Ducks honor Quenneville for 1,000 career wins

The Anaheim Ducks honored Joel Quenneville on Sunday with a pregame ceremony at Honda Center celebrating his 1,000 career wins.

Quenneville – in his first season coaching for the Ducks – reached the milestone with the team’s victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday.

He joins Scotty Bowman as the only two head coaches in NHL history to reach the 1,000-win mark.

“Hi Joel, congratulations on this wonderful milestone,” Bowman said in a video message to Quenneville. “1,000 wins, and you’ve been a winner all your career.”

During the ceremony, Quenneville made his way to center ice and was joined by his wife Elizabeth, his kids Dylan, Lily and Anna, and his mother, Gloria.

Ducks owners Henry and Susan Samueli came out wearing replicas of Quenneville’s iconic white mustache, much to his amusement. General manager Pat Verbeek also joined the crew on the ice.

The Samuelis presented Quenneville with a special Tiffany crystal.

Hockey Hall of Famer Lanny McDonald – who recently finished his term as chairman of the Hall – surprised Quenneville and presented him with a custom canvas.

Quenneville also received a trip to the Wimbledon tennis tournament from the team, and custom humidor with cigars and a magnum of Cabernet from his coaching staff. The magnum bottle is engraved with the teams that he’s coached and the wins per team, with the name of each coach he’s worked with throughout his career.

Quenneville spent the bulk of his career with the Chicago Blackhawks, where he won three Stanley Cups, and also coached with the St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, and now the Ducks.

He earned the Jack Adams Award in the 1999-2000 season as the NHL’s Coach of the Year while with the Blues.