Joel Quenneville reaches the 1,000-win milestone by knocking off the Oilers

The Anaheim Ducks beat the Edmonton Oilers 6-5 on Wednesday night, making Joel Quenneville the second head coach in NHL history with the win to win 1,000 gamesjoining Hall of Famer Scotty Bowman, who finished with 1,244 wins in 2,141 games.

Quenneville, 67, reached the milestone in his 1,825th. game and now owns a career record of 1,000-595-153 over 26 seasons, in addition to 77 draws recorded before the NHL eliminated the games in 2005-06. His first NHL win came during the 1996-97 season, the same season Bowman collected his 1,000th.

Anaheim erased two separate two-goal deficits and another deficit in the third period. Kater Gauthier scored the go-ahead goal with 1:14 remaining, converting a rebound off Leo Carlson’s shot. Beckett Seneca tied the game 46 seconds after Edmonton rookie Matt Savoy scored his 10th career goal on the power play. Seneca’s 19th goal leads all NHL rookies. Playing in his first game since Jan. 10 after missing 11 contests with a thigh injury, Karlsson had one goal and two assists. Olen Zellweger also scored in the third period. Ian Moore and Alex Killorn added goals, while Lucas Dostal made 22 saves.

For Edmonton, Zach Hyman and Evan Bouchard scored late in the second period. Jack Roslovic and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins also found the net. Connor McDavid had two assists to give him an NHL-best 98 points in 59 games. Tristan Jerry made 20 saves before being replaced by Connor Ingram after Seneca’s tying goal.

The Ducks improved to 31-23-3, winning six straight at home and 10 of their last 12 overall to move into second place in the Pacific Division and firmly in the Western Conference playoff race. Anaheim has missed the postseason in seven straight seasons, but Quenneville, who has led teams to the playoffs in 20 of his 22 seasons, has them in contention in his first year behind the bench.

Quenneville returned this season after a four-year layoff after resigning from the Florida Panthers in 2021. He was reinstated by the NHL in July 2024 and was hired by Anaheim on May 8, 2025. He previously won three Stanley Cups with the Chicago Blackhawks and also won a championship ring as an assistant in Colorado in 1996.

No active coach has more wins than Quenneville, with Paul Morris (945) and Lindy Ruff (933) behind.