With the announcement yesterday that Rick Tocchet would not return to the Vancouver Canucks next season, talk has turned to who might replace him. As of now, former Edmonton Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft and current Abbotsford Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra are among the frontrunners for this position. Let’s take a look at some of the more experienced NHL coaches that could succeed Tocchet in 2025-26. Not Mike Sullivan.
While talk about Mike Sullivan joining the Canucks peaked on Monday after he and the Pittsburgh Penguins parted ways, Vancouver’s President of Hockey Operations, Jim Rutherford, confirmed otherwise during Tuesday’s press conference.
“I know my good friend, Mike Sullivan.” doesn’t want to leave the east. He’s an excellent family man. I spoke with him yesterday, not about coming here, but when he left Pittsburgh, and I know he wants to stay in the east.
Peter Laviolette
With NHL head coaching experience dating back to the 2001-02 season, Peter Laviolette could easily be considered for the position of Canucks head coach. He left the New York Rangers on April 19, just two seasons after joining the franchise. Laviolette began his NHL career as Head Coach of the New York Islanders before spending five seasons with the Carolina Hurricanes. Rutherford was the Hurricanes’ General Manager during all five of these years. Together,
In 2006, the tandem won the Stanley Cup.
“We achieved some success together. I like him as both a person and a coach. “I haven’t gotten that far yet, but having someone you know definitely helps,” Rutherford said of his time with Laviolette. He later stated that Patrik Allvin will be the primary contact with the incoming Head Coach, implying that they would need to find someone he would work well with.
“I wouldn’t want to remove him from the list at this point.” He’s had a lot of success in the league, so it’s a nice name.
While Laviolette is a well-known name to Rutherford, his coaching style may not be appropriate for the Canucks’ future. Laviolette’s resistance to playing younger players, which developed during his tenure with the Rangers, will not function well in a depth system loaded with youth.
Gerard Gallant
Gerard Gallant, another former Rangers head coach, last coached in the NHL during the 2022-23 regular season. Since then, he has guided a 2024-25 Team Canada group to a semifinal loss in the Spengler Cup. His coaching record has recently been remarkable, with points percentages of.583,.601, and.662 over his last three stays.
“I’m waiting, hoping, you know, if something comes up,” Gallant told NHL.com in January 2024. “Obviously, I’d like to coach again in the National Hockey League, but we’ll see. I have not spoken to anyone, and I am not waiting by the phone. If the phone rings, I’ll be overjoyed, but I’m not sitting here waiting.”
Gallant has been described as a player’s coach, with former Rangers captain Jacob Trouba underlining that “He’s a guy that players respect […] and enjoy playing for.” However, one issue that has arisen for him over his four seasons as NHL Head Coach is that he has been outcoached when his team requires it.
“I’m waiting, hoping, you know, if something comes up,” Gallant told NHL.com in January 2024. “Obviously, I’d like to coach again in the National Hockey League, but we’ll see. I have not spoken to anyone, and I am not waiting by the phone. If the phone rings, I’ll be overjoyed, but I’m not sitting here waiting.”
Gallant has been described as a player’s coach, with former Rangers captain Jacob Trouba underlining that “He’s a guy that players respect […] and enjoy playing for.” However, one issue that has arisen for him over his four seasons as NHL Head Coach is that he has been outcoached when his team requires it.
The Bakersfield Condors. Early in his NHL coaching career, he was a Video Coach for the Detroit Red Wings for three seasons and an Assistant Coach for the San Jose Sharks for seven. Woodcroft, like Gallant, has encountered challenges with coaching adaptability. This is something that will probably come into play more in the playoffs than in the regular season, but at the end of the day, Vancouver wants to be a postseason team, not a regular season one. Woodcroft may be better suited to a younger team, such as the Chicago Blackhawks, than the Vancouver Canucks.
John Tortorella
This would be the most chaotic possibility for the Canucks and the least likely on this list. John Tortorella spent one season with Vancouver from 2013-2014.
and was let go after it despite signing with the team for five years. Regardless of how he was perceived, former Canucks such as Kevin Bieksa have spoken positively of his coaching style. This would be the most chaotic option for the Canucks, and is definitely the most unlikely on this list. John Tortorella spent one season with Vancouver, 2013–2014, and was let go after it despite signing with the team for five years. Regardless of how he was perceived, former Canucks such as Kevin Bieksa have spoken positively of his coaching style.
Since departing from the Canucks, Tortorella has split time with the Columbus Blue Jackets (2015–2021) and the Philadelphia Flyers (2022–2025). Throughout the 2024–25 season, he had made headlines for benching some of the Flyers’ young stars — something that isn’t unexpected of him. Tortorella’s coaching style is aggressive and long-standing, as his NHL Head Coach career spans 22 seasons.
As successful as Tortorella’s coaching may be in some locker rooms, Vancouver is probably not the best fit for it next season. The Canucks are coming off a very unsteady season, with many players’ futures with the franchise still up in the air. Their best bet for success is to bring someone in who can help stabilize the room with familiarity.
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