Why do New York Rangers fans dislike David Quinn?
It goes beyond ice time
The perception of David Quinn being inept at developing players does not end with ice time. Fans still take time to continually lay blame for past player failures at his feet. There is still the belief that Quinn ruined Lias Andersson. That he was the reason that Vitali Kravtsov is still in the KHL. That he is at fault for Kakko not yet reaching his potential as a just turned 20 year old. And worse still, that he is responsible for the meltdown that occurred between the organization and Tony DeAngelo.
Here are a few fan comments @bluelinestation and on Twitter that show emotions and perception fuel the animosity towards David Quinn
"EugeneP – He’ll be ok, unfortunately this organization is not good working with the young guys. Anderson, Krav, ADA, who is next? Kakko or Laf?"
"Joeee – Bring back Tony DeAngelo! Jeff Gorton is a weasel, he’s a kid who needs a good coach! Not Quinn, who obviously doesn’t belong in the pro’s. Come on JD you were a kid once, you made mistakes that you regret!"
"Redplanet4 – Quinn doesn’t develop European players period. He is a North American guy.Need examples? Lias Anderson 8th overall 1st round pick, Victor Kravstov 9th overall 1st round pick, Kakko 2nd overall 1st round pick, Hajek, received in trade with Tampa for Miller & McDonagh. Along with Quinn, I hold GM Gorton responsible for this and both she be on the hot seat. This is unacceptable that we are mis handling 3 # 1 draft picks. Kakko is only 19 years old!!!!! He is a very big part of our future… I say bye to Quinn before Gorton trades Kakko."
"BlueProcessor – Thanks Patrick. Yes I do know that. I think ADA did well last year in spite of Quinn’s coaching and in having unreal performances from Panarin and Mika that helped, and this year being paired with JJ along with poor coaching from the get-go and the implementation of the Quinn “wheel of justice” just sent ADA over the edge. Quinn just has far too many questionable decisions and actions with ADA and other players (those that are favored and those that are not)."
Each of these posts reflects a direct and negative opinion of the coach. They choose to focus on the failures, perceived or otherwise. Surely we can all agree that the issues with Andersson were mishandled by everyone, including the player himself. Even the coach can agree that he is not always correct, game in and game out. He said so himself referencing his deployment of the fourth line in the first game against the Bruins. “I looked at the minutes and I was kind of pissed at myself for not playing them more, so shame on me”
But each of these posts also ignores the positives that Coach Quinn has had. The team was better from year one to year two. Year three has shown much improvement, even if the results have been sporadic. Plus, under his tutelage we have seen the emergence of Fox, Lindgren, DeAngelo and Ryan Strome last year. We have also seen the growth of Kakko and immediate impact of Miller. To be fair and honest requires that we judge the negative by weighing it against the positive.