<p>On Tuesday, the <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/combinations">Vancouver Canucks</a> dealt the official blow that <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/rick-tocchet-will-not-be-returning-vancouver-canucks-report">Rick Tocchet will not be returning behind the bench</a> with the team come next season. Rumours had circled for weeks that he may not decide to re-sign with the team, but there was hope they could come to an agreement.</p>
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<p>After the news broke, speculation ran rampant about the reason for his departure, with some expressing their disappointment that Jim Rutherford and the Canucks didn&#8217;t offer him a good enough contract to keep him around. However, it looks like that&#8217;s not the case.</p>
<p>According to multiple reports, Vancouver put forth a generous offer to keep Tocchet on, one that would have made him one of the highest paid coaches in the league.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Been told the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Canucks?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Canucks</a> made Rick Tocchet a terrific offer,  very solid and one that would be considered a top offer around the league.</p>
<p>Tocchet just felt it was time for a change.</p>
<p>&mdash; Rick Dhaliwal (@DhaliwalSports) <a href="https://twitter.com/DhaliwalSports/status/1917330675415539766?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">I&#39;m told the Canucks&#39; offer to Rick Tocchet would have made him one of the top paid coaches in the league. </p>
<p>Money wasn&#39;t the issue.</p>
<p>&mdash; Cam Robinson (@Hockey_Robinson) <a href="https://twitter.com/Hockey_Robinson/status/1917332765537710508?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Up until he was sacked Monday, Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan was the highest paid coach in the league, <a href="https://frontofficesports.com/highest-paid-nhl-coaches/">per figures from Front Office Sports.</a> Sullivan earned $5.5 million this season, in his 10th year with the organization. Trailing behind him are Tampa Bay Lightning bench boss Jon Cooper ($5.3 million), Peter Laviolette of the New York Rangers ($4.9 million), Colorado Avalanche&#8217;s Jared Bednar ($4.9 million), and Bruce Cassidy of the Vegas Golden Knights ($4.5 million). It&#8217;s unclear what the exact offer was for Tocchet, but based on these figures, it was likely somewhere in the $4 to 5 million range.</p>
<p>With that in mind, it appears this really was just a matter of Tocchet wanting a change for himself, interested to test the market with a number of other NHL teams currently searching for a new head coach. And it&#8217;s hard to blame him, between this season&#8217;s locker room drama, a reluctancy from management to commit to a new practice facility, and the possibility Quinn Hughes will walk when he hits free agency, there&#8217;s a lot of uncertainty in Vancouver right now. Combine that with this season&#8217;s regression in the standings and missed postseason berth after such a huge season last year, and it may not be too surprising that Tocchet is looking for a new challenge.</p>
<p>While it didn&#8217;t come down to money for Tocchet, it&#8217;s reassuring to know the Canucks are willing to invest a decent chunk of change in the right coach. Now they&#8217;ll have to hope that this off-season&#8217;s head hunt brings whoever that may be their way.</p>
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On Tuesday, the <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/combinations">Vancouver Canucks</a> dealt the official blow that <a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/rick-tocchet-will-not-be-returning-vancouver-canucks-report">Rick Tocchet will not be returning behind the bench</a> with the team come next season. Rumours had circled for weeks that he may not decide to re-sign with the team, but there was hope they could come to an agreement.
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After the news broke, speculation ran rampant about the reason for his departure, with some expressing their disappointment that Jim Rutherford and the Canucks didn't offer him a good enough contract to keep him around. However, it looks like that's not the case.

According to multiple reports, Vancouver put forth a generous offer to keep Tocchet on, one that would have made him one of the highest paid coaches in the league.

https://twitter.com/DhaliwalSports/status/1917330675415539766

https://twitter.com/Hockey_Robinson/status/1917332765537710508

Up until he was sacked Monday, Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan was the highest paid coach in the league, <a href="https://frontofficesports.com/highest-paid-nhl-coaches/">per figures from Front Office Sports.</a> Sullivan earned $5.5 million this season, in his 10th year with the organization. Trailing behind him are Tampa Bay Lightning bench boss Jon Cooper ($5.3 million), Peter Laviolette of the New York Rangers ($4.9 million), Colorado Avalanche's Jared Bednar ($4.9 million), and Bruce Cassidy of the Vegas Golden Knights ($4.5 million). It's unclear what the exact offer was for Tocchet, but based on these figures, it was likely somewhere in the $4 to 5 million range.

With that in mind, it appears this really was just a matter of Tocchet wanting a change for himself, interested to test the market with a number of other NHL teams currently searching for a new head coach. And it's hard to blame him, between this season's locker room drama, a reluctancy from management to commit to a new practice facility, and the possibility Quinn Hughes will walk when he hits free agency, there's a lot of uncertainty in Vancouver right now. Combine that with this season's regression in the standings and missed postseason berth after such a huge season last year, and it may not be too surprising that Tocchet is looking for a new challenge.

While it didn't come down to money for Tocchet, it's reassuring to know the Canucks are willing to invest a decent chunk of change in the right coach. Now they'll have to hope that this off-season's head hunt brings whoever that may be their way.

<strong>Sponsored by bet365</strong>
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