Report: Flyers, Bruins, Kraken among top contenders for Tocchet

The Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins, and Seattle Kraken are believed to be top contenders for head coach Rick Tocchet's services, TSN's Darren Dreger reports.

Philadelphia, in particular, wants to be aggressive in its pursuit of the bench boss, Dreger adds.

Tocchet became a free agent in late April after opting to not return to the Vancouver Canucks for a fourth season. He cited prioritizing his family as a reason for the departure, adding that he felt it was the "right time" to explore other opportunities.

Last year, he won the Jack Adams Award as the league's top coach after guiding the Canucks to a first-place finish in the Pacific Division, but their 2024-25 campaign was marred by drama. Vancouver ended the season with a 38-30-14 record to miss the playoffs by six points.

The Flyers fired John Tortorella in late March, and Brad Shaw guided them the rest of the way as an interim. The team finished the season 5-3-1 under his direction.

Philadelphia hasn't qualified for the postseason since 2020, though it came close last year, falling just four points short. The Flyers ended the 2024-25 campaign with 11 fewer points and five fewer wins than the season prior.

This year was tumultuous for the Bruins, who failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016. They let go of Jim Montgomery in November following an 8-9-3 start and promoted assistant coach Joe Sacco. Boston didn't turn things around and was a seller at the trade deadline, shipping off captain Brad Marchand, forward Charlie Coyle, and defenseman Brandon Carlo.

The Kraken, meanwhile, parted ways with Dan Bylsma in April after just one season behind the bench. Seattle finished in seventh place of the Pacific Division with a 35-41-6 record to miss the postseason for the second straight year.

Tocchet owns a career 286-265-87 NHL record.