67s Coach Tourigny Signs with Arizona Coyotes
The Andre Tourigny era in Ottawa has come to an end.
The Ottawa 67s head coach, who was also the coach of Team Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championships, has been named the head coach of the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes. Tourigny becomes the 19th coach in the franchise’s history, and he replaces Rick Tocchet.
Coyotes GB Bill Armstrong announced the signing during a July 1 press conference. Tourigny has signed a three-year deal, but no financial details of the deal were announced.
“We are very pleased to name André as the new head coach of the Arizona Coyotes,” Armstrong said. “Andre is a tremendous person and one of the best young coaches in the game today. He is a winner, a great teacher and a strong communicator who has a proven track record of developing young talent. We are confident that he is the right person to lead our team on the ice and we are thrilled to have him in our organization.”
Tourigny first met Armstrong when he was coaching in the QMJHL with Rouyn-Noranda and Armstrong was a scout. Assistant coach Mario Duhamel will replace Tourigny as bench boss with the 67s.
“It is an honor to be named as the head coach of the Arizona Coyotes,” said Tourigny. “I would like to thank Mr. Meruelo, Bill Armstrong and Xavier Gutierrez for providing me with this incredible opportunity. I am looking forward to working with this group and our players to build a winning culture here in the desert for our loyal and passionate fan base.
“I would also like to thank everyone at Hockey Canada and the Ottawa 67s for all their support the past few years. It was an honor and a privilege to coach Team Canada, and I am very grateful for the opportunity to represent my country. The 67’s are a first-class organization, and I wish them all the best in the future.”
Tourigny joins the Coyotes after spending time with Hockey Canada’s coaching staff as an assistant coach at the 2021 IIHF World Championship in Riga, Latvia. Tourigny was on a one-year loan to Hockey Canada from the Ottawa 67’s (OHL). He helped lead Canada to a 3-2 gold medal victory over Finland. The Nicolet, Quebec native originally signed a one-year contract with Hockey Canada on March 24, 2021, to participate in four international tournaments, becoming the first full-time coach with Canada’s men’s program since 2005.
Tourigny’s experience with Hockey Canada includes guiding the junior team to a silver medal as head coach at the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship. He previously won a gold medal as an assistant coach at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship as well as silver medals as an assistant in 2010 and 2011.
In addition to his four appearances at the World Juniors, Tourigny led Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Team to a gold medal as head coach at the 2018 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and won gold as an assistant at the 2008 Ivan Hlinka tournament.
Tourigny joined the Ottawa 67’s of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) as Head Coach and Vice President of Hockey Operations prior to the 2017-18 season. He was the recipient of the Matt Leyden Trophy as OHL coach of the year in back-to-back seasons (2018-19 and 2019-20) as well as the Brian Kilrea Coach of the Year Award as CHL Coach of the Year (2019-20).
Tourigny led the 67’s to a 130-52-16 record during his three seasons with the team. In 2018-19, Tourigny guided Ottawa to a 50-12-6 record and an appearance in the J. Ross Robertson Cup.
The 47-year-old Tourigny previously spent 11 seasons with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies (2002-13) and one season with the Halifax Mooseheads (2016-17) of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL).
In his 11 years with Rouyn-Noranda, Tourigny’s team qualified for the playoffs in all but one season while he posted a 337-336-20 record in 693 regular season games, which set a QMJHL record for most games coached with one franchise. In 2005-06, Tourigny received the QMJHL Ron Lapointe Coach of the Year Award.
The veteran coach also worked in the NHL including three seasons as an assistant coach with the Colorado Avalanche (2013-15) and the Ottawa Senators (2015-16).
