Rick Tocchet

Richard Tocchet ( ; born April 9, 1964) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player who is the head coach for the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected in the sixth round, 121st overall, by the Flyers in the 1983 NHL entry draft and also played for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Los Angeles Kings, Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals, and Phoenix Coyotes. He formerly served as the head coach for the Tampa Bay Lightning, Arizona Coyotes, and Vancouver Canucks. Tocchet won the Jack Adams Award for coach of the year in 2024.

Playing career Tocchet was born in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, Ontario. As a youth, Tocchet played in the 1977 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Toronto.

After being drafted in the sixth round (121st overall) by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1983 NHL entry draft, Tocchet returned to the OHL's Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds for another year of junior hockey. After registering 108 points with Sault Ste. Marie, Tocchet came to the Flyers for the 1984–85 season, scoring 39 points and helping the team to the 1985 Stanley Cup Final. He was mainly known as a fighter in his early career but soon developed his skills enough to become a respected power forward, a team leader, and a four-time NHL All-Star. He had memorable fights with other power forwards such as Wendel Clark and Cam Neely. He had 18 Gordie Howe hat tricks during his career, which is the most in NHL history. Both Tocchet and Carter would work together as studio analysts with the NHL on TNT nearly a quarter of a century later beginning in 2021. Tocchet became an unrestricted free agent on June 15, 1997 and signed a three-year contract with the Phoenix Coyotes 23 days later on July 8. After returning to the Flyers in a trade that sent Mikael Renberg to the Coyotes on March 8, 2000, he added 11 points en route to an Eastern Conference final berth. Tocchet retired after the 2001–02 season, being one of several players in NHL history to collect 400 goals and 2,000 penalty minutes including Brendan Shanahan and Gary Roberts.

Coaching career Tocchet became an assistant coach for the Colorado Avalanche in 2002–03. In the summer of 2005, he became an assistant coach with the Phoenix Coyotes. On December 17, 2005, Tocchet took over as interim head coach for Phoenix, stepping in while head coach Wayne Gretzky was out on an indefinite leave of absence due to his mother's illness (and subsequent death). The team went 2–3–0 under Tocchet. Gretzky eventually resumed his duties on December 28.

Tocchet and the Penguins celebrating their 2017 Stanley Cup win. Tocchet was named as the associate coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning on July 9, 2008. On November 14, he was named the interim head coach of the Lightning, replacing Barry Melrose who was fired two days earlier after compiling a 5–7–4 record. Tocchet lost his first game to the Carolina Hurricanes in a shootout. Tocchet's first win came two games later on November 21, against the Nashville Predators. However, he would go on to lose his next nine games, and twelve of the next thirteen. On May 11, 2009, Tocchet had the interim tag removed and was named Lightning Head Coach. On April 12, 2010 he was relieved of his coaching duties by the new ownership of the Tampa Bay Lightning. On June 25, 2014, he was hired by the Pittsburgh Penguins to be an assistant coach. On June 12, 2016, Tocchet won the Stanley Cup with the Penguins. He won his second Stanley Cup as an assistant coach on June 11, 2017, when the Penguins defeated the Nashville Predators in six games.

On July 11, 2017, Tocchet was named head coach for the Arizona Coyotes. On February 29, 2020, Tocchet earned his 100th win as head coach of the Coyotes in a 5–2 victory over the Buffalo Sabres. After the 2020–21 season, Tocchet and the Coyotes mutually agreed to part ways.

On January 22, 2023, Tocchet was named head coach of the Vancouver Canucks to replace Bruce Boudreau. The 2023–24 season, Tocchet's first full season in charge was a major success for the team, who won the Pacific Division title in the regular season. The Canucks reached the second round of the 2024 playoffs, losing to the Edmonton Oilers in seven games. Tocchet received the Jack Adams Award as the NHL coach of the year. On April 29, 2025, the Canucks announced that Tocchet would not return as head coach.

On May 14, 2025, Tocchet was named head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers.

Analyst After leaving Tampa Bay, Tocchet served alongside Michael Barkann, Al Morganti, Bill Clement, and Steve Coates as a Flyers Postgame Live panelist on Comcast SportsNet.

He joined TNT's ice hockey coverage in 2021 as a studio analyst, and later briefly returned in 2025 after his stint with the Canucks.

Gambling, horse racing, and Operation Slapshot The late entrepreneur, racehorse owner, and gambler Dan Borislow was a good friend of Tocchet's. Borislow's most successful horse was named 'Toccet', a misspelled tribute to Tocchet. Toccet won four graded stakes, including the Champagne and Hollywood Futurity in 2002. The horse was named runner-up to Vindication for the American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt in 2002, a part of the Eclipse Award. Once a favorite to enter the 2003 Kentucky Derby, Toccet was derailed by ankle injuries early in the year. He won one listed stakes after his juvenile season out of 15 starts and now stands at Castleton Lyons.

Borislow also co-owned a horse named Wild Desert that had a controversial win at the 2005 Queen's Plate. Wild Desert's other co-owners were baseball manager Joe Torre and former NHL player Keith Jones, who as of 2026 works with Tocchet as the president of hockey operations for the Philadelphia Flyers.

On February 6, 2006, Tocchet was served with a criminal complaint, accused of financing a nationwide sports gambling ring based in New Jersey in which several current NHL players wagered. The ring was discovered by New Jersey state police, in the undercover investigation Operation Slapshot. "It's not a hockey-related issue, it's a football thing. And at this time I can't comment any further," Tocchet told The Arizona Republic after the Coyotes practiced on February 7. The following day, Tocchet requested a leave of absence from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, which was granted with a number of conditions including that Tocchet was to have no contact with NHL personnel, that the leave of absence would not end without Bettman's consent and that the Commissioner reserved the right to modify the terms of the leave of absence at any time.

Also in February 2006, Tocchet's friend Borislow spoke to the press about Operation Slapshot, defending Tocchet's reputation. Borislow commented: "I used to bet on sports. And, $1.4-million? I would do that in an afternoon...I'm one of the largest bettors in the country."

On May 8, 2006, attorneys for Tocchet and Gretzky's wife Janet Jones filed notices in New Jersey that they intended to sue the state for $50 million each for defamation. Both Tocchet and Jones claimed to have lost business opportunities in the wake of the state's investigation, which had sullied their reputations. On August 3, former New Jersey state trooper James Harney pleaded guilty to conspiracy, promoting gambling, and official misconduct, and promised to help authorities with their case against Tocchet and others. Harney said that he and Tocchet were 50–50 partners in the betting ring.

On May 25, 2007, Tocchet pleaded guilty to conspiracy and promoting gambling. New Jersey Attorney General Anne Milgram announced on August 17, that Tocchet had been sentenced to two years probation in exchange for his plea. He could have received up to five years in New Jersey state prison, but there was a presumption against incarceration for first-time offenders who plead guilty to such crimes.

The NHL subsequently issued a statement from Gary Bettman, but his spokesman would not answer questions, including if Tocchet had a future in ice hockey. In late 2007, Bettman issued another statement indicating that Tocchet would not be eligible to return to the league until February 7, 2008. In addition to the initial criminal conduct, the Commissioner cited a number of aggravating factors including repeated illicit contact with NHL personnel and Tocchet's participation in the World Series of Poker to justify imposing a de facto two-year suspension.

During a press conference on February 6, 2008, it was announced that Tocchet would be reinstated and would serve as assistant coach the next day, exactly two years after taking the leave of absence. Among other conditions of his reinstatement, Tocchet was ordered by Bettman to abstain from all forms of gambling.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1980–81 St. Michael's Midget Buzzers MTHL 41 28 46 74 — — — — — — 1980–81 St. Michael's Buzzers MetJHL 5 1 1 2 2 — — — — — 1981–82 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 59 7 15 22 184 11 1 1 2 28 1982–83 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 66 32 34 66 146 16 4 13 17 67 1983–84 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 64 44 64 108 209 16 22 14 36 41 1984–85 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 75 14 25 39 181 19 3 4 7 72 1985–86 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 69 14 21 35 284 5 1 2 3 26 1986–87 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 69 21 28 49 288 26 11 10 21 72 1987–88 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 65 31 33 64 299 5 1 4 5 55 1988–89 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 66 45 36 81 183 16 6 6 12 69 1989–90 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 75 37 59 96 196 — — — — — 1990–91 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 70 40 31 71 150 — — — — — 1991–92 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 42 13 16 29 102 — — — — — 1991–92 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 19 14 16 30 49 14 6 13 19 24 1992–93 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 80 48 61 109 252 12 7 6 13 24 1993–94 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 51 14 26 40 134 6 2 3 5 20 1994–95 Los Angeles Kings NHL 36 18 17 35 70 — — — — — 1995–96 Los Angeles Kings NHL 44 13 23 36 117 — — — — — 1995–96 Boston Bruins NHL 27 16 8 24 64 5 4 0 4 21 1996–97 Boston Bruins NHL 40 16 14 30 67 — — — — — 1996–97 Washington Capitals NHL 13 5 5 10 31 — — — — — 1997–98 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 68 26 19 45 157 6 6 2 8 25 1998–99 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 81 26 30 56 147 7 0 3 3 8 1999–2000 Phoenix Coyotes NHL 64 12 17 29 67 — — — — — 1999–2000 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 16 3 3 6 23 18 5 6 11 49 2000–01 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 60 14 22 36 83 6 0 1 1 6 2001–02 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 14 0 2 2 28 — — — — —NHL totals 1,144 440 512 952 2,972 145 52 60 112 471

International Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM 1987 Canada CC 7 3 2 5 8 1990 Canada WC 10 4 2 6 14 1991 Canada CC 8 1 1 2 10Senior totals 25 8 5 13 32

Head coaching record Team Year Regular season Postseason G W L OTL Pts Finish W L Win% Result TBL 2008–09 66 19 33 14 (52) 5th in Southeast — — — Missed playoffs TBL 2009–10 82 34 36 12 80 4th in Southeast — — — Missed playoffsTBL total 148 53 69 26 — — — ARI 2017–18 82 29 41 12 70 8th in Pacific — — — Missed playoffs ARI 2018–19 82 39 35 8 86 4th in Pacific — — — Missed playoffs ARI 2019–20 70* 33 29 8 74 5th in Pacific 4 5 Lost in first round (COL) ARI 2020–21 56 24 26 6 54 5th in West — — — Missed playoffsARI total 290 125 131 34 4 5 .444 1 playoff appearance VAN 2022–23 36 20 12 4 (44) 6th in Pacific — — — Missed playoffs VAN 2023–24 82 50 23 9 109 1st in Pacific 7 6 Lost in second round (EDM) VAN 2024–25 82 38 30 14 90 5th in Pacific — — — Missed playoffsVAN total 200 108 65 27 7 6 .538 1 playoff appearance PHI 2025–26 82 43 27 12 98 3rd in Metropolitan 4 6 Lost in second round (CAR)PHI total 82 43 27 12 4 6 .400 1 playoff appearanceNHL total 720 329 292 99 15 17 3 playoff appearances Shortened season due to the COVID-19 pandemic during the 2019–20 season. Playoffs were played in August 2020 with a different format.

Awards and honours Award Year RefJuniors MetJBHL champion 1981 NHL NHL All-Star Game 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 2024 Stanley Cup champion 1992, 2016, 2017 Jack Adams Award 2024 International Canada Cup champion 1987, 1991 4 Nations Face-Off champion 2025

Records Philadelphia Flyers all-time leader in Gordie Howe hat tricks – 9 NHL all-time leader in Gordie Howe hat tricks – 18