The NHL announced Patrick Roy, Jon Cooper and Mike Babcock on Tuesday as the three finalists for the Jack Adams Award, given annually to the league’s top coach.
Roy, in his first season at the helm of his former team, led the Colorado Avalanche to a 52-22-8 record and a Central Division title after the team finished dead last in the Western Conference last season. The Avs earned their first playoff bid since 2009-10 but were upset by the Minnesota Wild in seven games in the first round.
Cooper and Babcock led their respective squads to the postseason despite losing star players to injury for large chunks of the season.
Cooper’s Tampa Bay Lightning were without Steven Stamkos for all but 37 games and saw franchise icon Martin St. Louis depart for New York at the trade deadline. Babcock’s Detroit Red Wings, meanwhile, were forced to play first-year players and 38 different players overall during the season as Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk and other regulars all missed significant time.
The winner will be announced at the 2014 NHL Awards ceremony on June 24.
