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Joel Quenneville Named Candidate for Blue Jackets

Are the Blue Jackets interested in the recently reinstated Joel Quenneville as their next head coach?

Jacob Punturi

Oct 27, 2021; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers head coach Joel Quenneville watches during the first period against the Boston Bruins at FLA Live Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 27, 2021; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers head coach Joel Quenneville watches during the first period against the Boston Bruins at FLA Live Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports / Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

With the NHL reinstating Stan Bowman, Al MacIsaac, and Joel Quenneville after nearly three years away, all three men are now eligible to work in the league again. The news was a shock, as all three were embroiled in a massive scandal with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2010.

The league wasted no time bringing the once-disgraced men back into the fold. Stan Bowman is already linked to a vacant general manager job. Now, Joel Quenneville is reportedly an option to fill a vacant head coaching job.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are the only team in the NHL without a permanent head coach. The team fired Pascal Vincent after one season with the club. He led the team to 27-43-12 record in 2023-2024. The team is now on the hunt for a new head coach.

Former NHL executive Brian Burke believes that Quenneville is a perfect option for any team needing a coach. He appeared on NHL Network Radio recently and gave his thoughts on the former head coach's attempted return. According to Burke, Quenneville should move "to the front of the list of every team that is looking for a head coach."

The Blue Jackets are searching for a coach that can help turn this organization around. They already brought in a new general manager, Don Waddell, who has a successful history running the Carolina Hurricanes. After relieving Vincent of his duties, Waddell expressed the team will prioritize a veteran coach for their next hire.

He spoke with Aaron Portzline of The Athletic about the team's search for a new bench boss before the recent reinstatements. When Portzline brought up the idea of Quenneville as a candidate, Waddell was noncommittal about him as a candidate.

"it's probably not in my best interest to talk about what might happen," he said. "We all know that Joel is still held back by the league. We'll leave it up to the league to eventually answer that question."

The Blue Jackets may not want to wade into the waters of polarizing coaches again. The Mike Babcock experiment failed before he coached a single game for the Jackets. Quenneville brings a career of winning but also brings a boatload of negative PR and media backlash. Waddell's dodgy quote suggests that Quenneville's winning resume could overrule any negatives he comes with.

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Jacob Punturi
JACOB PUNTURI

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