Quinney, 22, was born in Las Vegas while his father, Ken, was in the midst of a five-season stint with the Las Vegas Thunder of the International Hockey League. Ken's hockey journey brought him to Frankfurt, Germany at the end of his career but the Quinney family sowed its roots in Summerlin.
Having a hometown team is something new for Quinney, but when he signed a two-year entry level deal with the Golden Knights and attended development camp in June, his hockey journey came full circle.
"I think it's a dream come true," Quinney said. "To play for your hometown team would be an amazing feeling and it's what I'm really pushing for."
Before playing junior hockey in Canada, Quinney laced up his skates at rinks in the Vegas area and found success with the Las Vegas Storm at the Under-16 and Under 18 levels. His journey brought him to the Prince Albert Raiders of the Western Hockey League for one-and-a-half seasons before a trade sent him to the Kelowna Rockets.
He found his scoring touch in Kelowna as he tallied 31 points in 38 games and helped the Rockets win the WHL title and reach the Memorial Cup.
They eventually fell in overtime of the Memorial Cup championship game, but Quinney chipped in four goals and one assist in five tournament games. He said that going so far that season really taught him what it takes to be a winner.
The next season, he was traded to the Kamloops Blazers where he collected 50 points (27G, 23A) and earned himself a contract with the Wheeling Nailers of the ECHL at the end of the season. A strong 2016-17 campaign in Wheeling helped Quinney take the next step in his journey to the American Hockey League's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in 2017-18.
Quinney's season-by-season progression has helped him fine-tune his two-way game and has given him a chance to prove himself as a professional hockey player in his hometown. Now, it's about getting ready for training camp and hoping the next stop on his hockey journey is Vegas.
"You have to really dedicate yourself over the summer and stick with what's been working," he said.
At the end of development camp, Quinney said that he was excited to have been able to skate with an NHL team, but he was most excited about his 10-minute commute to his house in Summerlin while other prospects had to fly all over the world.
"Just to be home is that much more special," he said. "This is an organization that I'm really excited to be part of."
