7/13/18 | When David Quinn was hired as head coach of the Rangers, Kevin Shattenkirk said that Quinn is not someone who will accept mediocrity and addded "that is what we need."
Shattenkirk said, "it's time for us to develop and he will be a great leader for our team and is truly invested in coaching players and making sure they achieve their full potential."
6/4/18 | When David Quinn was hired by the Rangers, Kevin Hayes said that one of the "major" things the former BU coach will bring is "accountability." (Newsday)
Hayes said, "I think in order to win games, you have to hold each other accountable.'' (Newsday)
He said that while he learned a lot and developed during Alain Vigneault's term as head coach, "it's nice to have a new guy come in . . . He's going to hold everyone accountable from Day One.'' (Newsday)
While speaking with Al Trautwig on MSG, on the day Quinn was hired, Hayes said that Quinn will "hold a lot of guys accountable. That is what this team needs this year and I think everyone will be surprised by the results.
Hayes continued, "everyone should be held accountable, whether it's the best player or a rookie. The best teams hold each other accountable and play with confidence and part of that is the older guys holding the younger guys accountable and the younger guys quietly holding the older guys accountable." (MSG)
Chris Drury said that players today want to be taught, given feedback and held accountable and that when he broke into the league there was a "figure it out kid" type of mentality.
Quinn, at his press conference, described himself as "fair and demanding," adding that players need to understand that he has their best interest at heart.
He said, "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 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."
Larry Brooks wrote in the NY Post that Quinn, Hayes and Kevin Shattenkirk all spoke about "accountability" and referenced comments that Shattenkirk made about accountability on break up day. (NY Post)
Brooks added, "It's a new day on Broadway. Accountability, hard work, practice and defensive structure were the bywords of this Thursday on which the charismatic Quinn took command of the stage. Henrik Lundqvist is going to love this guy." (NY Post)
Adam Rotter: It's clear that some players and some part of management felt Alain Vigneault wasn't doing enough to hold his players accountable. Vigneault left most of the locker room and leadership stuff to his leadership group but as the Rangers made moves over the past three years, certain leaders weren't necessarily replaced and Vigneault didn't fill that role. Quinn certainly has the reputation of being a lot more hands on and involved than his predecessor and that is what this team in transition needs. When the Rangers were at their best under Vigneault they had a group of leaders like Marty St. Louis, Brad Richards, Marc Staal, Dan Girardi, Derek Stepan, Kevin Klein, Rick Nash, Ryan McDonagh, among others, and, of course, Henrik Lundqvist. That group had all the leadership it needed and didn't need Vigneault to have that kind of role. As players were moved out and the Rangers slowly moved into their transition, they were in need of a strong voice but Vigneault kept things the same and hoped that a new group of leaders would emerge. In time that new group of leaders will emerge for the Rangers but for now they have David Quinn to be in that role and push things forward.