Current Ducks players Frank Vatrano, Ryan Strome and Troy Terry attended Joel Quenneville's introductory press conference, where he was named the 12th head coach in franchise history. Following the press conference, Vatrano, Strome and Terry spoke with local media.
A full transcript from all three players is below, with questions and responses lightly edited for clarity and length:
Frank Vatrano
What are your thoughts on Joel behind the bench?
Awesome. I was fortunate to play for him for three years in Florida—one of the best coaches I've ever had, and I always tell people that. Gets the most out of his players. The one thing he does really well is he knows how to use you in a team setting, regardless of your role in the team. He’s a great person, too, so that's what always draws me to Q. I'm a huge advocate for him. I'm just glad he's here.
As I just asked (Ducks general manager) Pat (Verbeek), not to say you guys didn't respect other coaches here, but what does Joel bring in terms of his track record, the respect factor?
His aura when he's in the room, the energy. He wants you to have fun. When you're having fun, it's more fun for everyone. On a day-to-day basis, he makes it really fun to come to the rink every day. You can be having a tough stretch as a team or individual, going through individual struggles. He knows how to lift you up and lift the team up at the right times. That’s what all players ask for as a coach is to obviously hold us accountable to the standards, and we go by that every single day, but he just knows how to do that at another level.
Having played for him, what would you describe what Joel Quenneville hockey is like on the ice?
Make plays, but do it within your structure. I think his mind for the game is great. You could see it when he coached Chicago. Unfortunately, I had to play against them early on in my career and it was not fun playing against them. It felt like they always had an extra guy on the ice. I think just the offensive part of the game, he just knows how to see it and how to possess the puck at the right time. He obviously preaches defending hard, too, and that's where you create your offense from. He’s great at reading the game like that.
One of the things that (Quenneville) said was he wants to create an identity early when he comes into the locker room. You guys have already started to create that identity. How is that going to change now?
As players, I think we took it upon ourselves the past two years to kind of create that culture in the room and hold each other to higher standards. I think we've done a really good job at that. We older guys were teaching the young guys what it takes to be an NHL player every single day and what's expected of us on and off the ice. (When you) have a head coach with his pedigree and what he's done in this league. I think it just brings that to another level with his communication, his messaging and his voice. I think that culture is just gonna get even better.
Did Pat call you up at all to get an idea of what Joel was like as a coach?
No. I actually had no idea what was going on in the whole process; we were kind of just waiting. I knew that Joel was obviously a contender for the job and, like I said, I'm thrilled that he's here now.
When you played for him in Florida, what kind of identity did your team have? If you had to boil it down to a few words.
Honestly, when we were in Florida, we were a playoff cusp team. I think we were maybe a little bit more ahead of where we are now (in Anaheim). I think like Pat said before, we were a little older in Florida, but we were a team that was trying to make the playoffs. I think when Joel came in, he kind of just had the vision of our team and saw how much skill we had, but we didn't really have a structure. We didn't play within the structure. When you have a team with so much skill that can make plays and you add some structure to it and accountability, that's what he did in Florida and that's what I see him doing here.
Ryan Strome
Joel Quenneville, what do you think?
It’s an exciting day. Right off the top, you look at the pedigree of his career, it's pretty impressive. Anaheim's probably considered a smaller hockey market, and I think to have the second-most-winning coach in NHL history, a guy like that, it's an awesome day. And it's kind of unique, I’ve played with a ton of players who have played for Joel and my brother went to Chicago right after he left. So even though I've never met him, I think there's a ton of connections there, so it was great to see feedback. My phone rang today like 10-15 times this morning with people all just having great things to say, ex-players, people that are retired or active players, so it's exciting for us. Going into a big offseason, it adds a little more fuel to the fire to keep this thing rolling in the right direction. It's a good day. I think it will provide a big jolt for everyone's offseason training and, hopefully, we see that jolt go right through the season and keep things going where we've had the needle moving a little bit last year.
Ryan, did you feel like (Quenneville) deserved this chance to get back in?
I haven't really followed all that stuff too closely, but just judging by what I heard today, I think everything you heard was very impressive. And I don't think they're just words, it seemed very genuine. I think that everybody involved with (the Brad Aldrich case) is back in the NHL. (Quenneville) really didn't have to coach again, I think you may have mentioned that. He could have sat back and had a nice life, and he didn't have to (coach again). And I think he took the steps actively to get back involved, and he wanted to be back involved. And from everything I heard, it was super impressive to hear. I think you have a very genuine, high-character person that was really meaningful in his words and very careful in what he said. And I think that as someone sitting in the crowd, I believed everything he said. It’s an exciting time. I think, for him, his love for the game and his character and his excitement just to want to be with our team means a lot. It's a good day.
You have conversations with guys who have played for him. What do they tell you? I mean, what kinds of things are you expecting now?
Today, I heard: ‘Best coach I've ever had, You’re going to absolutely love it. Old school, but demanding. Players coach.’ Those are some of the things that have been said and it's been overwhelming. I don't usually get many people calling me. I had my phone ringing all morning just being like, ‘Oh, this is a great day. I played for Joel for half a season or a year.’ Just so many different people, like active and retired players. And it's nice to hear. I mean, it’s an exciting time for Anaheim. To hear his words about (how) this is the job he wanted, and I know that this is a coveted job, where we're at in our development. It’s exciting for me as a 32-year-old trying to push the needle and continue to get better myself and help my teammates out. It's a great day. I think the Ducks have raised some eyebrows this year in our play, I think we’ve got to continue to do that. I think a move like this definitely puts a little onus on us to come back ready to play next year, and I think that's what we wanted.
Off of that, (Ducks owner) Henry (Samueli) was just up here. He doesn't talk to us too often here. But he said it's time. It’s time to spend what's necessary, spend what's necessary to land someone like you. To spend what's necessary going forward with the cap rising. Is that how you feel?
I've said this before, young guys now, obviously there's the development curve and you never can predict it's going to go like straight-linear, but they're so good, our young players, and their hockey IQ is so good.. Their work ethic is so good. I think we saw this year how they can be impact players. And I think you want a guy who has the pedigree like Q has. I think when you hear that every day and you’re around that every day, you know, you're never, ever, ever going to second-guess what he says because you know that he's done it for so many years for so long, he's one of the greats. So I think it's a great thing for all our players on our team, but especially for our young guys, because I think that they're so good and they're so ready to take that next step, and you heard Pat and Q kind of talk about that. But I really believe that those guys are ready for premier roles in our league and on our team. And they've shown that that’s what they're capable of. And I think that they're going to be a huge beneficiary of this move and for guys like us, it's exciting. We're a little older, but to be able to be coached by a great is not something everyone gets to say. So I feel really lucky standing here today and very proud to be an Anaheim Duck. I think the future just continues to look a little bit brighter. It was already bright, but it's a good day.
The confidence level from ownership, backing. There's backing from them, they put that out.
Yeah, of course, they want to win. They saw what we're capable of. They don't want to be watching hockey (on TV) in May. They want to be in the rink, right? And that's what we all want. It's a great sign that they believe in us and that the support they have is unwavering.
Troy Terry
Just your initial thoughts on Joel Quenneville being named the head coach today.
Excited. I remember him coming to talk to my DU hockey team when I was in school and just kind of the aura that he has. Even when I was in college, talking to him, I didn't know him well, but (he) just seemed so down to earth. Took time to answer our college kids’ questions, and then I heard from a lot of guys around the league that have had him and it's really nothing but great things. And his pedigree speaks for itself. So we're all very excited about where this whole thing can go next.
With where you guys are at in your evolution here, did you need that kind of voice in the room? That someone with that kind of pedigree as coach, his resumé, did you need that type of person?
Yeah, I think the culture here that has been building and the foundation, I think we've done a good job. I've been here for a while now, and I'm really excited for where we're going. And then when you bring in a coach with that kind of pedigree, X's and O's, how well he knows the game, how well he knows how winning locker rooms should be run, just that whole pedigree that he brings and the experience is huge even for me. I know we've got the older guys, especially the young guys, especially for me, we've got a great leadership group. But when you can add that type of coach, I think it's just huge for everyone, and especially the younger players.
Troy, as one of the longest-tenured guys, what does it mean to you to have Pat sign a coach like Q? We talked to Henry here a second ago and he said that the checkbook’s open to spend, to make this team as competitive as possible to go win. What does that mean to you to have that sort of ownership and management that this team is going to be successful?
Yeah, it means everything. I have been here and I've been through trade deadlines where we trade everyone that I'm closer with that's on expiring contracts. And that's just kind of been the reality of where our team is and what needed to be done. Now, it's kind of ride that whole process out, and now having a big jump last year, we still think there's obviously a lot more to build on. To kind of see the whole evolution and see this hiring of a coach and just the commitment to really starting to make this thing go now and have big goals just going into next year, it’s exciting for me. That's what I've been looking forward to since I came into the NHL was to have those opportunities. At times, it's been hard, but it kind of makes it more special for me. I'm very passionate about this organization. I've been here, they've given me my chances. So just to kind of see the natural development of where we've gone over the last six, seven years and where we are now, it's exciting.
I was going to ask, is it almost like a breath of fresh air that now the ambitions are a whole lot bigger than they used to be?
Yeah. I'm working out in the summer right now, (it) makes that easier. It makes everything easier when you're just excited, you know? And not that I haven't been in years past, but it's been young teams and you're really kind of unsure going into the year. And then I'm sitting here today listening to a coach with four Stanley Cups and this great pedigree that we've brought in here and listening to him talk about how excited he is about our team and where we are. Just having that excitement for bigger goals than maybe in years past, going into this year. It just makes everything easier, honestly.
Troy, I just want to ask you about David Carle. You know him. At all surprised that he, at least for now, decided to stay with Denver, and do you feel there will still be a point in the future where he makes the jump and becomes an NHL head coach?
Well, I'm not surprised. You all know how much I love Denver. It's a great place and I know that he's had great success there. He's a great coach. He's a great person. And I think, knowing him personally, he's got three kids who are under the age of five. I think he's very comfortable in Denver, and he's doing great things there. So I'm super happy for him to have that big commitment to the school and from a personal side as an alumnus, I'm excited. I view him as big for the team there, but he is that caliber of a coach that I don't think the opportunities will stop coming. We'll see. I mean, I think it'll be up to him. He's a great person that I've got to be close with in hockey, and I hope that he does want to take that chance one day.
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