The Vancouver Canucks coaching staff led by Rick Tocchet continues to impress in all facets.
Vincent Desharnais, the recently signed Canucks defenceman, explained today that Tocchet and his assistants impressed him a lot during the free agency process and were a large reason he signed in Vancouver.
“When I got the offer from my agent from Vancouver, [Rick Tocchet and Adam Foote] actually wanted to give me a call to just talk about their mentality, what they see in me, what I could work on with them,” explained Desharnais to the media this morning.
“Right away, the fact that they took the time to call me, to introduce themselves, and to have a conversation with both coaches right there, I really appreciated that. I just felt how professional the coaching staff was.”
The Canucks coaching staff did an excellent job with the defence last year as many of the players were much improved or had career-best seasons. That development has clearly not gone unnoticed around the league.
“I’ve heard nothing but good things about Adam Foote and how detailed he is as a coach and how the D-core improved,” said the newest Canucks blueliner. “I’m very excited to get started with Adam, with the coaching staff, they’re very structured, they’re very detailed and I think it’s going to help me quite a bit to get better.”
The 6-foot-7 Desharnais fits the mould of a player the Canucks have targeted for their blue line recently as they prioritize size. He seems excited to come to the West Coast and work with the award-winning coaching staff.
“After getting the Canucks offer, I think an hour later, I accepted it,” continued Desharnais. “So everything went pretty quick but I’m very happy to join Vancouver.”
Desharnais played for the Edmonton Oilers last season and helped the team make it all the way to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final, where they lost. He had 11 points in 78 regular season games but just one assist in 16 playoff appearances.