The 2023 finalists for the Jack Adams Award, presented to the coach who has “contributed the most to his team’s success” and voted on by the NHL Broadcasters Association, were announced Friday.
The finalists are Dave Haktstol of the Seattle Kraken, Lindy Ruff of the New Jersey Devils, and Jim Montgomery of the Boston Bruins.
Of the three finalists, only Ruff has already won the award earlier in his career. Ruff won it in 2006 on the back of an impressive 52-win campaign. In his third season as the Devils’ bench boss, Ruff has guided a young team out of their rebuilding phase and into Stanley Cup contention. Under his guidance, Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier have emerged as superstar talents and the Devils won their first playoff series since their 2011-12 run to the Stanley Cup Final.
Hakstol, a longtime college hockey coach at the University of North Dakota, is a finalist thanks to a stellar second season behind the bench of the expansion Seattle Kraken.
While Seattle did not enjoy the type of instant success the Vegas Golden Knights had in their first season, 2022-23 has been more kind to Hakstol’s squad.
The former Philadelphia Flyers coach has overseen the rise of one of the NHL’s deepest teams and led them to an upset victory over the defending Stanley Cup champions in their first-ever playoff series.
New York Rangers head coach Gerard Gallant won the Jack Adams for his work managing the expansion Vegas Golden Knights, and one of the most important factors leading to his win was to just how many players reached new heights in their careers with Gallant as head coach.
Hakstol has overseen similar career elevations in Seattle, with players such as Jared McCann, Vince Dunn, Daniel Sprong, and Eeli Tolvanen authoring career-best years in 2022-23. Now, with a chance to win a Stanley Cup for Seattle, Hakstol has a chance to take home some individual hardware as well.
Although Ruff and Hakstol are both exceptionally qualified candidates for the award, the favorite has to be Montgomery, the Bruins’ head coach. Despite the disappointment of the Bruins’ first-round playoff exit, Montgomery’s work with the Bruins is undeniably worthy of recognition. He managed the veteran team to the most successful regular season in NHL history, breaking numerous records en route to the President’s Trophy.
Making that success even more impressive is the fact that this year was Montgomery’s first behind the bench in Boston. He took on the challenge of filling 2020 Jack Adams Award winner Bruce Cassidy’s shoes and delivered an all-time great regular season.
Although a Stanley Cup would undoubtedly have been the more desirable reward for his efforts this season, Montgomery nonetheless is in a prime position to take home one of the highest individual honors an NHL coach can receive.
More must-reads: