"To Rangers fans, I want you to know that I'm going to do the best job that I can to put the best team on the ice."#NYR Head Coach David Quinn's Letter to RangersTown: https://t.co/tU5MdchcdE pic.twitter.com/cyETPzQulM
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) May 24, 2018
The New York Rangers held a press conference on Thursday to officially introduce new head coach David Quinn.
The New York Rangers held a press conference at Madison Square Garden to introduce David Quinn as the 35th head coach of the New York Rangers.
President Glen Sather, assistant GM Chris Drury along with general manager Jeff Gorton appeared at the press conference to welcome David Quinn to the New York Rangers family. Gorton started out by stating the obvious,
“This is a very important day for the Rangers.”
“This is a very important day for the Rangers.” – #NYR GM Jeff Gorton.
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) May 24, 2018
Indeed an important day as the Rangers organization can now move on from the Alain Vigneault era and finally look ahead to the 2018-2019 season now that they have hired a head coach. The former Boston University coach is looking forward to the challenge that is ahead of him.
The press conference in its entirety can be seen here:
One of the most important things the Rangers organization considered when they looked for a new coach was how would this coach communicate with the players, young and old.
It was well known in the previous seasons with Vigneault that communication and patience was not a focal point.
#NYR Welcome ? pic.twitter.com/P4N5TzT21h
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) May 24, 2018
Fans can expect a different situation with Quinn at the helm when it comes to him and the relationships he has with players on his team,
“At the end of the day it’s all about relationships and you don’t have a similar relationship with a 20-year old that you do with a 35-year old, I was fortunate to coach at the NHL level where I have dealt with guys that are older and with big contracts. For me it’s all about people skills and what motivates somebody, that is something that as you go through coaching you learn those skills. One of the things I felt comfortable with in taking this job is that I have been fortunate to coach at the NHL level, the AHL level and all of those stops have prepared me to handle situations like that,” Quinn stated during his press conference.
Quinn discussed what kind of coach he thinks he is and how he wants to gain the trust of his players so that he can get the best out of them.
“I like to think that I am fair and demanding. There is no gray area with me with players. They want to get better and held accountable, but the message has to be that this is in your best interest, it’s not about me being the big-tough coach, it’s about letting them know that everything we are doing is to make them better players. When a player realizes that and how much you care about them, there is a trust factor that creeps in and that is where success happens,” said Quinn to the media.
The message Quinn has regarding accountability, trust and what he expects out of his team is loud an clear. It is also unlike any message the players have heard in recent seasons.
Communication seems to be the way Quinn likes to attack the issue’s, good or bad, with his players. If this stands true current players such as Pavel Buchnevich and Jimmy Vesey should be able to excel with this new outlook.
Quinn made one statement that separates a current NHL coach head coach from a person in his situation, standing on behind the bench for the first time. Quinn described what he thought he needed to do to get the most out of his team. He highlighted getting to know his players, something a college coach is much more inclined to do then a current NHL coach.
“We are going through the stage of figuring out what the roster is going to look like. You want to spend as much time with the individuals as possible.” Quinn said during his press conference.
He believes in fast, hard practice where the players come to work every day with a game like an attitude. He will have his team in great shape physically and mentally to play every game.
Quinn was asked about Henrik Lundqvist, though he has yet to meet him, Quinn respects the player and acknowledged no one works harder and he was quite happy to have him as the team’s goaltender.
The new head coach of the Rangers spoke like a college coach, which is a good thing. The Rangers need a fresh outlook and new style to change the same old results of past years.
A coach who holds the players accountable, but wants to gain their trust so that both the coach and player can learn from one another and get better together as a team. This is a new concept in Rangerstown, one that hopefully will get the fans cheering and the team winning again.
Quinn is in @TheGarden! #NYR pic.twitter.com/MC9HlZE1vU
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) May 24, 2018
Training camp can’t come quick enough for the Blueshirts.
