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Ex-Rangers center Manny Malhotra favored to become next coach of Canucks
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- Ex-Rangers center Manny Malhotra favored to become next coach of Canucks
Manny Malhotra , who played the first four seasons of his 17-year NHL career with the New York Rangers , looks like the favorite to be named coach of the Vancouver Canucks .
Ryan Johnson, named general manager of the Canucks last week, fired coach Adam Foote and three of his assistants on Tuesday after Vancouver finished last in the NHL at 25-49-8 (58 points), 14 points in back of the Chicago Blackhawks and 19 behind the Rangers, who were 30th overall.
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In addition to their new GM, the Canucks have new co-presidents in Hall of Famers Daniel and Henrik Sedin — and will also have an entirely new coaching staff beyond the likely retention of goaltending coach Marco Torenius and skills coach Jason Krog. Johnson told reporters that he most definitely plans to interview Malhotra for the head coaching vacancy.
Johnson already hired Malhotra once before as coach. In May 2024, when he was GM at Abbotsford, the Canucks' AHL affiliate, Johnson picked Malhotra for his first head coaching job at any level. And the former Blueshirts center went on to coach Abbotsford to the Calder Cup championship last spring.
The Canucks GM said Tuesday that Malhotra, who reportedly was a finalist before Foote was hired last year after Rick Tocchet left to go to the Philadelphia Flyers , was at the top of his list.
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"It's hard to be ignorant of an internal candidate that we obviously have, so I'm not going deflect that," Johnson said. "Manny has shown his ability to develop young players, develop a connection, and obviously win a (AHL) championship with a very young group.
"I am going to speak with him, sit down, and talk about the future. We're looking for consistency, patience, and ability to connect with a young group. The environment is my utmost priority and we have to all be aligned and stick to the vision of teaching every day."
Former Rangers first-round pick favored to become coach of Canucks
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Abbotsford had a tough season in 2025-26, battling injuries and the loss of forwards Linus Karlsson , Max Sasson , Aatu Raty and defenseman Elias Pettersson to regular roles with the parent club. But Johnson said Malhotra handled the challenge well.
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"He showed the type of person and coach is by navigating the season and we never had a full team on the ice," the new GM said. "Coaching through the worst of times and continuing to propel players forward, it tells you a lot about Manny and the entire staff."
The Rangers selected Malhotra in the first round (No. 7 overall) of the 1998 NHL Draft. He made the immediate jump to the NHL as an 18-year-old and had eight goals and 16 points in 73 games in 1998-99. Malhotra remained with the Rangers in a bottom-six role until he was traded to the Dallas Stars in February 2002.
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He moved on to the Columbus Blue Jackets early in the 2003-04 season and played for five more teams, including the Canucks, before retiring in 2016. He finished his NHL career with 295 points (116 goals, 179 assists) in 991 regular-season games and two goals in 35 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
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He never scored more than 14 goals nor had more than 35 points in a season, but was well respected for his high hockey IQ, excellent face-off prowess (56.4 percent in his career) and durability.
After retiring, Malhotra joined the Canucks as an assistant for three seasons, then spent four seasons in the same role with the Toronto Maple Leafs , before landing the gig in Abbotsford.
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Henrik Sedin watched Malhotra's command of his club when serving the Canucks in player development and praised his commitment and creating a solid culture.
"We played with him and know what kind of character he has," Henrik said on the 32 Thoughts podcast this week. "We've worked closely with him in Abbotsford. We know how he works and he's done a tremendous job out there, not only winning the [Calder Cup] championship, but helping the young players."
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Johnson said he doesn't feel any conflict considering Malhotra for coach when the Canucks might also select his son, center Caleb Malhotra, with the No. 3 overall pick in next month's NHL Draft – two selections before the Rangers, who could also be interested in him.
"I'm in no position to change or make decisions based off one or the other," Johnson explained. "There will be no sacrifice (of priorities) because of a father-son relationship."
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