from Dave Stubbs of the Montreal Gazette,

Chicago Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville is within sight of legendary Scotty Bowman on the National Hockey League’s all-time regular-season wins list.

Provided he uses a telescope.

Quenneville’s 782 victories, before Thursday’s Bell Centre game against the Canadiens, had him 462 behind Bowman, gazing at the latter’s far-away 1,244.

Even if they never meet atop the list, the two coaches do have a few links, beginning with the fact their maiden NHL victories were earned behind the bench of the St. Louis Blues, both coming as in-season replacements.

Bowman’s first win came with the 1967-68 expansion club, the team he would coach for 58 games that season and 238 in all through 1970-71 before his path was charted to greatness with the Canadiens, then into Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Detroit and the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Quenneville won his first with the Blues in 1996-97. Q, as he’s nicknamed by many — gratefully so, by character-squeezed headline writers — coached another six-plus seasons in St. Louis before moving on to Colorado for three.

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