The Arizona Coyotes seem ready to move forward with coach André Tourigny long into the future.
The Arizona Coyotes have officially signed coach André Tourigny to a three-year contract extension.
"We are very pleased to sign André to a three-year extension," said Coyotes general manager Bill Armstrong in a team statement. "He is an excellent coach, leader and communicator who has helped us establish a tremendous culture in our dressing room. Our players like him, respect him and compete hard for him. We are thrilled to have him signed as our head coach for the next three years."
The 49-year-old has coached the Coyotes for the past two seasons holding a 53-90-21 record. Over the past two years, Tourigny helped guide Arizona’s young core through the team’s rebuild and has really established a new culture in the Valley.
"I'm very grateful to have the trust of Mr. Meruelo, Bill and Xavier," Tourigny said in a team statement. "The structure put in place by our management has energized our team. I'm also very fortunate to have such a quality coaching staff to work with. It is a pleasure and a privilege to work with them every day. In addition, our high performance, development, medical and equipment staff do an excellent job of taking care of our players. That is the best environment that you can dream of having.
"I feel very lucky to work with our group of players as well. The hard work and commitment to the team they have demonstrated the past two years has established the foundation of our culture. It's an exciting time to be part of the Coyotes. My family and I love the Valley and we are thrilled to be committed long term in Arizona."
This is the first year for Tourigny where the expectations are higher for the Coyotes to start winning due to the arrivals of players like Jason Zucker, Sean Durzi, Matt Dumba and Logan Cooley.
This contract extension shows the Coyotes have trust in Tourigny to take the team out of its rebuilding years and turn them into a contender one day.
Now with his new contract extension, Tourigny can solely focus on hockey, something he has been great at through his tenure in Arizona.