Quenneville nears win No. 500

SAN JOSE, Calif. - Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville is closing in on a significant milestone.

Quenneville went into Wednesday's game against the Sharks needing only two more victories for 500 for his career behind benches in St. Louis, Colorado and Chicago.

"My target is to win the next game," Quenneville said.

Since taking over the Hawks four games into last season, Quenneville was 60-27-13 heading into Wednesday.

"We're in the winning business and I've been in some good situations along the way," Quenneville said. "I've been around some really good teams and some great people and have been fortunate along the way."

Quenneville ranks 14th on the NHL's all-time wins list but soon should pass Pat Burns (501) and Toe Blake (500). He is the sixth active all-time winningest coach behind Pat Quinn, Ron Wilson, Jacques Lemaire, Jacques Martin and Ken Hitchcock.

Quenneville is in the middle of the three-year contract he signed when he took over for Denis Savard.

Olympic watch: Here in San Jose they're wondering if Team Canada general manager Steve Yzerman will take the entire line of Joe Thornton, Dany Heatley and Patrick Marleau to Vancouver.

Yzerman last week had this to say to the Toronto Sun: "I think having the ability to bring guys that are currently playing together is a definite bonus."

That's good news for Hawks defenseman Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook, who many think should not only make the Canadian Olympic team but play as partners like they have for the past three years.

Meanwhile, Swedish Olympic officials have been scouting Hawks defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson, who has greatly improved his chances of going to Vancouver with a strong first quarter.

Catching up: Former Hawks great Doug Wilson, now the Sharks' GM, said Tuesday his daughter, Lacey, last weekend won the Miss Massachusetts pageant and now will compete to become Miss USA.

Lacey Wilson, 25, moved to Massachusetts to be closer to her boyfriend, Aaron Bates, a prospect with the Boston Red Sox.

Tip-ins: CNN/Sports Illustrated and FOXSports.com each have the Hawks ranked No. 1 in their weekly power rankings ... "Forget the circus. They're the greatest show on earth," wrote CNN/Sports Illustrated ... Defenseman Jordan Hendry was a healthy scratch for the seventh time in the last eight games ... The Hawks will have a team Thanksgiving dinner after practice today in Los Angeles.