Reports that Rick Tocchet has made his decision and has been hired by NHL team

UPDATE: ESPN NHL insider John Buccigross is coyly reporting that the Philadelphia Flyers have indeed hired Rick Tocchet.

Rumor reports have been running rampant online today that the Flyers and Tocchet have agreed to terms, but Buccigross is the first insider to break the seal and allude to it being a done deal.

Stay tuned for official confirmation. In the meantime, read below for our earlier rumor report on Tocchet, published earlier today.

Last month the Vancouver Canucks announced that coach Rick Tocchet would not be re-joining the team for the 2025-26 season.

“After a very long and thorough process, unfortunately Rick has decided to leave the Vancouver Canucks,” said President Jim Rutherford. “This is very disappointing news, but we respect Rick’s decision to move to a new chapter in his hockey career. We did everything in our power to keep him, but at the end of the day Rick felt he needed a change. He is a good friend, a good coach, and we can’t thank him enough for all he did for our organization. Toc is a stand-up guy, and we wish him nothing but the best moving forward.”

The rumors are that Tocchet simply didn't line up philosophically with Canucks management and so he chose to move on. There had been reports that the Philadelphia Flyers were going hard after Tocchet given their coaching vacancy and their history with Tocchet as a player. Now, NHL insider Darren Dreger confirms that the Flyers are going after Tocchet hard, but that the Seattle Kraken and the Boston Bruins are both in pursuit, as well.

You hear that, Canucks fans? Your coach quit on you for the Seattle Kraken!?!?! Yeesh...