Should The Vancouver Canucks Hold Onto Coach Adam Foote?

As new Vancouver Canucks GM Ryan Johnson settles into his role, one of the key issues he has to deal with is the status of Canucks coach Adam Foote.

Vancouver front-office executive Henrik Sedin told Sportsnet’s 32 Thoughts podcast Monday that Foote’s status is something Johnson, Sedin and his brother and co-president Daniel Sedin are currently contemplating. 

“That’s something we’re discussing right now,” Henrik Sedin said. “We had a press conference (last) Thursday, so we’re going through a lot of different parts of our organization. We’re discussing (it) on a daily basis here, so I think that’s something that I think you’ll hear more (about) next week.”

Let’s be clear – Foote has to own his role in Vancouver’s terrible 2025-26 season. It was Foote’s first year as Canucks coach, and he couldn’t coax decent efforts out of what turned out to be the worst team in the league. That’s a blemish on Foote’s record.

But here’s a thought – rather than dismissing Foote, why not at least begin next season with him running things? It’s certainly well within Johnson’s rights to start his era running the team with a coach he picked himself, but Johnson is very familiar with Foote, given that both of them have been working in the Canucks organization for years now.

So hanging onto Foote and seeing what he can do with a transitioning lineup makes sense to this writer.

If the Canucks begin next season with Foote as their bench boss, they might just discover he’s a good developmental coach. If that doesn’t turn out to be the case, Johnson can make a change at any time. That would be a nuanced, measured approach that gives Foote another chance to prove he’s capable of steering Vancouver’s young players toward where the organization wants them to be.

Certainly, if Johnson fires Foote and hires someone like current AHL coach Manny Malhotra, nobody would be surprised. The coaching carousel spins faster than ever these days, and there are several qualified coaching candidates available in theory, including former Toronto Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube and former Vegas Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy. But those coaches don’t feel like a good fit with the Canucks right now.

No, the best road ahead for Vancouver’s coaching situation could be the status quo. It’s hard to imagine how things could get worse for the Canucks after the way they’ve cratered the past two seasons, so there’s really nowhere to go but up for Foote & Co. in 2026-27.

Foote may not win the Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s best coach anytime soon. But Johnson needs to give Foote a fair chance at redeeming himself next season. The Canucks not only need to develop young players, but also young coaches like Foote.

Johnson could try to send a message to the organization. Retaining your coach would send a message that firing the coach would solve very little, and keeping him as coach will help make players accountable.

Foote may turn out to be the wrong man for the job. But Johnson has a honeymoon period as GM, and he can take advantage of it by hanging on to a respected former star player like Foote.

The Canucks are going to have significant pain for the foreseeable future, and Foote’s familiarity with the organization’s players could serve him and the franchise well. 

Thus, it says here that Johnson should give Foote another chance and keep him at least to start the season. Johnson is going to stress patience regarding the team’s overall fate – and that patience should extend to Foote until he stumbles badly enough to be replaced.

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