Tocchet earns Jack Adams as coach of the year

Vancouver Canucks bench boss Rick Tocchet was named the 2023-24 Jack Adams Award winner on Wednesday, beating out finalists Andrew Brunette of the Nashville Predators and Rick Bowness of the Winnipeg Jets as coach of the year.

Tocchet guided the Canucks to a 50-23-9 record in his first full season behind the bench, good enough to earn the Pacific Division title and return to the playoffs for the first time since 2020. He's the third Vancouver coach to win the Jack Adams, joining Pat Quinn (1992) and Alain Vigneault (2007).

"A lot of buy-in (from the players), right from Day 1," Tocchet answered when asked about the Canucks' success this season. "They believed in the staff, and we believed in them."

Final ballots favored Tocchet in a landslide, as he earned 82 of 114 first-place votes.

Brunette, the runner-up for the honor, led the Predators back to the playoffs this spring after the organization had an eight-year streak snapped in 2022-23. Nashville's season turned around on the strength of a 16-0-2 run from mid-February to late March, a span in which the club led the league in goals for and against per game. Brunette was also nominated for the Jack Adams in 2022 when he helped the Florida Panthers capture the Presidents' Trophy.

Bowness, who retired this month after nearly 40 years behind NHL benches, oversaw a 110-point campaign with Winnipeg, the second-highest total in Jets franchise history. The nomination was the first of Bowness' career.