"Oilers fans gonna cry about this too" "Well deserved": NHL fans react as Rick Tocchet wins Jack Adams Award for coach of the year

The Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet has been named the Jack Adams Award winner for the 2023-24 season. Tocchet is now only the third recipient of the award in Canucks’ franchise history.

The Jack Adams Award is given to the NHL’s best coach of the year and Tocchet won it as a first time finalist in his coaching career. His team’s postseason run came to an end last Monday, following a Game 7 defeat at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers in the second round of their Stanley Cup Playoffs series.

Fans were quick to react to the news on social media. Many expressed congratulatory wishes for the head coach and appreciated his efforts in leading the Vancouver-based team. Some fans even took subtle digs at their rival fanbases in the comments.

Following are some of the fan reactions from X:

“Oilers fans gonna cry about this too ‘wHeReS kNoB’”.

“Well deserved,” wrote one fan.

“Earned it. Good choice,” wrote another.

Fans lauded the coach and praised the Jack Adams Awardee. Even some Oilers fans sent their praises his way in the comments.

“Honestly as an Oilers fan I have so much respect for him and the type of game he demands to see from his players. There were a lot of good candidates this year for the Jack Adams but after playing against Vancouver, I can honestly say he deserves it,” commented one fan.

“So well deserved. I thought his adjustments in round one won them the series,” wrote another user.

"Congrats to Tocc. Well deserved. Respect to the other nominated coaches as well," one user added.

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Rick Tocchdet wins with 82 first place votes and a huge point-margin

The Vancouver Canucks head coach won the Jack Adams Award quite decisively, with 483 voting points, including 82 first-place votes. He was a top-three pick on 109 out of 114 ballots and had a huge point margin of 338 with Andrew Brunette, the head coach of the Nashville Predators, who finished in second place with 145 points.

Rick Bowness of the Winnipeg Jets came in third with 75 points. Peter Laviolette of the New York Rangers, who had 66 points and Kris Knoblauch of the Edmonton Oilers, who earned 64 points, finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

Initially, when Rick Tocchet was nominated for the award, he insisted that it wasn't just his achievement but a recognition for the whole organization.

“It’s an organizational award for me,” said Tocchet. “It’s the GM, the ownership, the assistant coaches and the players. I’m just a piece of the puzzle. I have a huge support group that helps me. That’s the way I look at it.” [H/T The Province]

He credited the general manager, the ownership, the assistant coaches and the players, saying he was just one part of a larger team effort. Tocchet also mentioned that he had a strong support group helping him.

This season, the Canucks won the Pacific Division title and secured the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference with a record of 50-23-9, earning 109 points—their third-highest ever.

The Canucks’ defense made significant improvements from the previous season, with average goals against per game dropping from 3.61 to 2.70. The team also had the best goal differential in the first period (+38) and excelled in maintaining leads, going 42-1-4 when leading after two periods.

Now it remains to be seen if Rick Tocchet can lead his team to a possible Stanley Cup campaign next season.