Confirmed with Link: Canucks announce HC Rick Tocchet will Not Return

[Zippgunn]

Philly job was too tempting.

I called this the second the Philly job opened up.

 

[I am toxic]

Tocchet

• Received the news that Tocchet will not return this morning
• Was surprised; had a lot of general talks, over the last 4-6 weeks, that were about how Tocchet will communicate with players in the summer and training camp; talks were all about the future and appeared that he would return
• Over the last 4-5 days said that a decision about Tocchet’s future had to be made
• Talked to his agent first and talked to Tocchet afterwards
• Tocchet expressed that he needed a change and, for personal reasons, wanted to move back to the Eastern USA to be closer to his family
• Canucks are obviously disappointed

Finding the Next Coach

• Apologizes for Allvin not being present because he’s on a flight to Dallas to see the U18s; returns on Sunday
• Will start making a short-list; expects to hear from a lot of people interested in the job; will narrow it down quick then start the process
• Up until now, have not talked about finding another coach

Why Tocchet is Leaving

• Is surprised because all of their talks were about the future
• Mentions that Tocchet said he was going to go to Sweden to check on Pettersson
• About a week ago, Rutherford started thinking that they haven’t got a commitment from Tocchet so he must not be quite sure
• Tocchet said that, for personal reasons, he would have a tough time doing the job that he would need to do

Team Construction With a New Coach

• Were going to have to make changes anyways; mentions their forwards
• Ideally, have a coach’s input on player acquisition
• Don’t want to rush the process but the sooner they get it done the better it will be for the offseason

Four Coaches in Four Years

• Has been difficult for the guys who’ve been here
• Points out that he’s only hired one of these coaches (it will be two since one of the four is the new coach)
• Not easy for the fans or players
• Apart from Pat Quin and Alan Vigneault, Canucks’ coaches are only in Vancouver for 2,3, or 4 years

Hughes

• Called him within a half an hour after talking to Toccet but didn’t pick up the phone and hasn’t called back yet
• Suspects that Hughes feels like Rutherford does
• Knows the maturity of Hughes and he will make the necessary adjustments
• Had a very strong relationship with Tocchet

Manny Malhotra

• Hasn’t mentioned it to him but will be on the short list and considered for the head coaching position

Assistant Coaches

• Were waiting to see what Tocchet was going to do
• Tocchet had talked about another assistant coach and it was already approved
• Canucks respect the assistant coaches and want to keep them but when you bring in a new coach, they want to bring in their own assistant coaches

Experienced Coach

• Haven’t thought far ahead but there are coaches, presently in the league that were not former NHL head coaches, that are doing a good job with teams
• Not necessarily looking for NHL experience but someone with experience would help the leadership
• Will have to put more thought into this
• How a coach was when they were a player factors in; were they leaders and/or captains

Rutherford’s Future

• Doesn’t think about his future a lot so he’s not thinking about “leaving town”
• Does not feel comfortable with the job he’s done
• Were on the right track a year ago and got off that track; takes responsibility for that because he runs the hockey department
• Have a lot of work to do

Mike Sullivan

• When you’re familiar with someone, you know how they work
• Knows Mike Sullivan does not want to leave the East

Peter Laviolette

• Had some success together; likes him as a person and a coach
• Rutherford is not the guy that deals with the coach on a day-to-day basis; that’s Allvin and he did not work with Laviolette
• Will not take him off the list at this point; has had a lot of success and is a “good name”

Vancouver’s Attractiveness as a Market

• Some people just want to get an NHL coaching job and don’t analyze as deeply
• Probably like the Canucks’ practice facility (deadpans this joke perfectly)
• Canucks’ defence and goaltending is a selling point
• Need to make their forwards better; need more balance
• Around the league, people feel there’s a good working relationship in the hockey group

Practice Facilities

• Don’t use a practice rink as much as other teams; used UBC 8 or 10 times after November
• Working towards getting the facility done but will take time

Coaching Search

• Will get lots of calls and lots of names; will need to interview these people
• Have star players and the coach needs to adjust to how you deal with them
• Have to understand the travel in Vancouver can be tough; managing the schedule and when they can and can’t practice
• Have to have some experience and leadership qualities
• Need a good structure and system that the players can lean to when they struggle

This Past Season and Moving On

• The coach is the guy that leads the team everyday
• Finding a new coach is the biggest decision
• The major issue they had to deal with in the first half wore on everybody; players, coaches, and managers
• Can’t keep talking about what happened; it’s behind them; need to move on from that
• Now it’s about getting the top players to perform they way they have to; not Hughes, they don’t worry about him

Willander

• Won’t get into too much detail
• Have a contract structure for their draft picks
• Willander will have a decision to make about coming to camp and turning pro, makes a few million dollars, and burns a couple of years towards becoming UFA or goes back to college and has to wait two years
• Castonguay is still working on the contract and hope to have it done sooner or later
• Are fine with him playing in the World Championships; is getting his development time
• At some point, Willander and his family will have to make a decision

Getting Outside Perspectives

• Get a different perspective when you talk to people from the outside; about your club but also around the league
• Will get information from these interviews and maybe can take the information and do something to make their team better in the offseason

Having a Coach in Place to Attract UFAs

• Most head coaches have a handful of guys that love playing for them over their career; sometimes that player follows the coach
• When they promoted Mike Sullivan, he brought 3-4 players from the AHL with him and the team took after inserting them

How do you binge watch Simpsons , distract the Canucks' "medical" staff, and do all that great write-up in one afternoon???

We can survive Hughes bolting to Jersey, but chrissakes someone lock up Vector long-term

 

[Regress2TheMeme]

After the fiasco with Pettersson and Miller I can understand why Tocchet would welcome a move to a big US market for big money. I wish he would have stayed and continued to build a defensive, hard working team, but it is what it is.

 

[Vector]

Canucks offered a 5 year deal and significant financial compensation.

 

[moiderer]

Given the extended negotiation and the perceived blindside, I imagine Tocchet's family petitioning hard for him to go back east given the numerous and specific openings and him caving, rather than him just giving up on us.

It really stinks though that we're batting zero on all fronts right now. Hard to see a senior coach wanting to come here, so we're probably gonna have to roll the die on a junior coach for a must-succeed season where we have a ton of other question marks that we need to hit.

Really hard for fans to be optimistic right now. Regardless of opinions on Tocchet or mgmt, it seems extremely improbable to right the ship in a single offseason.

 

[GranvilleIsland]

Tocchet didn't like the logo I guess. Heard he's a big crest guy just not ours.

 

[PavelBure10]

Makes you wonder if Allvin traded away Pettersson rather than Miller if that would've changed Tochetts mindset on leaving.

 

[MS]

Wow.

As someone who was a pretty big Tocchet supporter right through the end … what a soft BS decision to bail on the team and leave.

Team seems blindsided and this is not a great situation.

Are we entitled to compensation if/when Philly signs him given that we had a team option?

 

[alternate]

Why? That would just be petty.

Shows we value loyalty and we don’t buy the practice facility being a deal breaker.

 

[Brookbank]

Wow.

As someone who was a pretty big Tocchet supporter right through the end … what a soft BS decision to bail on the team and leave.

Team seems blindsided and this is not a great situation.

Are we entitled to compensation if/when Philly signs him given that we had a team option?

No. Because the team rescinded that option

He was an Americanized easterner. If last year wasnt as successful, he wouldnt be a big candidate for other jobs out east and would have been happy just being in the league.

 

[Nuckles]

No. Because the team rescinded that option

Also I believe the league got rid of the coach compensation rule a while ago.

The last time I remember it happened was Columbus giving the Canucks a 2nd round pick for Torts (Was let go by that point but still under contract)

 

[Pastor Of Muppetz]

This really sucks..Could impact Quinn Hughes future as a Canuck..?

 

[Brookbank]

This really sucks..Could impact Quinn Hughes future as a Canuck..?

With Mckenna, Bedard and Celibrini in the league, I don't think it is a bad thing if it becomes the norm for players to go where they want

 

[TruGr1t]

I stand corrected on the money thing, apparently he just wanted to get out of here.

 

[Canucks LB]

I’m sorry, it’s been a few hours, I just finished work, and while I wanna be sympathetic towards everything, and the fact that he wants to go back to the east from what he said if we take him for his word..
I just feel backstabbed, I feel like we wasted the last couple of seasons building a culture for somebody to leave after some struggle.

I don’t know if that makes me an asshole, but it’s just how I feel, I feel like he quit on the logo on the chest

 

[4th line culture]

I've often wondered if a lot of NHL coaches are just simply overrated. Let's face it, they're only as good as the personnel they have to work with.

Travis Green wore out his welcome in Vancouver, spent some time behind the bench in Long Island, and then surfaces this year in Ottawa......where he promptly leads the Sens to their first playoff spot in seven years.

And here in Vancouver, Tocchet is the Jack Adams winner a season ago, when everything that could go right, did for the Canucks. This season, almost the exact opposite, and the Canucks plunged out of the top-8 in the West.

Wins and losses are about the players--all the motivation and systems play in the world isn't going to help a team much, if it doesn't have the horses.

The path of least resistance now, would be just to promote Manny Malhotra. Look at what Spencer Carbery accomplished in Washington this season. Before this breakthrough year by the Caps, who'd ever heard of him?

New jersey*

 

[racerjoe]

I stand corrected on the money thing, apparently he just wanted to get out of here.

Thats the messaging we are hearing, but i want to see what he signs for and how much our new coach is getting.

Like if he signs for a 5x5, and we hire a coach in the bargain bin... i would question if that is just what the team is saying to get in front of some things.

 

[TruGr1t]

Thats the messaging we are hearing, but i want to see what he signs for and how much our new coach is getting.

Like if he signs for a 5x5, and we hire a coach in the bargain bin... i would question if that is just what the team is saying to get in front of some things.

JR and Tocchet are friends, and he basically said he didn't want to coach here anymore. I'd tend to believe him. The only question is when Tocchet decided, and why he strung JR along for quite a while.

 

[Vector]

Wow.

As someone who was a pretty big Tocchet supporter right through the end … what a soft BS decision to bail on the team and leave.

Team seems blindsided and this is not a great situation.

Are we entitled to compensation if/when Philly signs him given that we had a team option?

There is no more compensation for hiring coaches under contract.

 

[alternate]

Don't want to run out and hire him tomorrow, but after due diligence is done I'd be fine with Manny ending up with the gig. Promoting from the farm worked with AV, and countless other times around the league.

Would rather go with a young coach (in coaching years) like Manny over a retread that already has their ring. How many head coaches win Cups with multiple franchises? Can't be many.

Thought Tocchet was the perfect hire after the soft systems play of Green and BB. Need a strict systems guy to build up good habits. Another year or 2 would have been ideal, but is what it is. Then bring in the innovative, fresh faced "players" coach (not that Tocchet wasn't a players coach) to unlock the offense. I don't know if that's Malhotra or someone else, but that's what I'm hoping for.

 

[Zapp]

I’m sorry, it’s been a few hours, I just finished work, and while I wanna be sympathetic towards everything, and the fact that he wants to go back to the east from what he said if we take him for his word..
I just feel backstabbed, I feel like we wasted the last couple of seasons building a culture for somebody to leave after some struggle.

I don’t know if that makes me an asshole, but it’s just how I feel, I feel like he quit on the logo on the chest

@Nucky

 

[DiggerDan]

Bring on Manny. I think he could be great, especially with the younger players. I know he runs a similar system, but what are the key differences for those who closely watch Abby?

 

[settinguptheplay]

My guess is he never really wanted to be here. Just took the opportunity to get some exposure with a team that had some talent but no success. Kind of a win - win for Tocchet. If he has a good year people will give him credit for the turnaround and suddenly formerly closed doors are now open. If he fails he is just another in a long line of coaches that this team wouldn't play for. Taking almost none of the "blame".

Or, Pettersson won't play for Tocchet and management determined that the coach has to go. Cancelled the option year allowing Tocchet to start applying for the many coaching positions available.

Something happened in that room that blew up this franchise. We just cant have nice things. You need a will of bloody Iron to be a fan of this franchise. I got scars so deep I could..... You all know what I mean.

 

[MS]

There is no more compensation for hiring coaches under contract.

Well, that sucks.

Feels like Philly just tampered the f*** out of us and stole our coach.

 

[wonton15]

Bring on Manny. I think he could be great, especially with the younger players. I know he runs a similar system, but what are the key differences for those who closely watch Abby?

I’m warming up to the idea. Manny with Foote/experience associates and assistants/real PP coach could be something good. But rolling the dice with a rookie coach in a pivotal year seems… risky at best.