NEW YORK With Boston University's semester winding down, David Quinn walked into the team's practice facility on a Friday morning. It was early, but he spotted one his players,junior Jordan Greenway. Right away, Quinn could tell that Greenway was excited about something, ready to share it with his head coach.
"I walked in and he said, Gue s how I did on my midterm?" Quinn told Sporting News duringan extended interview in November. "I said,Well you wouldnt be asking me if you didnt do well, so Im going to gue s you did well on your midterm."
Quinn knew these types of conversations and interactions were vital to him getting the most out of his players on the ice. It's that ability to develop young talent that has the New York Rangers bra s so excited to now have Quinn behind theirbench.
On Thursday, Quinn was introduced as the . General manager Jeff Gorton said that Quinn was really the only man for the job, with he and the Rangers seeing eye-to-eye William Perry Jerseys on how to approach the responsibilities of a head coach.
MOCK DRAFT 2.0:
Welcome
New York Rangers (@NYRangers)
While Gorton estimated the Rangers probably interviewed between five and10 serious candidates, it was clear how much they coveted Quinn. Sources close to the situation indicated the Rangers twice sweetened their financial offer to pry the 51-year-old away from Commonwealth Avenue.
Quinn said he was approached by several NHL teams over the past few years about making the jump.
"This was really the only situation I would have left Boston University for," he said Thursday at Madison Square Garden, with a gold Rangers pin on his lapel and a huge smile on his face.
Quinn: The more we talked, it just seemed like a natural fit. This was really the only situation I would have left Boston University for.
Evan Sporer (@ev_sporer)
Gorton made it clear throughout the search that the target was a coach to fit the Rangers' current needs. Those are much different than what the team and its fan base are accustomed to, with New York .
"It's obviously an important day we're naming a head coach but we're also naming a head coach at a time we're rebuilding our team," Gorton said. "It's pretty well-documented Xavier Crawford Jerseys we were looking for somebody with fresh ideas and a fresh approach.
2018 DRAFT RANKINGS:
"As we went through this proce s, we met with a number of people ... and it just kept coming back to David as the guy that we wanted."
In Quinn, the Rangers are hoping they'll get a coach proficient in a number of areas, from being able to relate with and get through to the team's young core and the players it will continue to add, to stylistically and how he envisions the team playing, to his Cairo Santos Jerseys willingne s and open mindedne s to incorporate data into his decision-making.
"Through the proce s of talking with them Jeff and Chris , every time they said that this is something they were looking to do, instinctively I would say to myself that this is kind of my coaching DNA."- Head Coach David Quinn
New York Rangers (@NYRangers)
The Rangers have three first-round draft picks in 2018 (Nos.9, 26, and 28) and two 2017 first-round picks (Filip Chytil and Lias Ander son) whom Gorton said on Thursday he expects to compete for opening night roster spots during training camp.
"Nowadays with college coaches, and with junior coaches, a lot of these guys you're seeing thrown in the hat for this job players are different now," Rangers defenseman Kevin Shattenkirksaid. "They need to be Dakota Dozier Jerseys managed a little bit differently. They're not as hard on them as they used to be, and you have to be able to coach each player based on different personalities."
Quinn was an a sistant under Jack Parker at Boston University for Shattenkirk's three collegiate seasons as a Terrier, from 2007-10.
"Having Jackat BU and having (Quinn) at BU was the reason why I went there," Shattenkirk said. "It was dubbed as one of the best stepping stones to the NHL as far as going to a college. You don't know if you're going to make it at that time, but you put yourself in the best position to succeed, and that's what they did. They treated us there as a team and they coached us to win, but at the same time, their agenda was to develop you and turn you into a better player."
MORE:
It's that balance the Rangers are hoping Quinn can strike on Broadway. He'll be tasked with the pre sure to produce results, even amid a self-described rebuilding team, while also cultivating individual talent.
But the philosophy Shattenkirk outlined meshes very much with how Quinn describes his approach to player relations.
"You have to understand the whole situation, and you cant just focus on that one event or that one night," Quinn told Sporting News back in November. "You have to take everything into consideration Rodney Adams Jerseys when you deal with a player."
What he'll attempt to do is get the Rangers to play an uptempo style catalyzed from a well-structured defensive zone, creating space for players to take offensive liberties.
"He always has a fast team," said Rangers forward Kevin Hayes. "I've never practiced under him, but I can only imagine what those practices are going to be like."
SN Q&A:
Hayes spent four years on the other side of Commonwealth Avenue, playing for rival Boston College. Quinn left his job as an a sistant at BU right before Hayes' freshman year, but did have a hand in trying to recruit him into a Terriers sweater, and then returned as the BU head coach when Hayes was a senior.
"Every time we played BU when I was at BC it was an up-and-down game," Hayes said. "I'm sure he'll bring that here to the Rangers."
Both Shattenkirk and Hayes also stre sed an accountability they think Quinn will bring with him, something they said was lacking this past season.
"In order to win games, you have to hold each other accountable, whether it's your best and older players holding the younger guys accountable, but your younger guys should quietly be holding the older guys accountable as well," Hayes said. "Everyone is on the team to win one thing, and we all know what that is. You obviously have to have the right players and the best players, but a major thing for a succe sful team is accountability. It shouldn't just be the guys who have been here for seven, eight years holding the younger guys Chicago Bears Pet Gear accountable, it's a team-wide thing."
Hayes said that starts right at the top with Quinn.
MORE:
"He is -- like he said -- he's fair and demanding. That's very accurate," Shattenkirk said. "He treats players with a lot of respect but he expects you to show up to work