used to it at all,” former IceHogs defenseman Viktor Svedberg said last season. “I don’t think anyone was. That was pretty much the biggest thing for D-men — to stop them as high as you can before they can make plays, before they enter the (offensive) zone, before they can do anything. I think everyone on our team did a very good job to adjust to that and doing it way better.

“I remember last year we were barely allowed to step outside of the dots because they don’t want us to get beat. They always want us to have numbers back home instead of forcing them to make a bad play or forcing them to get rid of the puck at the red line, so they can’t get a controlled entry. I think that helped the defensive game of our whole team.”

Erik Gustafsson had a similar response.

“The first year when we played down there, when Teddy (Dent) was the coach, he wanted us to back off,” Gustafsson said last season. “It’s kind of hard for the defensemen to back off and give the forward space. Colliton was just the opposite. He wanted us up in the rush like Q wants us to join the rush all the time because you have better gap when you come back if you lose the puck and stuff. That helped me a lot. I felt confidence right off the bat when I started in games. It was more like we played like Chicago wanted to. It was not the big difference when I first got the call-up the first year. I think it helped me a lot. I like that play. It’s more like my game plan and how I want to play the game for sure. That helped me for sure.”

Different personality

Colliton is soft-spoken and pretty laid back, but don’t let that fool you, he knows when to speak up. More than anything, though, he’s found ways to get through to his players.

“Yeah, I think I’m pretty quiet naturally,” Colliton said. “I’m not super outgoing in my base nature. But I had some coaches who really kind of pulled that out of me. Basically, if you’re going to be a leader, you got to speak up. You got to do more. You can’t just sit there. It’s fine to say you’re going to lead by example, but sometimes you need to open your mouth. So I kind of learned that early on, even as a junior, as a pro. It’s even more so as a coach. Sometimes you got to say things that’s uncomfortable to say and take conversations that are uncomfortable. That’s just part of the job. But I had some good coaches coming up that kind of forced me to do that as a player, so it helped.”

Analytics

Quenneville was always vague on the Blackhawks’ use of analytics. He often spoke about scoring chances but also thought the eye test was important. Colliton seems to be more open to the use of analytics in his coaching decisions.

“Certainly, we’re not building what we’re doing here just based on numbers, but the numbers tell you a lot,” he said. “They sometimes draw your attention to things that you need to be considering or maybe they confirm something you’ve been suspecting or maybe it draws your attention to something a little bit early, maybe you save yourself a week or a game (and) you’re able to make a decision earlier. “I enjoy it. I think it’s interesting. I think it’s fun to look at … I was always a guy, I liked looking at stats and looking at teams, who’s doing what. This is just something more, a little more information. I like it.”

Colliton also believes, however, that it’s important to watch what’s happening on the ice.

“There’s all sorts of data out there,” he said. “I don’t think you can look at any one set of numbers and draw your conclusions. I think it’s just you put it all together, match that up with what you see, what you discuss as a staff and make the best decisions you can.”

Communication

Quenneville was not the most communicative coach with his players, especially the ones who were in his doghouse. He often didn’t explain what he wanted to see differently from them. Colliton has a different approach. He explained it recently after making one of his IceHogs a healthy scratch.

“They want to know why and that’s fair and it’s our job to communicate, but also it shouldn’t be the first time they’ve heard that we want them to change their game a little bit or need more in a certain area,” Colliton said. “Hopefully you’re communicating with them all the time, and when you do finally have to make a decision like that, yeah, there’s more communication, but it shouldn’t come as a surprise what we’re looking for and don’t think it has.”

Gustafsson also noted Colliton’s open dialogue.

“He likes to talk with the players,” Gustafsson said. “He’s all positive and everything. If you do something bad or do something wrong, you lost the puck or something like that, he’s not going to be screaming at you or something like that. I heard from a couple guys back home in Sweden, everyone likes him. I know a couple guys he coached last year, it was all positive before I came here. I like him. He’s good for this team with all the young guys we have too.”

Colliton also has a lot of experience now dealing with and communicating with younger players. It’s something Blackhawks vice president of minor league affiliates Mark Bernard took note of after last season.

“Jeremy, for me, the first couple months, I kind of sat back and watched because we were still getting to know each other,” Bernard said after last season. “Working as the GM there, we speak on the daily basis. But his preparation is fantastic and his demeanor. I’ve never seen him upset to be honest with you. He’s had times when he’s not happy with the group, but the way he goes about voicing that is very refreshing. He’s done a really good job with the team.

“He works very well with Sheldon Brookbank and Derek King and Adam Gill as well as Peter Aubry. His communication skills not only with the staff, (but with) the players has been fantastic. I just think he was the perfect fit for his team right now. I think it’s very similar to what he had to deal with when he was coaching in Mora — a lot of young players that he had to make better in order to have success, and that’s exactly what he’s done with this group. Jeremy, he’s very bright. He’s very prepared. He’s done a hell of a job.”

Risk/reward

Something Colliton often talked about with the IceHogs was living to see another day. He wanted his players to be aggressive and make plays, but he also thought it was important not to take huge risks.

“It’s just those times where you try for a little bit too much, and you give up a huge chance and it’s in the back of your net,” Colliton said. “People remember that and it can sometimes color how you’re viewed as a player. So we’re just telling him still, try and make your plays, but pick your spots.”

Injury talk

The Blackhawks have recently become more open in regards to discussing player injuries, but that could change under Colliton.

“I feel that — and not everyone will agree with this — but I just don’t think we need to give everything away as far as what it is,” Colliton said. “If we have a rough timeline, I think that’s enough. And even from my perspective, is he available or is he not? And that’s it. That’s all I ever need. “Personally as a player, I didn’t love when I felt other people knew if I was playing hurt. I’ve been through it myself. I just feel like it’s not really relevant in a lot of situations. So then you get in a situation, when do you reveal it and when do you not? So, I just think it’s nice to be as consistent as we can.”

Development

The Blackhawks hired Colliton because they believed he could develop players. It’s something he believes strongly in too.

“I think it’s exciting,” Colliton said. “It’s fun to be in that environment. It’s fun to compete every day. I think that’s another thing we can give to these guys, I think of all the top players in the NHL, the competitiveness they have is maybe the biggest factor. They’ll just do everything they can, whatever it takes to have success. We got to try and bring that out of these guys because a lot of times that extra level is what is missing. The raw talent is there, but that extra competitiveness, the ability to win pucks, keep the puck, that’s what they need. And do it against men, too, that’s another thing.”

The Athletic In a stunning move, Blackhawks fire three-time Stanley Cup winner Joel Quenneville, promote Jeremy Colliton

By Scott Powers November 6, 2018

The Blackhawks are turning the page on their most successful era in franchise history.

After three Stanley Cups and a decade of unparalleled success, the Blackhawks announced Tuesday they had fired head coach Joel Quenneville and replaced him with Jeremy Colliton.

The Blackhawks also fired assistants Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson and added Barry Smith as an assistant. Don Granato will remain on the staff.

“This is certainly a very difficult decision,” Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman said in a statement. “But I believe it is in the best interests of the Blackhawks organization. We need to maximize each and every opportunity with our playoff goals in mind and create continued growth and development throughout our roster at the same time. After much deliberation the last several days, with great respect to what Joel has meant to the Blackhawks, we knew we had to make a change. Along with our appreciation for everything Joel has accomplished for our franchise, we also thank Kevin and Ulf for their many contributions and wish them success in the future.”

The second-winningest coach in franchise history, Quenneville, 60, was hired by the Blackhawks four games into the 2008-09 season, replacing franchise legend Denis Savard. It turned out to be the most important decision in Blackhawks history. Quenneville accumulated a 452-246-96 record and more importantly, he went 76-52 in the playoffs and coached the Blackhawks to five Western Conference finals and three Stanley Cup titles.

The Blackhawks missed the playoffs last season for the first time in 10 years, and Quenneville was thought to be on the hot seat to begin this season. The Blackhawks have lost their last five games to fall to 6-6-3 on the season.

“This was an extremely difficult decision, given our respect for Joel and all that he has brought to the Chicago Blackhawks organization the last 10 years,” Blackhawks president John McDonough said in a statement. “His leadership during three Stanley Cup championships speaks for itself and there is no way to adequately express what he has meant to this organization. He will always be a significant member of the Blackhawks family. We have a deep appreciation for how he helped establish our standard and the Blackhawks culture and certainly wish he, Kevin and Ulf only the best in their future.”

In his statement, Blackhawks chairman Rocky Wirtz said the move had his “full support.”

“As Chicago Blackhawks fans have seen over the last decade, this organization no longer shies away from making tough decisions or ones based on emotion,” he said. “Those days are long behind us. Of course, Joel’s was difficult, as it should have been. During his tenure as head coach to the Chicago Blackhawks, Joel brought the city of Chicago and our fans three Stanley Cups and an incredible era of hockey.

“When Joel was originally hired into our 2008 season, we had great hope for his potential to take the team to new levels. He went beyond what anyone expected. As difficult as that decision in 2008 was, this one was tougher. But as we look to a future history not yet defined, we believe the change we made today, will provide the Chicago Blackhawks a critical element in achieving our goals of Championships in the future, including this season. “I wish Joel and his family well and thank him for his incredible leadership and results. Nothing will ever take away the success he brought our franchise, our fans and my family. Joel will forever be etched into the most memorable era in Chicago Blackhawk hockey. And for that, we will always be connected and always eternally grateful.” Colliton, 33, becomes the franchise’s 38th head coach. He was hired by the Blackhawks to coach the IceHogs last season after previously coaching in Sweden. The IceHogs went 40-28-4-4 and reached the AHL’s Western Conference final last season. He is now the youngest coach in the NHL.

“We are extremely fortunate to have Jeremy Colliton in the Blackhawks organization and feel strongly that he is best positioned to continue leading our players here in Chicago,” Bowman said. “All of those associated with Jeremy strongly believe he possesses many of the tools that will make him a successful head coach in this league. He has been very impressive as a communicator, a leader, and coach. He knows the Blackhawks system, understands our players and our culture and we believe he gives us the best opportunity to have success and grow as a team.”

Smith, 66, has been an assistant with the Blackhawks and other teams in the past. He has been with the Blackhawks for the past nine seasons and was their director of player evaluation for the past three seasons.

Dineen had been a Blackhawks assistant for the past five seasons. Samuelsson was in his second season with the Blackhawks.

In a recent interview celebrating the 10-year anniversary of Quenneville’s hire, McDonough praised the head coach that helped usher in a new era for a franchise that was waking up from a long slumber.

“I just have all the respect in the world for Joel and the job he’s done here,” McDonough said. “I think this will go down as the golden era of the Chicago Blackhawks. So far in my lifetime it has. I think Joel Quenneville is one of the primary reasons.”

The Athletic Fall guy: Joel Quenneville takes the heat for Stan Bowman’s roster decisions

By Mark Lazerus November 6, 2018

Stan and Scotty Bowman won.

The Blackhawks fired the second-winningest coach in NHL history on Tuesday, jettisoning Joel Quenneville after the best 10-year stretch in the history of the franchise. It’s as unthinkable as it was inevitable, the end of a power struggle that has lasted more than six years. And if you have any doubt about that, just look at whom the Blackhawks have named an assistant coach in the wake of the firing of Quenneville and his top two lieutenants, Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson: Barry Smith.

It was Smith, you might remember, who was foisted upon Quenneville during the 2011-12 season against his wishes, ordered by Bowman to join Quenneville on the ice to work with the anemic power play. Multiple sources said Quenneville was furious and angrily confronted Bowman about it. Smith was reporting back to Bowman directly, and Quenneville strongly resented his presence.

Quenneville was closer to being fired after that season than most people realize, but ultimately held on to his job. Winning two Stanley Cups and 10 playoff series over the next three years cooled Quenneville’s hot seat considerably, but a first-round coin-flip loss to St. Louis in 2016, a first-round sweep against Nashville in 2017, and a last-place finish this past spring all but sealed Quenneville’s fate.

At the end of the 2016-17 season, Bowman fired Quenneville’s best friend and closest confidante, assistant coach . In June that year, Bowman traded away Quenneville’s favorite and most trusted player, Niklas Hjalmarsson. That same day, Bowman traded away Quenneville’s second-best offensive weapon (and Patrick Kane’s favorite player), Artemi Panarin. Quenneville famously stormed out of the pre-draft meeting after learning of the Hjalmarsson news.

Bowman had the axe in hand, ready to drop it. An 0-4-1 skid over the past two weeks, even after an encouraging 6-2-2 start, was the opening he needed.

It’s lunacy, sure, but pro hockey, like all sports, is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately business. And while team president John McDonough respects Quenneville, multiple team sources said he’s always been in Bowman’s camp — correction, the Bowmans’ camp — first and foremost. At 85 years old and living in Tampa Bay, the elder Bowman — the only coach in NHL history with more victories than Quenneville — still holds considerable sway among the Blackhawks brass.

So let’s state what should be obvious: This was the wrong decision. A short-sighted decision. A decision the Blackhawks will regret. Put bluntly, the state of the Blackhawks is not on Quenneville.

Is it Quenneville’s fault the Blackhawks got older and slower? Did Quenneville trade away Hjalmarsson and Panarin in losing deals? Did Quenneville give up Teuvo Teravainen to get out of a year of Bryan Bickell’s onerous contract? Did Quenneville deal away Vinnie Hinostroza just to dump off Marian Hossa’s contract? Did Quenneville swing and miss on the Phil Danault trade to Montreal? Did Quenneville sign a No. 6 defenseman (Brandon Manning) and a 39-year-old forward (Chris Kunitz) in response to the Blackhawks’ worst season in more than a decade? Did Quenneville sit on more than $5 million of cap space this summer rather than spend it on obvious holes in the lineup?

“When you gave Joel Quenneville decent rosters, his players performed and they had success,” one league source told The Athletic. “This is not a decent roster.” Quenneville and his staff were not blameless. Not by any means. Quenneville has been stubborn with lineup decisions, and the success of defensemen Trevor Daley and Michal Kempny elsewhere are damning. He’s sometimes loyal to veterans to a fault, though recent scratches of Manning and Kunitz suggest he had turned a corner there. He was reluctant to tweak his defensive systems even though the talent he had to work with declined considerably. And Dineen’s power play has been a disaster for two seasons now.

Quenneville’s competitive fire never stopped burning, but even he wondered about his own shelf life.

“We won a lot, we were fortunate,” Quenneville told me in January. “But the message: Does it become too consistent? Does it fall on deaf ears? Do you change your approach? Do you try to be creative? We’ve never been too gimmicky as far as how we do things, as far as the approach and the message. Simple has always been how we like to do it. I don’t want to say we’re getting soft or we’re getting hardened in the way we treat these guys, but I think there’s balance there. When you get upset, you get upset for the right reasons.”

It’s hard to imagine Quenneville falling on deaf ears, though. He was loved and respected in the Blackhawks’ dressing room. An NHLPA players poll conducted last season reported Quenneville was the No. 1 coach players wanted to play for, earning 16.5 percent of the vote. He’s famously stern, but is truly a players’ coach — leaving players to themselves, giving more days off than most coaches, doing everything he can to help them earn performance-based bonuses at the end of the year, cap-implications be damned.

But Quenneville is the scapegoat here, and, well, that’s how these things usually go down. As he said whenever his own job security came up, “We’re in the winning business” and “It’s a short-term business.”

“As a coach, it can happen at any moment,” Quenneville said at the fan convention in July. “That’s all part of our business and that’s the way it goes. We’re in the winning business. As a coach, it’s the only way we think is win the next game. That other stuff, we can’t control. We’re fighting to get two points and getting the guys ready to play and playing right, that’s our job. I can’t think of the other things.”

There are always other things. Even the most high-profile jobs involve power struggles, office politics, co-workers covering their own backsides.

It’s hard not to see this as a rash, wrong decision. Quenneville will have another job as soon as he wants one, and it’s easy to imagine the struggling Blues coming to the United Center on Nov. 14 with Quenneville behind the bench. At 60 years old, he has a lot of coaching left in him. Maybe another Stanley Cup or two, as well. Enjoy that visual, Chicago.

But it doesn’t matter now. The Blackhawks are Jeremy Colliton’s team. He’s a bright young coach with terrific potential, and he clearly was being groomed as Quenneville’s replacement. But at 33, he’s the same age as Brent Seabrook, and younger than Duncan Keith, Corey Crawford, Cam Ward and Kunitz.

Who knows, maybe he’ll connect better with the Blackhawks’ youngest players (Don Granato, brought on to the staff last summer for just that purpose, remains on staff). Maybe he’ll be able to coax Nick Schmaltz out of his shell, continue Alex DeBrincat’s development into a superstar, tighten up the patchwork blue line and stop the bleeding before the Blackhawks begin a brutal stretch of 15 games (nine against legitimate Stanley Cup contenders) during Thanksgiving week. Maybe.

Or maybe the Blackhawks will come to regret letting the best coach in team history, maybe the best coach in Chicago sports history, walk out the door.

The Athletic Blackhawks, NHL counterparts react to Joel Quenneville’s firing

By Scott Powers and Mark Lazerus November 6, 2018

The last time the Blackhawks went through a coaching change Patrick Kane was 19 years old and new to the ways of the NHL.

With the news of Denis Savard’s firing 10 years ago, tears filled Kane’s eyes. Savard had been his first NHL coach and had meant a tremendous amount to him. Kane was struck with sadness, and he felt somewhat responsible. He wondered if he could have done more to save Savard’s job.

Ten years later, Kane experienced his second coaching change as the Blackhawks announced Tuesday that Joel Quenneville had been fired and replaced by Jeremy Colliton. This time Kane is on the cusp of his 30th birthday, a seasoned veteran. He understands on some level why the change was made.

But even though Kane kept his emotions in check and didn’t publicly shed a tear on Tuesday, that didn’t mean he wasn’t as hurt or didn’t feel just as responsible. Like with Savard, Kane wished he could have done more for Quenneville.

“To be honest with you when I first, this is just kind of a me thing, but when I first heard the news I’m just kind of thinking I wish I wasn’t sick in Vancouver or I wish I maybe felt better on the road trip, could have played better and then maybe something like this doesn’t happen,” Kane said. “Just thoughts running through your head. Also Duncs (Duncan Keith) got kicked out two minutes into the game in Calgary, maybe that makes a difference in the game as well. Different things run through your head as players.

“I think Joel actually got a lot out of this group as players the last couple years. I think he’s done a great job of bringing the younger guys along and developing them. Same thing for this year as well. Obviously, missing the playoffs didn’t help. A lot of answers I don’t have. Definitely a tough morning for everyone for sure.”

Kane and many other current and former Blackhawks shared their thoughts on the news on Tuesday:

Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews

“Given what we went through last year, missing the playoffs last year, we had a pretty decent start but obviously we’re on a five-game slide right now, things aren’t going the way you want them to this part couple of weeks, but I think it was a shock to wake up to the news this morning for sure. I think everyone, as players in the locker room, you take responsibilities, but at the end of the day, whether it’s trades, changes, coaches being relieved of duties, those decisions are above your head and I guess at the end of the day you have to respect them and you have to acknowledge them and move on with the decisions that have been made, but there’s no doubt that there’s going to be some shock there especially for guys like myself and the other guys in this room who have played for him for a long time.

“Obviously there’s strong bonds and strong relationships there with the success that we’ve had. I think you always form deep friendships with not only your teammates but I think you can say the same with your coaching staff. And Joel was our leader for three championships and a lot of success in between so it’s a tough day to realize — come to the rink and he’s not here today.

“I think communication is big (with Colliton coming in). He’s already made that clear here. He wants to talk to us, not only the leadership group but everyone in the room and try to get to know everybody and try to understand everyone and who they are and how to play well on the ice. I think he wants to hear that feedback as well, which I think is great. I think at the end of the day we respect him and his decisions and what he thinks needs to change for us to be successful on the ice, but a big thing is he wants to hear what we think and feel as well.”

Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook “(Quenneville) means the world to me: 10 years, three Stanley Cups. What was I, 23, 24, when I came here? He taught me a lot as a young man, as a young player. Little things he always harped on that I’ll remember for the rest of my life, for sure. Just the way he was with us, how he treated us professionally and as individuals. He was always a guy who liked to have some fun and whatnot but gave us our space and allowed us to be players. It was just, you know, a tough day today and cherish the days and memories and all the stuff we did together.”

Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford

“I was pretty surprised this morning. We spent a lot of time here with Joel as the coach, and the team has had three championships, obviously. You never want to see a guy leave, including the coaches. We’ve been through so much together. I think for me, personally, he’s had a ton of confidence in me from the start, and it’s hard to hear that news. In this business, those things happen sometimes. It seems like coaches are maybe the first ones to go most of the time. Like I said, it’s just hard to see him go.”

Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane

“I think as players you just have an open mind to everything and hopefully we can be better as players too. I don’t know if it was really a systems’ thing or anything like that. We didn’t really get the job done and he has to be fall guy for it. But as players in this situation might be tough and everything. You just try to have an open mind.”

Blackhawks forward Nick Schmaltz

“Definitely surprising. I didn’t think anything was happening. Obviously the organization thinks we need change. You know we need to be better as well as players, our compete level and playing a full 60 minutes. You know Jeremy’s a great guy and Joel’s a great guy and great coach. I wish him all the best. He was a great mentor for a lot of us young guys and taught us the right way and taught us how to be a pro. Thanks to him. Excited to get things going here and hopefully we can turn the tide around.”

Blackhawks forward Marcus Kruger

“Obviously a lot of emotions. Change is never easy. Everything Joel did for this team and us players, it’s been a good run. At the same time, excited for Jeremy coming in here and his coaching staff. We all got to do a better job. It doesn’t matter who the coach is. We all got to step back here and realize it’s a long way here this season left. Yeah, we got to realize we lost five straight now and we got to get better and it doesn’t matter who the coach is. We just got to get better.”

Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman

“We’re all accountable for this This is not just on one person today, not just on Joel or the other coaches. We all play a role in this and we have to get better, so my role in this arrangement is not just simply finding players. That’s part of my role. My role is interacting with our coaches and helping collaborate to help out team improve. Certainly, part of that is player acquisition of player movement. We’re on the outlook, if can upgrade out team in any way we’re going to pursue that So it’s nor just one thing, it’s a combination of things.

” A decision like this isn’t made on one game, one play, or one specific thing. It’s sort of a collection of things. Certainly the road trip was concerning. But I think even heading into that, there were some elements to our game where they weren’t where they needed to be. It’s not just based off the record of the team, so it’s more a totality of circumstances than it is just based on one specific game.

“I’m glad you asked (if there was a power struggle with Quenneville), because there’s no truth to that whatsoever, quite the contrary. Like I said in my opening remarks, Joel has been great to me the entire time we’ve been together. I would say we have a very good relationship and do we agree on everything over 10 years? No, we don’t. But we see the game very similarly and I think that’s one of the reasons we were able to have as much success as we did together. So there’s just no truth to that at all. It was a difficult conversation this morning, it was pretty emotional for both of us. I could say that, but at the same time, there was always a mutual respect for each other. Like I said, I’ve learned so much from Joel, such a bright guy and I’m glad you asked because that’s just not true.” Blackhawks president John McDonough

“No I did not consider (firing Quenneville and Bowman). I believe in this roster, I believe in Stan. Stan is meticulous, he’s very thorough and when you breakdown free agents, when you breakdown trades, some work, some don’t. You’d like most to go your way and overtime, they may. But his body of work is excellent. I want him to succeed. I want our roster to succeed. This is the first head coach that Stan Bowman has hired and I’m excited about that. Stan has been very high on Jeremy for a long time and I’m anxious to see how this is going to play out.”

Blackhawks chairman Rocky Wirtz

“John came to me, and Stan, and we talked about this. We talked about it last year, how we talked about it this year. And you have to put the team, the organization and the company first and it’s easy from 20,000 feet to criticize, but until you’re on the firing line and making a decision, the biggest problem, in my humble opinion, executives have is not making a decision. Because if you don’t make a decision, you’re never wrong. Now our decisions are looked at every day, are written or heard or seen every day. So that comes with the territory. So I was very much in favor of what John and Stan talked about. We knew Jeremy was in the wings, that he could always, maybe sometime, fill that job. We hoped it wouldn’t be today, because we always want Joel to do well. Because he’s such a class act, we think so much of Joel, but this wasn’t in the card. So criticism comes, but the only way you overcome criticism is by winning.”

Montreal Canadiens coach Claude Julien

“It’s never pleasant, but we know what our job consists of, it’s things like this. There’s always that danger of being fired. But on the other hand, when you look at Joel’s track record, if he wants to work quickly I don’t think it will be a problem. He’s a good coach, three Stanley Cups in I think five years and he’s coached his teams well. But sooner or later, as was the case with me, after 10 years sometimes it’s a matter of having a new voice and trying something new. But one thing’s for sure, he’s a good coach, an excellent coach who was just fired.”

Former Blackhawk and current Canadien Phillip Danault

“I’m surprised for sure. I loved him, I wasn’t there long but I loved him. He’s a pretty tough coach, but he has three Stanley Cups in Chicago. That says it all. I have a lot of respect for Joel Quenneville.”

What did you like most about him?

“His intensity, his desire to win, really. He reads the game very well and he managed his bench well. He’s an excellent coach.”

Tampa Bay Lightning coach Jon Cooper

“He’s been a mentor to me, there’s no question. And he’s got a lot of things on his fingers that I don’t have. An envy of many coaches. Just to be in a situation to be able to say I coached against him in the is an honor in of itself.”

The Athletic Joel Quenneville got fired. Is Joe Maddon next? The price of excellence is heightened expectations.

By Jon Greenberg November 6, 2018

Joel Quenneville, the mustachioed man who led the Blackhawks to three Stanley Cups in six years, is out of a job. (By the time you read this, he might have a new one, though.)

Joe Maddon, the dude who led the Cubs to their first World Series title in 108 years, is entering a lame-duck season. The only guarantee he has for 2020 is that he’ll be driving his RV back to Florida with a bunch of art in tow.

Ozzie Guillen, the first Chicago baseball manager to win a championship since ol’ Pants Rowland in 1917, can’t find a managing job in North America.

Mike Ditka, well, he had his run, didn’t he?

Imagine a world where Quenneville and Maddon are sent packing within a year of each other. You don’t have to. It’s here. It’s now. Or almost now. Maddon’s tenure isn’t over yet, even if it feels like a goodbye tour is on tap.

Maybe we could get all these championship ex-coaches to do a roundtable next winter at Ditka’s. Pork chops on Da Coach, the civic legend who only won one Super Bowl, putting him behind Quenneville, and of course, Phil Jackson.

The Blackhawks firing Quenneville 15 games into the season feels rash, disrespectful even. It was stunning to hear the news — I was in the car and heard it from Score host Mike Mulligan, who had to break out of his interview with Dave Wannstedt to announce it — but not altogether shocking. When Scott Powers put together this incredible oral history of Quenneville’s 2008 hiring, we were worried he could get fired before it was finished.

Adding Barry Smith, his power play bête noire, to Jeremy Colliton’s staff is a kick in Quenneville’s ass on the way out, isn’t it? Even I, the hockey idiot, remember that story, which Mark Lazerus recapped in his column.

But does anyone feel like the Blackhawks have another Cup run in them with this group? Three Cups in six years is a pretty damn good legacy to have, and while Quenneville should’ve been shown the respect to finish out the year, a change was coming, even if it doesn’t really help the team get closer to another Cup.

How cold was this firing? Quenneville didn’t even get the headline on the team’s press release. It simply read, “Blackhawks Announce Coaching Changes,” like they only canned Kevin Dineen and Ulf Samuelsson.

Now, I almost never quote press releases, but owner Rocky Wirtz’s quote (or the quote attributed to him) struck me as very Blackhawks.

“As Chicago Blackhawks fans have seen over the last decade, this organization no longer shies away from making tough decisions or ones based on emotion. Those days are long behind us. Of course, Joel’s was difficult, as it should have been. During his tenure as head coach to the Chicago Blackhawks, Joel brought the city of Chicago and our fans three Stanley Cups and an incredible era of hockey.

“When Joel was originally hired into our 2008 season, we had great hope for his potential to take the team to new levels. He went beyond what anyone expected. As difficult as that decision in 2008 was, this one was tougher. But as we look to a future history not yet defined, we believe the change we made today, will provide the Chicago Blackhawks a critical element in achieving our goals of Championships in the future, including this season.”

One, don’t capitalize “championships.” Two, I think Wirtz is showing him the proper respect. But more importantly, does he really believe firing Quenneville gets them closer to a championship? Colliton is a promising young coach from what I’ve read — all those trips to Rockford for Scott Powers are paying off! — but how does he get this team to a championship? The Hawks, let alone Wirtz, have no clue. But this is transition time for the Hawks. Unfortunately for them, they’ve traded away a ton of young talent recently, so it might be a bumpy one.

As Mark Lazerus wrote in September, the Blackhawks brass are cognizant their standing in the Chicago sporting community is dependent on their success. Tickets are wildly expensive and casual interest in the team is declining. Since 2008, the Hawks have gained more fans in than any team in Chicago sports since the Michael Jordan Bulls. As in, people who became Blackhawks fans. It wasn’t because of John McDonough’s marketing prowess. It wasn’t because of Wirtz put games on TV, which wasn’t a decision at all. It was an obvious move once his father passed away.

It was because the Blackhawks won and won big. They made hockey a civic obsession. They put up the big tent. Reflected glory is a wonderful thing for a sports franchise.

People who would’ve never dreamed about watching a hockey game in a bar were suddenly living and dying with every shift. In the summer of 2007, I drank with some Blackhawks at a street fair and no one recognized them. Two years later, they were bonafide Chicago celebrities (which means as famous at the time as Alfonso Soriano and Bill and/or Giuliana.)

The talent of the Blackhawks, much of it culled by GM Dale Tallon, who was fired in 2009 — was the key here. Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Marian Hossa, it was ridiculous. Any idiot could see these guys were special. But Quenneville’s arrival made it all work. He molded this team into champions.

Can we say the same for Maddon, who might be out of a job next winter? I think so. His arrival in 2015 legitimized the Cubs as contenders. It helped convince Jon Lester to sign here. The biggest thing a professional coach or manager can do is create a culture, which sounds like a buzzword, but it’s very important. Athletes want guidance and structure. They want to believe in something and they want to know the people at the top know what the hell they’re doing.

Take Tom Thibodeau, for example. The reason the Bulls were so successful in his first two seasons was because of the work he did prior to his first one, when he turned optional summer workouts at the Berto Center into mandatory training. That continued into his first training camp and throughout the season. Once the Bulls started winning, they realized this lunatic could coach, so they bought in.

It didn’t take long for the Hawks to realize Quenneville was the man for this job. Denis Savard was a legend on the ice, but a bit of a novice as a coach. Quenneville was already experienced and the real deal, from temperament to coaching ability. With a bellowing voice, a gruff demeanor and a warm heart, the players connected with him. His line blender worked more often than it didn’t and he knew how to coach a defense.

“We could sort of see where it could be,” Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook told Scott Powers recently. “We needed a guy to come and push us to the next level.”

“I think Q was the right coach and he was the right guy for the job,” former Blackhawk Dave Bolland told Powers. “He managed us and guided us to the Stanley Cup and he knew what to do. I think he was great for us.”

The same goes for Maddon, who took a job that vexed talented managers like Dusty Baker and Lou Piniella before him. Winning at Wrigley Field is incredibly difficult, from the anxiety to the outsized attention. Imagine the Bears playing every day for six months? Maddon navigated that pressure wonderfully in 2015 and throughout the 2016 season.

But unlike Quenneville, who coaches a sport only a relatively small group of fans and media actually understand, Maddon was criticized locally, nationally and internally for some of his World Series decisions. It cast a bit of a pall on the historic championship. Not much, really, but that has really stuck with him, hasn’t it? I joked that the criticism of the first World Series-winning Cubs manager in more than a century let everyone know that Cubs fans wouldn’t change with success. Excellence breeds expectations, often unrealistic ones.

That Maddon’s World Series performance was followed by the dud of a first half in 2017 and the Cubs’ late-season fade in 2018 doesn’t augur well for his future, despite the fact the Cubs won 90-plus games each season. I would’ve disagreed with the Cubs firing him after last season, as was the hot rumor among national writer types, but I would’ve understood their reasoning behind it. There was thought to be no chance he was getting an extension this winter and on Monday night at the GM meetings, Theo Epstein told reporters no contract talk would happen until after this season. Could that be a distraction? We’ll see. Maddon has shown he can handle the scrutiny of this job better than any manager before him, but he needs to win big in 2019 to get a new deal.

The Cubs essentially have a three-year window before an ugly transition could occur. As of now, Kris Bryant, Javy Báez, Anthony Rizzo and Epstein will all be free agents after 2021. That’s not set in stone, of course, but it’s a useful calendar.

If the Cubs only win one championship from 2015-21, like the Bears and White Sox did in their respective windows, it will be a failure, relatively speaking. And if the Cubs let Maddon go after 2019 and don’t win anything in the next two years, that will be on the front office.

As we learned in Chicago, even three championships in six years don’t guarantee you a coaching job for life, let alone one in five.

The Athletic Q&A: Derek King on his opportunity with the IceHogs, Jeremy Colliton’s with the Blackhawks

By Scott Powers November 6, 2018

The Blackhawks went another direction, and that left Derek King in a tough spot.

King had been a Rockford IceHogs assistant coach under Ted Dent for the 2016-17 season. When Dent was let go following that season, King was among the candidates the Blackhawks interviewed for the job. But he didn’t get it. The Blackhawks went an unexpected route and hired then-32-year-old Jeremy Colliton, who had been coaching in Sweden’s second division.

King was disappointed. He was hopeful to finally land his first head coaching job after interviewing a number of times over the years. Instead, he had to choose between remaining with the IceHogs as an assistant or potentially pursuing other opportunities.

King chose to remain with the IceHogs. A year later, that decision has worked out well for King. He and Colliton formed a strong working relationship, helped the IceHogs develop players and win, and now King has been promoted to interim head coach in Rockford after Colliton’s own promotion to Chicago.

King, 51, discussed Tuesday his aspirations to be a head coach, working with Colliton, his philosophies on the game and more.

Scott Powers: What was your reaction to the news?

Derek King: Well, I was a little shocked. I mean more with the Chicago thing which was going down. When they told me I was going to get the head job, I was excited, happy and thankful for the opportunity. That’s for sure.

SP: What’s impressed you about Jeremy Colliton working with him the past few seasons?

King: I think just the way he looks at the game. I’ve been around the game a long time as a player. I like to think I’ve been around enough with different coaches as a coach, and just the way he approaches the game is it’s nothing we didn’t really know but the way he words it makes it right. Like it makes it, yeah, you know what, this is right, this is what we should have been doing years ago. Just the way he thinks the game. He’s a smart hockey guy, and system-wise, he’s good it, and you think with his demeanor, the way he is, I think it’s going to be a great fit for him.

SP: What about his systems fits in with today’s game?

King: Well, I think with the way teams are and the players are with the skill level, the pace, it’s offense and offense and offense. I think it’s the transition game from defense to tracking to back-checking to turn up quick and to go right on the offense is going to be huge for Chicago, especially with the talent they have.

SP: In talking to IceHogs defensemen the past few season, it seemed like a lot of them needed time to adjust to that. In teaching that philosophy, what are some of the hurdles?

King: Well, it’s kind of like the old-school guys need to buy into it and see that it works, not always thinking defense when we have the puck or coming in as a centerman low and slow. The way we played it here last year too, when we get the puck, we got to think we’re gone, we’re on offense, let’s go, whether it’s a quick up indirect or as we say it’s above layers and what have you. But, if there’s plays there to be made, make the plays. If they’re not there, let’s get pucks behind the opposition and go to work. And if you play like that and play with some pace, especially if you have a lot of skilled guys, you can be successful at it. SP: There’s a lot of understanding between risk and reward?

King: Yeah, it’s like anything, you’ve watched enough games, you’ve seen enough games, we don’t need to turn pucks over, but we don’t want to take away the skill to make plays and the creativity of a player, but you just got to manage that. And through the neutral zone, puck management’s key with our team, especially our team here and last year. I’m sure Jeremy’s going to promote that also. If you don’t have a play, let’s get it behind them and go to work. If you do have a play, let’s make it.

SP: Did you learn anything from him or did you have to alter any of your philosophies being his assistant?

King: No, I didn’t have to alter. Again, it’s old school. Why are we above layers? Why are we not coming back to help? You adjust to it, and then you start the way he brings it in front of you and shows you and teaches the guys, it makes sense. If they have two guys on the forecheck, why should we have three guys underneath them? Let’s get above layers, let’s go, turn the puck up and let’s get on offense. And as a player, it’s a lot more fun to play offense than it is defense, that’s for sure. Using that philosophy, it was great to learn it. It was nothing we didn’t already know. Myself as a player, we didn’t really know that. We weren’t really taught it that way. And then as a coach, we never looked at it that way. It was always a little different. Now knowing it, it’s great and I enjoy coaching it and I enjoy watching it when it works.

SP: Have you guys utilized analytics more in the last year or the same as before?

King: Last year was kind of coming in. I know Jeremy is really big on analytics. I’m still figuring it out. I’ll have to really work at it more. I’m not against it. I think it’s great. Any information you can have to help makes these players better, especially at our level, I’m going to take. I just need to make (sure) I know how to read the fine print and what it actually is helping us with. But I’m for it and will continue to use it down here.

SP: The big talking point is about Colliton’s age and his experience. When he was hired there, did you have any preconceived notions about him being younger or did you just get to know him before you made any judgements? Was it difficult with him coming in so young?

King: No, when he got the job and found out how young he was, I just knew I had to get in better shape to keep up with him on the ice. I think the big thing there, I interviewed for the head job after Teddy left, and not to get it, I was a little disappointed. But I understood, there’s a younger guy coming in, brings a different philosophy or a different look at the game. Once I got to know and meet with Jeremy, I got to know him a lot better, it was easy to believe in what he was selling and easily adapt to it, and I think it’s been a great relationship ever since. Hats off to him. There was no blood or anything. It was just, let’s see what he has, and I enjoyed working with him. Who knows? Maybe down the road there’s still opportunity to work with him again.

SP: What’s this opportunity mean for you?

King: Well, it’s great. This is something I’ve interviewed for with other teams and the junior level. And even when I was with Toronto, there was opportunity there, never got it. Again, disappointment, frustrating. But the opportunity’s a good chance for me to show what I can do as a head coach, and it’s a good test for me to see if I am a head coach. I believe I can do it. I have no questions about it. But sometimes it doesn’t work out the way you want it.

SP: Was that difficult to stay on last season when they didn’t hire you as the head coach?

King: No. I told them after they hired somebody else, I’m like, hey, I’m here to help. I’m a pretty loyal guy. I know my job. I think I’m good at it as an assistant. I enjoy working with these kids and developing them. I had no problems with it. I knew my role and anything I could do to help. We’re all in this together. Last year I wasn’t pissed off to the point where I’m not helping anymore and being like that. I’m here to help. I’m here to help Jeremy, make it easy for him and make these players better. I think that’s what we did last year. I think we really did a good job of developing our players and getting them ready. We just got to keep doing that here.

SP: It seems like there’s an upside between the IceHogs’ and Blackhawks’ coaches having a relationship and maybe just the communication lines of where players are at development-wise, who can come up and down. King: Yeah, definitely. It’s a perfect situation for Jeremy and for me. I keep in contact with him. He can contract us and talk about … and he knows the players, so he’s going to be asking like, hey, what’s going on with Dylan Sikura or this player or this player, and we’ll give them feedback and see where they’re at. Again, he knows them, I know them. And with the system-wise, unless he makes any changes, we’ll be on top of it to make the change with him at this level. Other than that, we’ll be playing pretty much the same systems, same style of play that he wants to play up there we’ll be doing it down here.

SP: System-wise, were you doing anything different than the Blackhawks?

King: No. They changed some D-zone coverage stuff and maybe the forecheck, but we implemented it into our daily routine in practice and made sure the guys knew what was going on and used it. As you know, for players getting called up, if they know the system already, it’s an easy adjustment for them.

SP: Were there any variations on the philosophy of the penalty kill or power play with Colliton?

King: No, he allowed us to do what we wanted to do on the power play. He had suggestions, and we talked about it. Again, it goes back to having a good relationship the whole staff with Brooky (Sheldon Brookbank), myself, Jeremy on board with everything. Whatever we were selling, we were selling it together. One wasn’t going one way, one way the other way and the other wasn’t fighting to get both guys to agree. We all agreed on something and stuck with it.

SP: Were you in charge of the power play and penalty kill?

King: I’ve done power play.

SP: I know there was a point you used five forwards last season on the power play. It seems like you’ve been progressive in some ways. Have you been able to push the envelope and try some new things on the power play?

King: Well, we try it. We have the two groups. It’s tough too. You got to have the guys who are power play guys, helps, right? At this level, you have a couple of guys on each power play unit that are probably or should be guys at the NHL level and then the other guys won’t be, but at this level they are power play guys, they can handle this. It’s not always perfect. Sometimes it’s a battle. There’s a lot of hot streaks, and you try to adjust things. We’ve tried different things, but it really comes down to, for myself, a big believer is the players need to … it’s their power play and they need to know what’s going on and they need to know how to read the game, how to react to what PK’s giving you and obviously they have to be clean both flat passes and obviously get shots through. That’s stuff I can’t teach them. They just have to be able to do it.

SP: How do you feel about the team down there right now?

King: I feel good. Like again I was saying earlier with the media before, nothing needs to change here, same program. We just have to teach it without Jeremy, but we’ll continue to plug along here, develop these players. Players that need to play have to play a lot, and they have to earn it, but, again, ice time is going to be there for these guys.