Cuts not always unkind for Hawks prospects

Quenneville: Young players can benefit from extra seasoning in minors

September 24, 2013|By Chris Kuc, Chicago Tribune reporter

PITTSBURGH — One by one the players filed into Joel Quenneville's office and received news they aren't in the Blackhawks' plans for 2013-14.

It's a process every coach goes through during training camp as he whittles the numbers to determine the regular-season roster. While the news was not what the prospects wanted to hear, Quenneville, who is entering his 17th season as an NHL coach, said Monday that cut day isn't always a bad experience — at least for him.

"Earlier on it might have been a little more challenging; now I don't mind it at all," Quenneville said before the Hawks lost to the Penguins 3-2 in a shootout in an exhibition game Monday night at Consol Energy Center. "Because (with) a lot of the guys you cut, it's positive. Every situation is different. A lot of times it's not a miserable or tough experience — it's a feel-good kind of story."

The latest to join the party were forwards Mark McNeill, Garret Ross and Alex Broadhurst, defensemen Dylan Olsen, Klas Dahlbeck and Adam Clendening and goaltender Kent Simpson — all assigned to the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL.

Also getting the news were forwards Teuvo Teravainen, who was assigned to Jokerit of Finland, and Ryan Hartman, who is headed to Plymouth of the Ontario Hockey League. Defenseman Viktor Svedberg was released from the training camp roster but will end up in Rockford.

"When you're the recipient of news like that, some guys take it differently," Quenneville said. "Some guys are crushed and some guys are upset. It's a tough business (and) you have to learn. You have to be a good pro about it and find a way to either prove us wrong or prove that eventually you're going to find a way to get here."

Quenneville understands the emotions involved in being sent down, so he is straightforward with the news.

"I'm usually very direct and tell them things like, 'You did well in camp and (here are) things you have to work on and things we look for organizationally down the road,' " Quenneville said. "I try to keep it positive and reinforce strengths."

Quenneville knows firsthand the feeling of being summoned to a coach's office and getting the word that more seasoning is needed. Before launching a playing career that spanned 803 games over 12 seasons, the former defenseman was informed by then-Maple Leafs coach Roger Neilson that he was minor-league-bound.

"I got cut my first year as a rookie (in 1978)," Quenneville said. "It's never a good story, but at that time you're not expecting maybe to make the team and you know you're going to have to spend some time in the minors. I was fine with it."

When veteran defenseman Johnny Oduya was with the Devils early in his career, he was briefly sent to the minors. He agreed with Quenneville that the experience can be positive.

"If you're a young guy, it's not a negative thing to be sent down — especially on this team," Oduya said. "We're a deep club at pretty much all the positions, so if you get the opportunity to be here at training camp and play games and then go to Rockford to play or go back to Europe or juniors, it's something to build off. When the time is right, it's going to be their time to prove things and make their mark."

Twitter @ChrisKuc