In January 2023, Adam Foote was brought into the Vancouver Canucks organization as Rick Tocchet’s assistant coach. Only a little more than two years later, Foote was named the 22nd head coach in franchise history, coming into Tocchet’s role after the latter joined the Philadelphia Flyers.
“I appreciate the opportunity and it’s very exciting for myself, my family, and looking forward to this new challenge and this new chapter in my life,” Foote said in his media availability onThursday. “I loved coaching here, and I think, you know, this city wants to win, and it's nothing but what we all want to do. So it’s a very exciting time for me.”
Latest From THN’s Vancouver Canucks Site:
Why Canucks Fans Should Be Excited About Vancouver Signing Top Prospect Tom Willander
Vancouver Canucks At The 2025 IIHF World Championship: May 14
Many suspected that Foote’s prior relationships with the players, particularly Quinn Hughes, factored into the coach selection process. While Foote explained that it definitely helps him in terms of stepping into the role, both the new head coach and Canucks General Manager Patrik Allvin insisted that it didn’t impact who was picked.
“I think that’s an advantage for sure, I’ve had two and a half years to develop good relationships with players, the staff, very familiar with how people like to be treated, or how they tick, or how it makes them go, what doesn’t. And I think that’s a huge advantage, for sure, relationships that I’ve had developed in that time.”
“I haven’t even spoken to Quinn in this process, either. I know Jim informed him when Rick was leaving. Again, it’s not about one player, it’s about the team here, and we want to build and continue to grow as a team. And Quinn is a requirement. So obviously, the trust, the relationship with Quinn, it’s important for us to be off to a good start and continue to develop. But yeah, Quinn was not involved in this process,” Allvin said on Thursday.
While leading the Canucks’ coaching staff in 2025–26 will be Foote’s first stint as a head coach in the NHL, it’s not the first time he has taken this role in other leagues. Foote was the head coach of the Kelowna Rockets from 2018–2020, where he finished with a 48–49–12 record. This was also the last coaching role he took, both in the NHL and other leagues, before joining the Canucks alongside Tocchet back in 2023.
“Kelowna was a great experience, you know, things didn’t work like the way I’d like them to work, but I think I grew a lot from that,” he said of his time with the Rockets. “I’m not sure I’d be sitting here today without that experience and learning from it.”
When asked about how he believes he has grown as a coach since Kelowna, Foote explained that much of his personal development would not have been possible without Tocchet.
“I wasn’t sure I wanted to be a head coach when I took that job. Patrik asked me probably a year ago, year and a half ago, and Rick said to me, ‘if you really want to be a head coach I’ll help you,’” Foote said. “When I told him a year ago, ‘I think I want to do this,’ he really wanted it for me, and we had a great conversation yesterday. I wasn’t sure what was going to happen in this process, where I would be, and he’s so happy for me, and I was so happy and lucky that I was under him. He taught me so much.”
While Foote has officially been named Vancouver’s new head coach, his assistants have yet to be determined. Neither Allvin nor Foote confirmed or denied that any of the current staff would return, though they noted that this is because they haven’t had the chance to discuss this with them.
“We need an offensive guy and we need a defensive guy. So that’s what we're going to do. I think I’d like to run the D still, but I'm not sure that’s the way it goes now,” Foote joked.
Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, be sure to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum.
