Despite scoring first in 12 of their 16 games, the Coyotes are 2-8-2 in those 12. They jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening 6:42 against the Capitals before getting into penalty trouble and allowing Washington to come back.
On the positive side, the Coyotes are starting to get some results from their efforts even if they have yet to win a game in regulation. They are 2-2-1 in their past five games after opening the season with an 11-game losing streak (0-10-1).
"There's some good things and there's some stuff that we're a young team, we have to learn," Tocchet said. "Sometimes when you're tired, it's like my old buddy Mike Sullivan said, 'You can't be tired.' In these situations, you can't be tired. You can't give. Winners don't give.
"We're going to keep the process, keep pounding away."
Tocchet seems to be reminding himself as much as his players that the Coyotes are going through this process and, hopefully, these lessons they learn now will pay off later. Losing can be discouraging, but Tocchet has managed to keep the mood upbeat.
"He comes to the rink positive every single day, no matter the result or how bad we played or how good we played," Keller said. "He comes to the rink with the same attitude every day and just wants to get better."
This is Tocchet's second chance as an NHL coach and he's determined to make the most of it. His first came with the Tampa Bay Lightning, when he took over for Barry Melrose 16 games into 2008-09.
The Lightning went 53-69-26 under Tocchet before he was replaced by Guy Boucher following the 2009-10 season. After trying his hand as a television analyst on Philadelphia Flyers broadcasts, Tocchet got back into coaching in 2014 with Pittsburgh.
Tocchet spent three of his 18 NHL seasons as a player with the Penguins and won the Stanley Cup with them in 1992. In 1,144 career games with the Flyers, Penguins, Los Angeles Kings, Boston Bruins, Capitals and Coyotes, he had 952 points (440 goals, 512 assists) and 2,972 penalty minutes.
Tocchet's ability to relate to star players served him well with the Penguins. Kessel came to Pittsburgh in a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2015 with a reputation for not always getting along with his coaches, but bonded with Tocchet, who helped Sullivan bring out the best in him.
"He's a good guy. We're buddies," Kessel said. "We get along well. I think we like the same kind of things and when he was here we had a good relationship."