David Quinn opens up on jump from college, coaching style and Rangers’ development

There is no man behind the curtain. Nothing inauthentic about David Quinn, who is very much the same coach with the same personality directing the Rangers through the traditional halfway mark of his first NHL season as he was behind the Boston University bench the previous five years.

Quinn spoke at length with The Post last week before the combined bye and All-Star break that will end on Sunday when the Rangers hit the ice for practice that is certain to provide his players with an instant reminder of what the coach’s voice sounds like.

On the differences between coaching college and the NHL:

“Just the depths of the relationships you have with your players; the college feel, being around other sports, things of that nature. In college you’re the owner, president, GM and assistant GM, so it’s different here, there’s a lot of input and a lot of discussion and a lot of opinions. I think I manage that. The biggest jump going from college to the NHL is that piece of it, but I also think that’s what has made this transition so much easier for me is because of my relationships I have with the people I work with.

“It’s more hockey without all the other responsibilities I had at BU, like fundraising, making sure guys were going to school and staying out of trouble, plus there was the recruiting aspect that was almost non-stop. There’s a lot to those jobs.

“Here, the games are always so fast and furious, you’re always on, ‘What’s next, how can I help us get better?’ I’m still managing delegating. I’m someone who likes to do a lot on my own, not because I don’t trust other people but because that’s just my personality, so delegation is something I still need to work on to take some things off my plate.

“Again, I was fortunate to have a little bit of experience at this level so I knew what to expect, but there’s a little bit more hockey now than at school. It’s been everything I thought it was going to be and I’ve enjoyed it probably a little bit more than I thought.”

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On whether he has had to make unforeseen adjustments in his approach:

“I think I do that no matter what team I’m coaching or at what level. Part of your responsibility as a coach is a feeling out process, too, even from year to year at BU because you never know what personality your team is going to take on, what the pieces are in the puzzle. I’m very fortunate to have coached at this level before [as an assistant with the Avalanche in 2012-13] so there wasn’t a lot of wondering what it was going to be like.

“It’s different as the head coach, for sure, but coaching NHL players, that was never an issue for me because I had done it as an assistant and at the World Championships. It was more about the team, how am I going to be able to coach this team? What buttons am I going to be able to push, can I be hard on them, can I not be hard on them, are they visual learners, and so forth. There’s a lot that goes into trying to figure out a team. I’ve learned as I’ve gone through this, and I do coach differently now than I did in October, but I don’t think that’s because of the level I’m at, but because that’s just coaching.”

On whether he’s been approached by veterans suggesting he alter his approach, specifically as it relates to practice:

“Yeah, I’ve had some discussions (laugh) along those lines and sometimes I agree with them and sometimes I don’t, you know? I welcome their input, but as I tell them, everything we do is well thought out and there’s a reason we do everything we do.

“Sometimes they’ve pointed things out and I’ve said, ‘You know what, you’re right,’ and other times I’ve said, ‘Well, too bad.’

“This has been a very coachable group. I think there’s a connection between the staff and the players yet there’s also that line. I think that’s our job, to push them as far as we can without losing them. People know right from wrong. I don’t care what they say to you. When you do what you do, there may be some pushback, but when they put their head on the pillow at night, they know, and if they don’t, you don’t want them. You don’t want them.”

On the differences between the NHL of 2012-13 and today’s NHL:

“It’s not as physical, that’s for damn sure. And everybody frowns upon a practice. It stuns me that you go for 40 minutes and people act like it’s a marathon. What do people want me to do? They hired me to coach here. I’m not acting like Joe Tough Guy, but I’m not going to let things go; that’s how you get better. And I believe that’s what this team at this time needs.

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“There are some days where I have to fight that and do hold back because that’s what the players need on a particular day. That goes against my personality, but I think I’ve done a good job of managing that. I know I’m push-push-push, so I’ve asked my staff and [GM] Jeff [Gorton] and [assistant GM] Chris [Drury] to let me know if I need to back off.

“The thing I like about this group is that they respond, or try to respond, to everything I ask. They’ve been really good that way.”

On his responsibility to develop young players and its impact on coaching to win games:

“Development is funny. Some people think that development is to throw a guy out there and let him play and let him play. But development getting experience and ice time, but it’s also learning what we’re going to need big picture, too. Fil Chytil went through a stretch where he was playing 10 minutes a night because that’s what he deserved. You don’t just give somebody something. There’s also a checklist in my mind when I’m handling these guys of, ‘OK, what are your intentions?’ I’m big on intentions.

“Are you making a mistake yet you had the right intentions and it just didn’t work, or is your mistake one because you had the wrong intentions? Is your work ethic what it needs to be? Is your preparation what it needs to be? It’s our responsibility as a staff of sending the message of what is acceptable and what’s not. That’s part of development. Letting them know they have to earn what they get is part of development. That’s one of my most basic principles.”

On whether the Rangers’ young players are developing at an expected pace:

“I never thought about a timetable. I just don’t think things happen that quickly. You scratch a guy, they come back with a little more piss and vinegar, they get the minutes, and they kind of start reverting back to who they’ve been in their careers. For skill guys, it’s just been all about skill and not doing all the other things five-on-five that have to be done at this level. Again, I’m willing to meet people halfway. People talk about [Kevin Hayes] all the time. Hayzee is not the perfect player, but when you’re getting a point per game, right?”

“All of a sudden someone pops. You never know. How are guys going to handle more responsibility? But there is so much uncertainty.”

On whether he has remained in contact with NHL players he coached at BU:

“Those relationships are real and they’re deep. I have relationships with Jack Eichel and Clayton Keller and Brady Tkachuk and Jordan Greenway and Evan Rodrigues and Charlie McAvoy and Nick Bonino and Colin Wilson and all those guys. They’re lifelong friends of mine. I’m not going to stop being friends with these guys. I stay in touch, check in every two-to-three weeks. When Charlie was going through his concussion issues, we talked on the phone about it. I care about the guy, you know. I’ll never apologize for that.

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“That’s just the way I coach. And I think of our guys that way, even though they’re older. When you coach college, I think that’s always in you. And the other thing I think college does for coaches, when you coach a college team, you can’t trade them, you can’t cut them, so you are forced to coach. These are our guys. Make them better. That’s your job. That’s how I think here. Maybe that’s why people think I’m probably more hands-on as a head coach but that’s just how I am.”

On how often he has wondered what he has gotten himself into:

“Honestly, none. I knew, we knew, we all knew the situation we were in. It’s been everything I thought it would be and more. I knew it was going to be very challenging but these guys have been very receptive to the things we’re trying to do.
“If anything, I just miss the college feeling, but who doesn’t? If you can stay in school, stay in school right? But I love New York. It’s a great city. This experience, this job, has been everything I thought it was going to be. And I’ve enjoyed it probably a little bit more than I thought.”