George Richards, FHN Publisher
Even though his Chicago Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup three times and he is the second-winningest coach in NHL history, Joel Quenneville has won the Jack Adams Award for Coach of the Year just one time in his legendary, Hall of Fame career.
That came 21 years ago when, during the 1999-2000 season, Coach Q’s St. Louis Blues won 51 games.
That’s almost as long as it has taken the Panthers to get out of the first round of the playoffs.
Almost.
The Panthers wrapped up one of their best regular seasons in franchise history Monday night.
As they head into the playoffs this weekend against the Lightning, there is renewed hope the Panthers can, finally, make a deep playoff run.
Florida’s success this season has placed Quenneville as a likely finalist for the Jack Adams Award.
At the midseason point, a panel of 17 NHL.com writers had him the overwhelming favorite over Carolina’s Rod Brind’Amour, Chicago’s Jeremy Colliton, Minnesota’s Dean Evason and Toronto’s Sheldon Keefe.
Florida’s second half was as good as its first.
When it comes to the Jack Adams, Quenneville is looked at as the favorite to win with Brind’Amour and Evason the top competitors.
Unfortunately for Quenneville, the NHL.com writers don’t vote on this award; that goes to the National Hockey League Broadcasters Association.
It is hard to overlook the work Quenneville has done in two years with the Panthers.
Last year was a bit of a disappointment although the team was playing well when the NHL shut its season down.
With 13 games left, it is more than plausable Florida would have made it to the playoffs had the season continued.
This season, the Panthers’ playoff hopes were really never in doubt.
Despite the addition of a number of key players, a limited training camp and no preseason, the Panthers got off to a hot start at 6-0-2 and did not lose consecutive games in regulation until Game No. 32.
The Panthers ended the season second in the highly-competitive Central Division, finishing just one point behind the only team it had a losing record against — Brind’Amour’s Hurricanes.
GETTING THE MOST OUT OF THE PANTHERS
“I think for a confidence standpoint, the players know the coach believes in them and he just lets them play,’’ said Florida general manager Bill Zito, who is a favorite to win the league’s GM of the Year Award.
“It has been great. It has been a fascinating learning experience for me. The wisdom, the magic … his ability to put players in positions to succeed, to coach them, to push them to get the effort out of them and get the skill out of them was amazing.
“This and we didn’t have much of a training camp, no exhibition games, he had a new GM, new players, dealt with Covid. All coaches faced the same challenges, but I don’t think many faced this kind of turnover and had to evaluate them all in such a short period of time. Then he plugged them in and they all succeeded.
“It’s unbelievable what he has managed to do.”
Now, Quenneville’s biggest challenge of the season is upon him.
The Panthers go into the postseason riding a six-game winning streak although that doesn’t mean much of anything once the playoffs begin.
“It’s a fresh start, it’s a whole new ballgame,” Quenneville said after Monday’s 4-0 win over the Lightning which earned the Panthers home ice in the opening round.
“We should be excited about how the season went for us in a lot of ways. I think we got a lot of guys included in our team game. We got some depth over the course of the season. But this is what we play for, what we shoot for in our careers.
“It has been a special year, but we have our hands full with our opponents. They have a couple of aces coming back … we have to be better than we’ve been. Welcoming that challenge is where we’ve got to go to.”
FLORIDA’S PLAYOFF DROUGHT
The Panthers have not advanced out of the first round of the playoffs since 1996 — the year Quenneville was an assistant coach and hoisted the Stanley Cup at Miami Arena when the Avalanche swept those lovable expansion Panthers.
Quenneville left Colorado during the following season when he was hired to take over in St. Louis. Florida is his fourth head coaching stop.
Yes, 1996 was a long time ago.
“When I first got the job, I wasn’t aware of that (1996) stat,” Quenneville said. “I was surprised. At the same time, they’ve had some decent teams but you only remember the playoffs series, the big moments, the rivalries created from playoff series which will build with us and Tampa. … We have to take that next step.”
A lot of long droughts may be coming to an end — for Quenneville and the Panthers both.
Zito does not have a vote for the Jack Adams Award and, admittedly in this case, is a bit of a homer.
But he makes it clear who his choice to be is.
“To me, there are a lot of good coaches out there and I am so biased, but I can legitimately make the argument for Joel as coach of the year,” Zito said.
“The new faces alone tip the scales. It has been truly remarkable what he has done this year.”
JOEL QUENNEVILLE VS. THE FLORIDA PANTHERS
NHL seasons
Quenneville (St. Louis, Colorado, Chicago, Florida) 24*
Florida Panthers 27
Regular season victories
Quenneville 962
Panthers 889
Overall record (W-L-Tie-OTL)
Quenneville 962-572-77-150
Panthers 889-870-142-208
Quenneville’s record with Panthers (2019-present)
72-40-13; 157 points in 125 games (.628)
Playoff appearances (current)
Quenneville 19
Panthers 6
Playoff series victories
Quenneville 24
Panthers 3 (all in 1996)
Playoff record
Quenneville 118-97
Panthers 18-26
Cup Finals appearances
Quenneville 4^
Panthers 1
Stanley Cup championships
Quenneville 4^
Panthers 0
(*) Hired by St. Louis 42 games into the 1996-97 season; hired by Chicago four games into the 2008-09 season; fired midseason in St. Louis (21 games left) and Chicago (67)
(^) Quenneville was an assistant coach on the 1996 Colorado team which swept the Panthers in the Cup Finals. These are the only categories where his record as an assistant is counted.