With 30 years in the NHL, Rick Tocchet pleased to see the game’s evolution on the mental side

Rick Tocchet has spent 30 years in the NHL, with 18 of them as a player and 12 as a coach.

The former Flyer and current head coach of the Coyotes has three Stanley Cup rings. He won it all with the Penguins three times — twice as an assistant coach and once as a player.

He has seen the game from different roles and different eras. And he is happy to have seen it evolve from the mental side of the spectrum.

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"You never want a guy to go in there and hide things physically or mentally," Tocchet said in an interview with Michael Barkann as part of NBC Sports' HeadStrong initiative. "I love the fact that guys are coming out and they're not afraid to tell their story. Back in the day, guys hid stuff if they had problems at home. Just imagine the weight on your shoulders every day if you can't free your mind. That's something that I know as a coach, and I've played the game, there's nothing worse than playing with the stress of that mental illness or trying to hide something."

Tocchet played 95 career postseason games for the Flyers and is in his fourth season as head coach of the Coyotes. He knows well about the pressures of the game and the importance of being open to talking about them.

"As a coach, my door is always open," Tocchet said. "I'm not really qualified in that field, but I'm very sensitive to it, you have to have open communication. We have avenues for players to talk to some people."

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