Vancouver Canucks ‘mutually part ways’ with assistant coach Mike Yeo

The Canucks have begun making changes to their coaching staff as the club announced on Tuesday that they have “mutually parted ways” with Mike Yeo after two seasons with the team.

Yeo was originally hired on July 1st, 2022 when he joined Bruce Boudreau’s staff for the 2022-23 campaign. He helped run Vancouver’s penalty kill throughout his time with the organization, even during the coaching change that saw Rick Tocchet take over midway through last season.

During Yeo’s time working with the PK unit, the Canucks finished dead last in the league during the 2022-23 season at 71.6%, while it improved to 17th overall this campaign at 79.1% for an average of 75.4%. Despite some hiccups along the way, the PK did improve as the season went along, which proved to be a key factor in getting past the Predators in round one and pushing round two against the Oilers to the limit.

Say what you will about the proficiency of the unit collectively, but it was clear that Yeo helped contribute to the best season the team has had in over a decade. According to Sportsnet 650’s Satiar Shah, the Canucks offered Yeo an extension that he opted not to sign, and the long-time coach will now explore other options.

He likely won’t be out of work for long, given his nearly 25 years of coaching experience. Yeo has been working in the NHL for all but one season since 2006. Before his time in Vancouver, the Scarborough native worked as an assistant coach for the Penguins for four seasons, which included winning the 2009 Stanley Cup, before spending parts of five seasons as head coach of the Wild. He would then work with the Blues for the better part of four campaigns both as an associate and head coach. Yeo then worked as an assistant coach with the Flyers and even took over as interim head coach for the final 60 games of the 2021-22 season.

It is unclear at this time who the Canucks may target to fill the void left behind by Yeo, but they will have to act quickly since the coaching carousel is in full swing and other teams (most notably the Leafs, Devils, and Kraken) have already been making changes behind the bench.