Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet has won the 2024 Jack Adams Award, given to the head coach deemed to have contributed the most to his team’s success. This should come as no surprise to fans who saw the Canucks win the Pacific Division with 109 points, 26 points more than last season.
Tocchet, a first-time Jack Adams finalist, is the third winner in Canucks history, following Pat Quinn in 1991-92 and Alain Vigneault in 2006-07. This is an incredibly impressive feat for Tocchet who was in his first full season as head coach of the team. He has previously coached the Tampa Bay Lightning and Arizona Coyotes, possessing a career 248-235-73 regular season record and an 11-11 record in the playoffs.
Tocchet led the Canucks to the NHL’s best goal differential in the first period (+38) and kept the team well-disciplined late in games, going 42-1-4 when leading after two periods. This was the most in the League, double the team’s total from 2022 to 23 (21-1-4).
In the voting, Tocchet won convincingly, appearing as a top-three pick on 109 of the 114 ballots. As well, he received 82 first-place votes and 483 points through the voting system. Second place was awarded to Nashville Predators’ head coach Andrew Brunette followed by now-retired Winnipeg Jets’ head coach Rick Bowness.
While the Canucks season may be over, it was a successful season for a team that was not guaranteed to make the playoffs. Given the strong core and surplus of young talent, the team should continue its success in future seasons with Tocchet at the helm.
