Adding Rick Tocchet to the list of available coaching options on the open market, Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that Tocchet has left the team.

It is believed that Tocchet's time with the Canucks may end. Last week, discussions about Tocchet's future with franchise were more focused, with Canucks' president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford said they did not exercise their options on Tocchet's contract, and then combined with them giving him a new, more profitable deal to stay in Vancouver.

But what about now? Tocchet joins the highly sought-after coaching candidates, while the Canucks become the eighth NHL team, which will use this offseason to conduct coaching searches.

"After a long and thorough process, unfortunately, Rick decided to leave the Vancouver Canucks," Rutherford said in a statement. "It was very disappointing news, but we respect Rick's decision to move to a new chapter in his hockey career. We did everything we could to keep him, but at the end of the day, Rick felt he needed to change."

At the same press conference at Rutherford, the team offered Tocchet a new deal, adding that he felt he had done “this year on this team” as he thought Tocchet and his staff did in the first full-scale campaign.

Tocchet is a mid-season hire for the 2022-23 season. His first full year-round responsibility, the Ganak won 50 games and won the Pacific Division with 109 points. He led the Karnaks to their first playoff debut since the 2019-20 season and won from advancing to the Western Conference Finals.

Entering this season, the Karnak has most players from the playoff team. They started strong with a 15-8-5 record, but had a lot of ice and ice problems that would prove too big.

These include the friction between Star forward JT Miller and Elias Pettersson. Tensions between Miller and Pettersson reached a stage, with Captain Canucks Quinn Hughes publicly acknowledging that Miller and Pettersson denied the issue of such issues.

Miller will trade to the New York Rangers by the trade deadline, while the Canucks struggle to find someone who can replace his work. They will score 6 points after the St. Louis Blues won the final Western Conference wild location.

Still, Tocchet has the support of Hughes, as well as others in the organization who want him to stay.

As for what this means to both sides? Tocchet is one of the guys who will join Mike Sullivan, who split up with the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday after winning two Stanley Cup titles in 10 seasons, one of the most attractive names for a team seeking a new bench owner.

Then there are some teams that need coaching. Here is a list of Anaheim Ducks, Boston Brown Bears, Chicago Blackhawks, Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers, Seattle Cleken, and the Penguins and now Canucks.

"I chose to move on from the Vancouver Canucks," Tockett said. "Family is a priority and with my contract layoffs, it becomes a suitable time. While I don't know where I'm going, or exactly what it's for me in the near future, I feel like it's the right time for me to explore other opportunities around hockey."