FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – If you’re old enough to remember what Rick Tocchet was like as a player, you understand that what he said this week as a coach was probably a massive understatement.
It has been a challenging few days for the Vancouver Canucks, who were putrid in Philadelphia and competitive in Tampa – and lost both games. But Tuesday through Thursday provided a fascinating 72-hour case study of the evolving coach-players dynamic on the Canucks and what makes Toc tick as he tries to build trust – and everything else – with a team trying to learn how to win.
Three games into his first full season as the Canucks’ coach, Tocchet scorched players for their disinterest in the 2-0 loss against the Flyers on Tuesday, telling reporters he couldn’t name a single skater who played well and that the team simply didn’t compete.
The money quote was: “Who are we to think we’re anybody?”
But his more combustible line, because it was close to personal, was: “We’ve just got some guys, oof . . . they better pick it up. I don’t like to use the word soft, but I didn’t see guys competing at all. And that’s alarming.”
Before practice the next day in suburban Tampa, Tocchet and his staff had a come-to-Jesus debriefing with players, showing video and re-iterating the “staples” the Canucks must live by to have any chance at succeeding. Then they practised well and played profoundly better Thursday night against the Lightning, who exploited individual Vancouver breakdowns to rally for a 4-3 victory.
Interestingly, Tocchet said after the optional morning skate at Amalie Arena that he needed to give his players space and take a step back so they could address and fix problems themselves.
“Sometimes coaches, you know, there’s a time and place,” he told Sportsnet after the cameras turned off. “There was a time and place for that meeting (Wednesday) to address stuff, and I think now I’ve got to take a step back. The room has got to handle some stuff. The coach can’t always go in there. I think, strategically, you’ve got to pick your spots. Even tonight . . . me yelling and screaming, it’s not going to work tonight.
“I always try to put my player’s hat on when I coach. Like, if I was sitting in a room, how would I feel? I remember being in that room as a leader (as a player) — I’ve done it before and I’ve seen our leaders do it — like, ‘We’ve got it, coach, we’ve got this.’ I love players saying, basically, ‘Get out of here and let the players handle it.’ I think this is a we-got-it-moment. I’ve got to step aside.”
Canuck players got even more space on Friday, a scheduled day off in south Florida, and will re-assemble and reconnect with their coaches Saturday morning ahead of that night’s game against the Florida Panthers.
A ferociously competitive player who averaged 38 goals and 205 penalty minutes a season over a six-year period that bridged the 1980s and ’90s, Tocchet has always been about accountability. Literally and figuratively, he held players accountable.
“We traded for him in Pittsburgh,” Hall-of-Fame coach Scotty Bowman, who drove up from his winter home in Sarasota to watch Thursday’s game, said of Tocchet and the 1992 Stanley Cup-winning Penguins. “He was the new guy. But if he thought someone wasn’t doing enough, it didn’t matter if it was Mario (Lemieux) or anyone else, he would say something. Rick held people accountable.”
You can imagine what Tocchet wanted to say on Tuesday.
“I have to be careful because as a player you can be a little bit more to the point,” he explained. “But as a coach, you do have to watch it. It’s a feel thing. I’m probably getting better at picking my spots. As a coach, you’re so competitive and you want to win, and then 10 minutes (after the game) you’ve got to talk to the press.
“You’re so competitive but you’ve got to be careful because guys are trying, too. It’s not like these guys don’t want to try.
“I’m not too worried about guys shutting (me out). It’s more that I don’t want a guy to grip his stick. I don’t want a guy where you’re on him so much that he doesn’t know where he’s going on the ice. I don’t worry about them shutting me out because I think the guys understand what we’re trying to do here. But I do believe that you’ve got to be careful. It’s a fine line.”
Canucks winger Anthony Beauvillier, probably among of the guys Tocchet said “better pick it up” after the Flyers game, said players appreciate their coach’s honest and open communication.
“His door is always open for anyone who wants to talk to him,” Beauvillier said after playing his best game of the season in Tampa. “He’s passionate about what he does and the details and the little tips he gives us go a long way. I mean, we just had to be better and the response was good tonight. Everyone respects him and wants to do well for him. Guys want to go through a wall for him.”
The coach would do at least as much for his players.
“I’ll be honest with you,” Tocchet said. “I’m not going to name the player, but a player came up to me and maybe last year he wouldn’t have . . . and he said: ‘Hey, I thought I was pretty good out there (in Philadelphia) and I didn’t play as much in the third period.’ And, you know what? He was right. I probably should have played him three or four more shifts, but for whatever reason, I lost him. I love that he had enough trust in me that he could come up to me. That kind of made me feel good.”
