Canucks insist Quinn Hughes not involved in decision to hire Adam Foote
Though he may be the most important player on the team, the Vancouver Canucks are insisting that Quinn Hughes wasn’t involved in helping pick a new head coach. At Adam Foote’s introductory press conference on Thursday, speaking for the first time as head coach of the team, both he and general manager Patrik Allvin made it clear that the captain wasn’t part of the process and that neither even spoke to Hughes until the hire was made official. Foote has been close with Hughes since joining the team as an assistant in January 2023, working as a defensive coach on Rick Tocchet’s staff. The blue-liner had previously called Foote “the best coach I’ve ever had.” While the two have established a prior relationship, Foote wanted to make it clear that his relationship with Hughes is no different than those he has with the rest of the team. /* if ( "1" == true && 'undefined' !== typeof window.getIndexAds ) { var so = {preroll:{1:{1:{siteID:191888},2:{siteID:191889}}}}; adServerUrl = window.getIndexAds( 'http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?sz=640x360&cust_params=domain%3Dsportsnet.ca&iu=%2F7326%2Fen.sportsnet.web%2FVideo&ciu_szs=300x250&impl=s&gdfp_req=1&env=vp&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&ad_rule=1&vid=6372856925112&cmsid=384', so, permalink); } else { adServerUrl = "http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?sz=640x360&cust_params=domain%3Dsportsnet.ca&iu=%2F7326%2Fen.sportsnet.web%2FVideo&ciu_szs=300x250&impl=s&gdfp_req=1&env=vp&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&ad_rule=1&vid=6372856925112&cmsid=384"; } */ adServerUrl = "http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?sz=640x360&cust_params=domain%3Dsportsnet.ca&iu=%2F7326%2Fen.sportsnet.web%2FVideo&ciu_szs=300x250&impl=s&gdfp_req=1&env=vp&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&ad_rule=1&vid=6372856925112&cmsid=384"; var adServerUrl_result = adServerUrl.includes("cust_params"); var queryString=''; if(adServerUrl_result){ var gettheDUFI = false; if (localStorage.getItem("consent") !== null && localStorage.getItem("consent-targeting") !== null) gettheDUFI = localStorage.getItem("theRED_loc"); if(gettheDUFI){ queryString += "dufiid=" + gettheDUFI + '&'; queryString += "ppid=" + gettheDUFI + '&'; var ppid = "ppid=" + gettheDUFI + '&'; } var DUFI_IP = false; if (localStorage.getItem("consent") !== null && localStorage.getItem("consent-targeting") !== null) DUFI_IP = sessionStorage.getItem("DUFI_IP"); if(DUFI_IP){ queryString += "dufiip=" + DUFI_IP + '&'; } adServerUrl = adServerUrl.replace(/cust_params=/, ppid + 'cust_params=' + encodeURIComponent(queryString) ); } $el.after( unescape("%3Cscript src=\"" + (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js\" %3E%3C/script%3E") ); $( document ).one( 'ready', function() { $( "#video_container-705519" ).SNPlayer( { bc_account_id: "1704050871", bc_player_id: "JCdte3tMv", //autoplay: true, //is_has_autoplay_switch: false, bc_videos: 6372856925112, is_has_continuous_play: "false", adserverurl: adServerUrl, section: "", thumbnail: "https://www.sportsnet.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/6372856925112-1024x576.jpg", direct_url: "https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/video/canucks-foote-describes-relationship-with-hughes-as-good-and-healthy/" }); }); “It’s good, it’s healthy. And that’s the way it should be,” Foote said of his relationship with Hughes. “Like [with] all our players, it’s fun. These guys want to win. When you play at this level, there’s tremendous pressure. When you’re young, you figure it out and you want to put great leadership around them to help them get through that and grow. We have a great relationship, but I would say I got closer to some D [players], obviously, being the D-coach, more conversation. “But Quinn and I, we didn’t have a discussion during the process, which I think was a very good idea not to. I just had a great talk with him this morning, we had some laughs and we’re excited to move forward with this.” Allvin added that while he hadn’t spoken to Hughes during the process, president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford spoke to the defenceman about Tocchet leaving. Foote was believed to be the preferred candidate of Hughes to replace the now-Flyers coach. Hughes put pen to paper on a six-year, $47 million extension in 2021, keeping him in Vancouver through the 2026-27 season before he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent. The captain is e
Though he may be the most important player on the team, the Vancouver Canucks are insisting that Quinn Hughes wasn’t involved in helping pick a new head coach.
At Adam Foote’s introductory press conference on Thursday, speaking for the first time as head coach of the team, both he and general manager Patrik Allvin made it clear that the captain wasn’t part of the process and that neither even spoke to Hughes until the hire was made official.
Foote has been close with Hughes since joining the team as an assistant in January 2023, working as a defensive coach on Rick Tocchet’s staff. The blue-liner had previously called Foote “the best coach I’ve ever had.”
While the two have established a prior relationship, Foote wanted to make it clear that his relationship with Hughes is no different than those he has with the rest of the team.
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“It’s good, it’s healthy. And that’s the way it should be,” Foote said of his relationship with Hughes. “Like [with] all our players, it’s fun. These guys want to win. When you play at this level, there’s tremendous pressure. When you’re young, you figure it out and you want to put great leadership around them to help them get through that and grow. We have a great relationship, but I would say I got closer to some D [players], obviously, being the D-coach, more conversation.
“But Quinn and I, we didn’t have a discussion during the process, which I think was a very good idea not to. I just had a great talk with him this morning, we had some laughs and we’re excited to move forward with this.”
Allvin added that while he hadn’t spoken to Hughes during the process, president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford spoke to the defenceman about Tocchet leaving. Foote was believed to be the preferred candidate of Hughes to replace the now-Flyers coach.
Hughes put pen to paper on a six-year, $47 million extension in 2021, keeping him in Vancouver through the 2026-27 season before he’s set to become an unrestricted free agent.
The captain is eligible to sign a contract extension next summer, and while Allvin made it clear he wasn’t involved in the decision, he did note that getting off to a good start with Hughes is important.
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“Again, it’s not about one player, it’s about the team here, and we want to build and continue to grow as a team and Quinn is a big part of it,” Allvin said. “Obviously, the trust and the relationship Adam has with Quinn, it’s important for us to get off to a good start and continue to build, but again, Quinn was not involved in this process.”
Foote’s familiarity with the team, staff and players was a big component as to why he was hired to take over, according to the general manager. The new coach believes that his prior relations with the squad should be a boon for him moving forward.
“I think that’s an advantage for sure,” he said. “Very familiar with how people like to be treated or how they tick or what makes them go … I think that’s a huge advantage for sure, the relationships I’ve had and developed in that time.”
Foote also took some time to touch on the relationship with Elias Pettersson, who struggled in his first season playing under an eight-year, $92.8 million contract signed in 2024.
“Petey and I have had some pretty good discussions this year and I really think he wants it. I really think he knows what he has to do and he’s gonna dial in, and he’s got a great group around him, supporting him, and being a team for him,” the new head coach said. “I’m gonna make sure I have that conversation with him and we continue that relationship and I support him. I think with Petey, for him moving forward, that support for him will really get him in a good place and we’re gonna make sure he understands that we’re there for him, we’ll do whatever it takes and have a good relationship.”
