Panthers move fast, hire Joel Quenneville as next coach
Dale Tallon and Joel Quenneville are together again, and the Florida Panthers are ready for them to recreate their magic.
Quenneville — who is second on the NHL's all-time victory list — was hired Monday to coach the Panthers, who started their off-season with a splash. It's also a reunion, after Tallon hired Quenneville to coach Chicago in 2008 and wound up watching him win three Stanley Cups there in a six-year span.
Tallon wasn't there for those Chicago titles; he was fired less than a year after delivering Quenneville. Finally, now, he gets a chance to work with Quenneville again.
"Fate is a wonderful thing in my life," Tallon said. "It's like a blessing for me. This is a blessing. There are a lot of coaching jobs available. We wanted to get it done because he's a popular guy and a lot of teams out there would love to have him as their coach."
Quenneville's hiring was announced less than 36 hours after the Panthers' season ended. Players were gathered Monday for exit interviews, an annual end-of-season rite. This time, they stuck around to meet the new boss, too.
"I believe this team is close to winning," Quenneville said. "I was fortunate, luckiest guy in the world when I walked into the Chicago situation there — a team ready, sitting on go to win. I feel the same here now."
It's a bold move for the Panthers, who paid big to get Quenneville — he was owed $6 million for the 2019-20 season by the Blackhawks and it's believed this deal keeps him in that salary range. It also represents a serious shift in the organization's thinking, considering five of the last six coaches hired by Florida were first-time head coaches
Dale Tallon and Joel Quenneville are together again, and the Florida Panthers are ready for them to recreate their magic.
Quenneville — who is second on the NHL's all-time victory list — was hired Monday to coach the Panthers, who started their off-season with a splash. It's also a reunion, after Tallon hired Quenneville to coach Chicago in 2008 and wound up watching him win three Stanley Cups there in a six-year span.
Tallon wasn't there for those Chicago titles; he was fired less than a year after delivering Quenneville. Finally, now, he gets a chance to work with Quenneville again.
"Fate is a wonderful thing in my life," Tallon said. "It's like a blessing for me. This is a blessing. There are a lot of coaching jobs available. We wanted to get it done because he's a popular guy and a lot of teams out there would love to have him as their coach."
Quenneville's hiring was announced less than 36 hours after the Panthers' season ended. Players were gathered Monday for exit interviews, an annual end-of-season rite. This time, they stuck around to meet the new boss, too.
"I believe this team is close to winning," Quenneville said. "I was fortunate, luckiest guy in the world when I walked into the Chicago situation there — a team ready, sitting on go to win. I feel the same here now."
It's a bold move for the Panthers, who paid big to get Quenneville — he was owed $6 million for the 2019-20 season by the Blackhawks and it's believed this deal keeps him in that salary range. It also represents a serious shift in the organization's thinking, considering five of the last six coaches hired by Florida were first-time head coaches
