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Joel Quenneville
JQuenneville
Born September 15, 1958 (1958-09-15) (age 66)
Windsor, Ontario, Canada
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
Played for AHL
New Brunswick Hawks
Baltimore Skipjacks
St. John's Maple Leafs
NHL
Toronto Maple Leafs
Colorado Rockies
New Jersey Devils
Hartford Whalers
Washington Capitals
NHL Draft 21st overall, 1978
Toronto Maple Leafs
Playing career 1978–1991

Joel Quenneville (born Joel Norman Quenneville on September 15, 1958 in Windsor, Ontario) is the head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL).

He is also a former ice hockey defenseman and former head coach of the Colorado Avalanche and St. Louis Blues. Joel is known affectionately by fans and players as "Coach Q."

Playing Career[]

As a player, Joel was drafted 21st overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1978 NHL Entry Draft.

He has played for the OHA Windsor Spitfires, AHL New Brunswick Hawks, Toronto Maple Leafs, Colorado Rockies, New Jersey Devils, Hartford Whalers, AHL Baltimore Skipjacks, Washington Capitals and the AHL St. John's Maple Leafs.

Coaching Career[]

Joel has also been a player/assistant coach for St. John's, head coach for the AHL Springfield Indians, and assistant coach for the Quebec Nordiques and Colorado Avalanche. He won the Jack Adams Award with the Blues in the 1999–2000 NHL season.

He won the Stanley Cup as an assistant coach with the Avalanche in 1996. He then moved to the Blues franchise, becoming head coach midway through the next season after Mike Keenan was fired.

Joel led St. Louis to seven straight playoff berths. In his 8th season with the Blues, the team started poorly. Late in the year, St. Louis was in danger of missing the playoffs for the first time in a quarter century. As a result, he was fired.

In June of 2004, Joel was hired to coach the Avalanche in June 2004, before the 2004–05 NHL lockout resulted in the season's cancellation. In his first year with the Avalanche, he led the team to the playoffs and a first round upset of the Dallas Stars.

On March 25, 2007, Joel coached his 750th career game. He became one of only seven currently active coaches to reach 750 games as of the 2006–07 season. On October 26, 2007, he reached his 400th coach win in a 3–2 OT win in Calgary against the Flames.

On May 9, 2008, the Avalanche announced that Joel was leaving the organization. He was hired as a pro scout by the Chicago Blackhawks in September of 2008.

On October 16, 2008, Joel was promoted to head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks, replacing former Blackhawk Denis Savard.

On December 1, 2009, he received his 500th win as a coach in an 11-round shootout battle vs Columbus.

In his first two seasons with Chicago, he led the Hawks to the 2009 Western Conference Final and the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals.

With the Blackhawks' victory over the Philadelphia Flyers in the latter, Joel earned his first Stanley Cup as a head coach.

On December 18, 2011, he earned his 600th career coaching win, winning 4-2 against the Calgary Flames.

Joel earned his second championship as a head coach against the Boston Bruins during the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals, cementing his status as one of a handful of Chicago head coaches with multiple championships (the others are George Halas of the Chicago Bears, Phil Jackson of the Chicago Bulls, and Frank Chance of the Chicago Cubs).

On March 19, 2014, he recorded his 700th career regular season win, becoming the third NHL coach to reach this milestone.

On March 23, 2015, Joel reached 750 wins as a coach. His team won the Stanley Cup for the third time on June 15, 2015 in a 2-0 shutout over the Tampa Bay Lightning, making it the first Blackhawks championship win on home ice since 1938.

On January 14, 2016, he earned his 783rd win, passing Al Arbour for second all-time among NHL coaches.

Career Statistics[]

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1975–76 Windsor Spitfires OMJHL 66 15 33 48 61
1976–77 Windsor Spitfires OMJHL 65 19 59 78 169
1977–78 Windsor Spitfires OMJHL 66 27 76 103 114
1978–79 New Brunswick Hawks AHL 16 1 10 11 10
1978–79 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 61 2 9 11 60 6 0 1 1 4
1979–80 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 32 1 4 5 24
1979–80 Colorado Rockies NHL 35 5 7 12 26
1980–81 Colorado Rockies NHL 71 10 24 34 86
1981–82 Colorado Rockies NHL 64 5 10 15 55
1982–83 New Jersey Devils NHL 74 5 12 17 46
1983–84 Hartford Whalers NHL 80 5 8 13 95
1984–85 Hartford Whalers NHL 79 6 16 22 96
1985–86 Hartford Whalers NHL 71 5 20 25 83 10 0 2 2 12
1986–87 Hartford Whalers NHL 37 3 7 10 24 6 0 0 0 0
1987–88 Hartford Whalers NHL 77 1 8 9 44 6 0 2 2 2
1988–89 Hartford Whalers NHL 69 4 7 11 32 4 0 3 3 4
1989–90 Hartford Whalers NHL 44 1 4 5 34
1990–91 Baltimore Skipjacks AHL 59 6 13 19 58 6 1 1 2 6
1990–91 Washington Capitals NHL 9 1 0 1 0
1991–92 St. John's Maple Leafs AHL 73 7 23 30 58 16 0 1 1 10
NHL totals 803 54 136 190 705 32 0 8 8 22
AHL totals 148 14 46 60 126 22 1 2 3 16
OHA totals 197 61 168 229 344

Coaching Record[]

Team Year Regular season Postseason
G W L T OTL Pts Finish W L Win % Result
STL 1996–97 40 18 15 7 (83) 4th in Central 2 4 .333 Lost in 1st Round (DET)
STL 1997–98 82 45 29 8 98 3rd in Central 6 4 .600 Lost in 2nd Round (DET)
STL 1998–99 82 37 32 13 87 2nd in Central 6 7 .462 Lost in 2nd Round (DAL)
STL 1999–2000 82 51 19 11 1 114 1st in Central 3 4 .429 Lost in 1st Round (SJ)
STL 2000–01 82 43 22 12 5 103 2nd in Central 9 6 .600 Lost in Conf. Finals (COL)
STL 2001–02 82 43 27 8 4 98 2nd in Central 5 5 .500 Lost in 2nd Round (DET)
STL 2002–03 82 41 24 11 6 99 2nd in Central 3 4 .429 Lost in 1st Round (VAN)
STL 2003–04 61 29 23 7 2 (91) (fired)
STL Total 593 307 191 77 18 34 34 .500 7 playoff appearances
COL 2005–06 82 43 30 9 95 2nd in Northwest 4 5 .444 Lost in 2nd Round (ANA)
COL 2006–07 82 44 31 7 95 4th in Northwest Missed Playoffs
COL 2007–08 82 44 31 7 95 2nd in Northwest 4 6 .400 Lost in 2nd Round (DET)
COL Total 246 131 92 23 8 11 .421 2 playoff appearances
CHI 2008–09 78 45 22 11 (104) 2nd in Central 9 8 .529 Lost in Conf. Finals (DET)
CHI 2009–10 82 52 22 8 112 1st in Central 16 6 .727 Won Stanley Cup (PHI)
CHI 2010–11 82 44 29 9 97 3rd in Central 3 4 .429 Lost in 1st Round (VAN)
CHI 2011–12 82 45 26 11 101 4th in Central 2 4 .333 Lost in 1st Round (PHX)
CHI 2012–13 48 36 7 5 77 1st in Central 16 7 .696 Won Stanley Cup (BOS)
CHI 2013–14 82 46 21 15 107 3rd in Central 11 8 .579 Lost in Conf. Finals (LA)
CHI 2014–15 82 48 28 6 102 3rd in Central 16 7 .696 Won Stanley Cup (TB)
CHI 2015–16 82 47 26 9 103 3rd in Central 3 4 .429 Lost in 1st Round (STL)
CHI Total 642 376 189 77 75 48 .610 8 playoff appearances
3 Stanley Cup championships
Total 1,481 801 464 77 118 .607 117 93 .557 17 playoff appearances
3 Stanley Cup championships

Personal Life[]

Joel is of French-Canadian ancestry and is married to Elizabeth, a native of Connecticut whom he met during his stint with the Hartford Whalers.

They have three children: a son named Dylan and two daughters named Lily & Anna. The family resides in Hinsdale, Illinois.

Joel is a second cousin of Peter Quenneville, who was drafted 195th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.

On May 24, 2011, Joel passed the USCIS naturalization test required to become a citizen in the United States. He now holds citizenship in the United States and Canada.

On February 16, 2011, Joel was hospitalized and reported as being "in stable condition after “severe discomfort” of a non-cardiac nature" on February 16, 2011, resulting in him missing a home game versus the Minnesota Wild that night.

After a conversation with the coach, Kelly Chase reported that Joel had suffered from internal bleeding, the cause of which was yet to be discovered, but that he was in high spirits and intended to be behind the bench for the Blackhawks next game on February 18th.

It was announced on February 18, 2011 that the problem had been a small ulcer caused by aspirin, a drug known to have the potential for gastrointestinal side effects.

Joel finally returned to take the Hawks' practice on February 23, 2011 having been released from hospital on the 19th.

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