It came down to two names, and in the end, Adam Foote moves from assistant to head coach of the Vancouver Canucks.
Adam Foote Named Head Coach
The Vancouver Canucks decided to promote from within, moving last season’s assistant coach Adam Foote into the title role. Foote came to the team with Rick Tocchet in 2023.
Foote had a lengthy career as a feared defenceman, playing 1154 regular season and 170 playoff games in the NHL. He was picked 22nd overall in 1989 by the Quebéc Nordiques, moving with them to Colorado and winning two Stanley Cups there.
He signed on with the Columbus Blue Jackets before getting traded back to Colorado to finish out his career. If his history as a player is any indication of his coaching style, expect a physical but disciplined game.
His 66 goals and 308 career points aren’t exactly earth-shaking, but that wasn’t his job. Keeping the other team off the scoreboard interested him more. It’s worth noting that he always increased his time in the playoffs, often averaging well over 25-minutes per game.
Foote doesn’t lack for big game experience. Even beyond his 170 playoff games, he has an Olympic gold medal and gold and silver medals from the World Cup.
Coaching History
While there was plenty of talk about hiring either Foote or Manny Malhotra, the mark against both was a lack of head coaching experience. Upon retiring from play in 2011, Foote was named a defensive coach for Colorado and stayed until 2018.
In 2018, he was named the head coach of the WHL Kelowna Rockets. That club missed the playoffs in a tie-breaker game after finishing first in their division the previous season. He was fired in 2020, shortly before the 2019-20 season ended because of the COVID -19 pandemic.
He joined the Canucks when Rick Tocchet was hired in 2023, again as their defensive specialist. Vancouver’s goals against improved massively from 2022-23 to 2023-24, shaving off 70 goals against.
Their penalty kill also improved, though not as dramatically. In 2023-24, the PK broke into the top ten in the league, a place it hadn’t been for years. Improved structure deserves much of the credit, though it’s hard to deny the improved talent as well.
What Head Coach Adam Foote Means
It’s no secret that Foote is well-liked, with both captain Quinn Hughes and veteran Tyler Myers voicing their support. That doesn’t provide a lot of confidence for fans who might have wanted a clean sheet for the team.
Expect Foote to continue Tocchet’s more strict defensive systems. The team should exhibit the discipline that appeared later this past season rather than the more attacking mode they wanted at the start.
That also isn’t encouraging for fans who wanted to see the team go after offensively-minded players. Going and getting, say, Nikolaj Ehlers and expecting him to produce 70-plus points seems unlikely. Even if Foote promoted him to the top line, he’s probably not staying there.
So what will be done? The goaltenders will be well protected, that much is certain. Maybe the team will feel brave enough to move Thatcher Demko before the season begins and rely on Kevin Lankinen and “insert goalie here”. Yes, expect another goalie to come in.
Artūrs Šilovs has been great in the AHL playoffs this season, but he might not have the trust of the team after last season’s experiment. They might try Jiří Patera or Nikita Tolopilo, if they re-sign him, but that seems unlikely.
End Result
The Canucks have gone with consistency after a wildly disruptive season. It’s hard to blame them for that. While Adam Foote may not be the most exciting name they could have gotten, he does know the team.
This doesn’t make him the “safe” pick, though. How Foote will do as a head coach is completely unknown. He has essentially zero experience in that role. He does have the support of his most important player in Hughes, so that’s a good start.
But the biggest question going into 2025-26 is how well Elias Pettersson can bounce back. It could be that the clampdown style lets him know who is going to be where on set plays. That could help him regain his confidence. Or it might reduce his scoring further, drawing the ire of fans.
In any case, this hiring is a precursor to the rest of the Vancouver Canucks offseason. For better or worse.
Main Photo: Bob Frid – Imagn Images
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