Coach Q’s time is up in Chicago
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 as training camp began. Two months later, he is finished.
The Blackhawks fired Quenneville yesterday, 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 last night. The Blackhawks (6-6-3) also are allowing an unseemly 3.73 goals per game.
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.
Senators 7, Devils 3 — Mark Stone had two goals and three assists, Colin White scored twice and host Ottawa crushed New Jersey in its first game since the emergence of an embarrassing viral video.
The clip showed seven players during an Uber ride in Phoenix last month insulting the team and assistant coach Martin Raymond. Earlier in the day, Stone dismissed the latest drama to the Senators season as a “hiccup” and said the team is already repairing the frayed relationships.
Maple Leafs 3, Golden Knights 1 — Frederik Andersen made 36 saves to lift host Toronto past Vegas.
Connor Brown, Mitch Marner and Nazem Kadri scored for the Leafs (10-5-0). Brown also had an assist.
Lightning 5, Oilers 2 — Nikita Kucherov had two goals and an assist, Andrei Vasilevskiy made 33 saves and host Tampa Bay cruised past Edmonton.
Steven Stamkos had a goal and two assists, and Brayden Point and Yanni Gourde also scored for the Lightning.
Rangers 5, Canadiens 3 — Neal Pionk scored the tiebreaking goal on a sensational, end-to-end rush late in the third period and host New York rallied past Montreal for its fourth straight win.
Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider each had a goal and an assist, Tony DeAngelo and Pavel Buchnevich also scored, and Kevin Hayes had three assists for the Rangers.
Blue Jackets 4, Stars 1 — Sergei Bobrovsky made 27 saves to lift host Columbus past Dallas.
Anthony Duclair, Markus Nutivaara, Nick Foligno and Ryan Murray scored for the Blue Jackets, who snapped a two-game skid.
Blues 4, Hurricanes 1 — Ryan O’Reilly notched his first NHL hat trick and Robby Fabbri added his first goal in almost two years, lifting host St. Louis past Carolina.
St. Louis goalie Chad Johnson, starting his second game of the season, recorded 38 saves.