New York Rangers likely to hire David Quinn to be their next coach
By Matt O'Leary
The New York Rangers seem to be nearing a decision with their head coach vacancy, as Boston University coach David Quinn seems close to landing the gig.
Following their first non-playoff season in seven years, the New York Rangers decided to part ways with Alain Vigneault. Vigneault coached the Rangers from 2013-2014, the season they went to the Stanley Cup Final, up until the conclusion of the current campaign.
He made the playoffs in four out of his five seasons as coach, but the Rangers decided they need a rebuild, and they’re looking for a fresh start.
According to Bob McKenzie, it looks like Boston University head coach David Quinn is going to be the guy behind the bench for the blue shirts. Quinn has spent the last five years coaching the B.U. hockey team.
He’s had a lot of success at the college level. Quinn had a winning record each of the last four years and his team knocked off the number one seed in the NCAA Northeast Regional tournament before falling to Michigan in the second round.
The Rangers aren’t the only team in recent memory to go the route of the NCAA to find their next coach. The Flyers did this before the 2015 season when they hired Dave Hakstol from the University of North Dakota.
Hakstol was there from 2004 up until 2015, and his teams never had a winning percentage lower than .605 in his 11 years behind the bench. So far, the hire has worked out well for the Flyers as they’ve made the playoffs twice in the three years he’s been with the organization.
Instead of giving guys who have already coached at the NHL level a shot, teams have begun to try to find their next head coach at the college level. It’s an interesting strategy, one that is rarely seen at the NHL level.
When Hakstal was hired, he became just the fourth coach in history to go from the NCAA to the NHL. Just because it’s rare doesn’t mean it’s necessarily a bad thing for the New York Rangers.
They’re a team looking for a fresh identity and Quinn provides them with just that. General manager Jeff Gorton has done a good job of launching the rebuilding process, if he feels Quinn is the guy, this decision shouldn’t be questioned.