Rick Tocchet will not return as head coach of the Vancouver Canucks.
His decision to step away follows what the team described as 鈥渢houghtful discussions鈥� with management. While the Canucks held an option to retain the 61-year-old for another year, Tocchet ultimately chose to move on.
"I'm choosing to move on from the Vancouver Canucks," Tocchet said. "Family is a priority, and with my contract lapsing, this becomes the opportune time. While I don't know where I'm headed, or exactly how this will play out for me over the near term, I feel like this is the right time for me to explore other opportunities in and around hockey."
Tocchet took over the Canucks bench on Jan. 22, 2023, following head coaching stints in Arizona and Tampa Bay, and a role as an assistant coach in Pittsburgh, where he won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017.
In parts of two seasons with Vancouver, he compiled a 108-65-27 record over 200 games 鈥� the ninth-most wins by any coach in franchise history. His .608 points percentage is the highest in team history, and he reached 100 regular-season wins faster than all but seven others.
He earned the Jack Adams Award as the NHL's Coach of the Year last season, guiding the Canucks to a 50-23-9 record and a second-round playoff appearance.
Tocchet鈥檚 286-265-87 record across nine NHL coaching seasons reflects a career that balanced rebuilding teams with periods of competitive success.
This past season, however, the Canucks fell short. Vancouver finished 38-30-14 and missed the playoffs by six points, faltering late in the season.
The disappointing result came despite a strong campaign from Tocchet individually 鈥� he served as an assistant coach for Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament in February, helping the country claim gold.
Jim Rutherford, Vancouver鈥檚 president of hockey operations, said the organization had hoped to retain Tocchet but respected his choice to move on.
鈥淎fter a very long and thorough process, unfortunately Rick has decided to leave the Vancouver Canucks,鈥� Rutherford said. 鈥淭his is very disappointing news, but we respect Rick鈥檚 decision to move to a new chapter in his hockey career. We did everything in our power to keep him, but at the end of the day Rick felt he needed a change. He is a good friend, a good coach, and we can鈥檛 thank him enough for all he did for our organization. Toc is a stand-up guy, and we wish him nothing but the best moving forward.鈥�
Tocchet becomes the 10th NHL coach to leave his position this season.
The Canucks now join a growing list of teams in search of a new head coach, alongside the Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Seattle Kraken in what is shaping up to be a turbulent offseason behind the benches.
Vancouver鈥檚 next hire will mark the 22nd head coach in franchise history 鈥� and the fourth since 2022.