Two New Assistant Coaching Candidates Emerge for Adam Foote and the Vancouver Canucks

Now that the Vancouver Canucks have their next Head Coach in place, after promoting former Stanley Cup champion Adam Foote, the team will now shift their focus to adding a couple of Assistants to his staff.

Several options have been named over the last week including former Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Marc Crawford, Tony Granato and even Gerard Gallant.

On Friday morning, insider Rick Dhaliwal of Donnie & Dhali was a guest on Halford and Brough on Sportsnet 650 radio where he gave a bit of an update on the team's search for Assistant Coaches.

Dhaliwal revealed that former San Jose Sharks Head Coach Bob Boughner and ex-Chicago Blackhawks bench boss Luke Richardson are both possibilities to join Adam Foote's staff next season.

Boughner, 54, has an extensive coaching history, with his first job being the Head Coach of the Ontario Hockey League's Windsor Spitfires in 2006-07, one season after he purchased the franchise.

The former NHL defenseman also has parts of 11 seasons of experience in the league as a coach including four as the bench boss of the Florida Panthers and San Jose Sharks, while also serving as an assistant for the latter on two stints, as well as the past three seasons as an Associate Coach with the Detroit Red Wings before being fired in December.

As for Luke Richardson, he spent 21 seasons as a defenseman in the National Hockey League and immediately after retiring mid-way through the 2008-09 campaign, he stayed with the Ottawa Senators as an Assistant Coach.

Aside from the Ottawa Senators, Richardson has also been with the New York Islanders and Montreal Canadiens in the same role before taking on the Head Coaching job of the Chicago Blackhawks ahead of the 2022-23 season.

Much like Boughner, Richardson was fired in December, making him a free agent and with several other vacancies around the league, including some Head Coaching ones still, it shouldn't be too hard for the 56-year-old to find a new home.

While Boughner and Richardson are great options to join Adam Foote's staff, it would only make sense to bring in one of them, as the Vancouver Canucks also needs to find an Assistant Coach to focus on the team's offensive game and the power play.