Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville hospitalized

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Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville was admitted early Wednesday morning to an area hospital after feeling “severe discomfort” Tuesday night in his suburban Chicago home.

“He is currently in stable condition and is being treated for an undisclosed health concern — not of cardiac nature,” Hawks head team physician Michael Terry said. “Further testing is ongoing and we will provide an update when possible.”

The Hawks host the Minnesota Wild Wednesday at the United Center. Assistant coach Mike Haviland will act as head coach.

“We certainly wish Joel a speedy recovery and we will do everything possible to support him and his family throughout the process,” general manager Stan Bowman said.

The players were informed about Quenneville’s status by the rest of the Hawks coaching staff before their morning skate on Wednesday.

“Anytime you hear someone is in the hospital, it’s definitely scary news,” winger Patrick Kane said. “More importantly, we can go out there and get a win for him [Wednesday night], and hopefully make him happy where he is.

“It’s a really important game with where we’re at [in the Western Conference standings]. Minnesota is right there with us. We need this game. It’s a huge game for us. It’s going to be tough not to have our leader behind the bench. But we can do some special things out there and hopefully get a win for him.”

Neither the players nor Haviland knew too much about what ailment sent Quenneville, 52, to the hospital.

“We want him to have a speedy recovery, get back here and get back coaching,” said Haviland, who was a head coach for the Hawks’ American Hockey League teams, the Rockford IceHogs and Norfolk Admirals.

“Our thoughts are for sure with him, his wife and his kids. But certainly these guys are professionals and we know what’s at hand here. Guys are pretty upbeat on the ice and they’ve asked a lot of questions. But we certainly don’t have a lot of answers right now. They know what’s at stake [Wednesday night].”

The flu has made its way through the Hawks locker room recently. Kane missed two practices, while Marian Hossa, John Scott and Jake Dowell all sat out games. But it appears the two situations are unrelated.

Haviland said he’ll handle the forwards against the Wild, while assistant Mike Kitchen will manage the defensemen.

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