- Editor's Note: Sheng Peng will be a regular contributor to NBC Sports California’s Sharks coverage. You can read more of his coverage on San Jose Hockey Now, listen to him on the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast, and follow him on Twitter at @Sheng_Peng.
NEW YORK -- If David Quinn doesn’t like young players, Adam Fox and Ryan Lindgren sure didn’t get the memo.
This could be of some reassurance to some Sharks fans, who might blame top prospects William Eklund and Thomas Bordeleau’s presences in the AHL on Quinn.
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Both Fox and Lindgren, then 22, blossomed on the blueline in their second NHL seasons in 2020-21 under Quinn. The 56-year-old coached the New York Rangers from 2018 to 2021.
“He emphasized on both sides of the puck,” Fox, the 2021 Norris Trophy winner, told San Jose Hockey Now. “I wasn't necessarily a top pick for the team, but I'm still a young guy and he still gave me an opportunity.
“He played me and helped me grow as a player.”
Lindgren was Fox’s partner that season: “As far as me and Foxy, he was the coach that trusted us and instilled confidence in us and put us in all situations. That was huge for us and gave us the confidence to think that we can play in this league and have success in the league. That was huge, and I think he did that for all players.
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“For the forwards, I can't speak too much to that, but it seemed like he played the young guys. We had a lot of young guys, so he needed to play them. That was huge for not only us, but the forwards too, of just gaining confidence and realizing that we can play the NHL.”
The forwards mainly in question here, of course, are 2019 second-overall pick Kaapo Kakko and 2020 first-overall Alexis Lafreniere. Quinn’s handling of them, at least among some very vocal Rangers fans, was controversial. These fans believed that both young forwards deserved more playing time than Quinn was giving them.
Kakko himself stoked that fire when he told Finnish media last year, his first under new head coach Gerard Gallant: “The first mistake does not immediately put you on the fourth line.”
Of course, it’s also worth noting that Lafreniere’s usage didn’t really change immediately from Quinn to Gallant (13:53 ATOI in 2020-21 to 13:59 in 2021-22). Meanwhile, Kakko did get a bump in playing time with Gallant (14:21 to 15:27), but the new bench boss also healthy scratched the third-year winger in last year’s Conference Finals.
From Mika Zibanejad’s perspective, Quinn was simply doing his job as head coach, of trying to give a younger player the necessary playing time to develop, but also teaching the player winning on-the-ice habits.
“That's the kind of background he has as well,” the star forward noted of Quinn’s extensive prior experience with young players in the USNTDP. “There's a split in between that, [the coach] trying to help and then the player actually having to take responsibility and wanting to get better. I thought there was a good mix there.”
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For his part, Gallant is grateful for the work that Quinn did developing youngsters like Fox and Lindgren, and even Lafreniere and Kakko. Last year’s Eastern Conference runner-ups are 3-1, while Quinn’s 0-5-0 San Jose Sharks are desperate for their first win.
“When he was here, there were a lot of young mistakes, and they progress. That's what we talk about with any young player,” Gallant offered. “They were 18 and 19 and 20 years old when he had them in these places. I think all the kids developed under him and they got a lot better, they're working hard, and he's done a good job with them.
“I got them, they [weren’t] a finished product, but they were improving every year and that's what you want.”
The same thing can be said about Eklund or Bordeleau or any Sharks prospect: If they’re progressing enough, be it with the San Jose Sharks or Barracuda, they will get their fair shot to make their mark in the NHL from Quinn.