Quenneville opens up about being fired, and discusses what comes next.

One of the most interesting sagas of the 2018 - 2019 National Hockey League regular season has surrounded the status of former National Hockey League head coach Joel Quenneville. Quenneville is arguably the most well respected coach in the entire National Hockey League and it is for that reason that it sent shock waves through the league when the Chicago Blackhawks made the decision to part ways with him earlier in the season.

It was a controversial move on the part of general manager Stan Bowman to be sure and although initially it did not appear to bear any fruit, there's no question that the Blackhawks have drastically changed the look of their team at this stage of the season. In spite of that however Quenneville remaines arguably the hottest free agent on the market right now and there is no doubt that every single team with a coaching vacancy, or even just concerns about their coaching, will want a chance to speak to Quenneville about the possibility of bringing him in to their organization.

Quenneville however has been very quiet on that front and with the notable exception of a rumored move to join the Flyers organization there has not been much talk regarding his future since he was fired. This week however Quenneville gave a rare interview and commented both on his time as a Chicago Blackhawk, what it meant to him to be fired, his regrets about the way he left the team, and perhaps most interesting of all his future.

Quenneville was asked if he was surprised when he learned he had been let go and he admitted that although he was not, it had been difficult for him.

"In our business there's not too many surprises anymore," said Quenneville as per WGN9 Chicago.  I was privileged to be in Chicago for 10 years. It's part of the business, I understand all that. I know when I exited other places, the bitterness, the animosity was at a different level. Here the memories were so special and so good. The people here were so special to me and my family that it was tough."

It was clear that one of his significant regrets was not having an opportunity to properly address and thank the fan base that did so much to support him over his many years in Chicago, something that will no doubt only further endear him to the Blackhawks fan base.

"I never thanked the fans since I left, but I've got nothing but appreciation and admire all they've done and supported our team and our experience in Chicago."

Perhaps his most telling comments of all however were regarding his future as a head coach in the National Hockey League. For the first time that I can remember Quenneville made it clear that the plan is to get back in the saddle and behind an NHL bench.

"It's been a while now since we've been behind the bench, so I think there's an appetite as we go along here to get back into the game. I try to not watch as much Blackhawks as I used to, but I watch most of the games. It's been a great race and it's going to be fun to see how it all plays out."

Whether the rumored move to the Flyers happens or not remains to be seen.