Cooper, Muse, Ruff named finalists for 2026 Jack Adams Award
A trio of men is being recognized for their incredible work behind the bench this season.
On Friday, the NHL announced that the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Jon Cooper, Dan Muse of the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres’ Lindy Ruff have been named the finalists for the 2025-26 Jack Adams Award, which is given to the best head coach in the league.
Considered the frontrunner by many, Ruff has helped orchestrate the incredible turnaround for the Sabres this season. After several years of futility, many of which Ruff was around for, Buffalo went from the bottom of the league standings to winning the Atlantic Division. After Dec. 5, the Sabers posted a ridiculous 39-10-5 record to finish in first place, clinching a division title for the first time since the 2009-10 campaign.
With this being Ruff’s fifth time being a finalist for the Jack Adams, he’s now tied with John Tortorella, Scott Bowman, and Alain Vigneault for the most appearances in the final three. Ruff took home the trophy exactly 20 years ago, when Buffalo made it to the Eastern Conference Final.
This is the third time Cooper has been a finalist for the Jack Adams. While the Lightning have consistently been one of the better teams in the NHL under his command, he was tasked with navigating through the 2025-26 campaign with injuries to several key players, including captain Victor Hedman. Yet, Tampa was still in the race for the Atlantic Division crown until the end of the season, finishing second behind the Sabres.
If Cooper were to finally win the award, he would become just the second coach in Lightning history to earn the honor, joining Tortorella, who won it back during the team’s run to its first Stanley Cup in 2003-04. Cooper was previously in the final three in 2013-14 and 2018-19.
In his first season on the job, Muse helped the Penguins surpass all expectations. With an aging core, Pittsburgh went from missing the playoffs in each of the past three seasons to a second-place finish in the Metropolitan Division with an 18-point improvement.
Muse would become the second Penguins coach to ever win the award, joining Dan Bylsma, who accomplished the feat in 2010-11. He would also become the second rookie coach to win the Jack Adams, joining former Colorado Avalanche bench boss Patrick Roy, who did so in 2013-14.