Johnson tabs Malhotra as early favorite for Canucks coaching job
Manny Malhotra’s Abbotsford title run made him Ryan Johnson’s first call for Vancouver’s coaching vacancy, with the Canucks chasing a new voice after a 58-point season.
Manny Malhotra turned Abbotsford into the clearest coaching resume in the Vancouver organization, and Ryan Johnson is treating that AHL work like a direct pipeline to the NHL bench.
Johnson said Malhotra was the lone name on his main list when he hired Abbotsford’s coach two years ago, and he is now planning to speak with him first about Vancouver’s head-coaching opening. Johnson has not set a timeline for the search, but the early signal is unmistakable: the Canucks want a coach who has already proven he can shape young players, keep a room steady and win in the same breath.
That trust was earned in Abbotsford. Malhotra spent the past two seasons behind the Canucks’ AHL bench and guided the club to a 44-24-2-2 regular season in 2024-25 before driving a four-round playoff march that ended with a 3-2 victory over Charlotte in Game 6 of the Calder Cup Finals on June 23, 2025. It was Abbotsford’s first Calder Cup and the first time a Vancouver AHL affiliate brought the trophy home. For an organization trying to build upward, that mattered more than a neat coaching tree. It showed Malhotra could manage pressure, development and the grind of a long season without losing the room.
The case for promotion grew stronger when Vancouver tore down the old bench on May 19, 2026, firing head coach Adam Foote and assistants Scott Young, Kevin Dean and Brett McLean after a 58-point season that ranked among the worst in franchise history. Johnson said the organization needed a “new voice” and better alignment from top to bottom, a message that fits the broader reset now underway with Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin elevated to co-presidents of hockey operations on May 14, 2026, and Johnson named the franchise’s 13th general manager.
Malhotra’s path is the part that makes this more than a routine coaching search. He had four seasons as an assistant with the Toronto Maple Leafs from 2020 to 2024, but he also knows Vancouver from the inside, having worked for the Canucks as both a development coach and assistant coach. That blend of NHL experience and AHL results is exactly why he stands out now. The Canucks do not just need a name they recognize. They need someone who can connect with a young roster, keep the organization in sync and turn Abbotsford’s proof of concept into the next step at Rogers Arena.
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