The Vancouver Canucks found the guy they were looking for all along. After interviewing everyone and anyone for the general manager job, only to promote Ryan Johnson from within, they did the same thing with their American Hockey League head coach, Manny Malhotra, for the NHL job.

The Malhotra hire felt like the worst-kept secret in the head coaching cycle. Johnson was promoted from the Abbotsford Canucks GM role and took Malhotra with him, someone who other teams were going to hire if the Canucks didn’t. They are hoping he’s the next great head coach to come from the AHL to the NHL, like Jon Cooper or Jared Bednar. With where this team is, Malhotra must be. 

Malhotra’s background checks off a lot of boxes, starting with his playing days. He was a longtime NHLer who spent his career centering the middle six line and playing in all situations from the penalty kill to the power play. It allowed Malhotra to understand the different positions and roles when he started coaching. 

The other plus is that before taking the AHL job, Malhotra was an assistant with the Toronto Maple Leafs. So, he understands the differences between the two leagues and how to coach prospects and NHL veterans. 

It’s this versatility that makes him a great coach. He knows how to lead a veteran-heavy team or a young one because he coached them. Malhotra can be the player-friendly coach but also hold the team accountable when needed. 

What stood out in the Abbotsford Canucks Calder Cup run (aside from great goaltending) was Malhotra’s coaching. Specifically, how he could adjust to win every series, even when the Canucks looked outmatched yet kept pulling off upsets.

The Canucks played fast to beat the Colorado Eagles and match them goal for goal. Against the Charlotte Checkers in the Final, they slowed the game down and played a tight-checking style to win the series. Moreover, Game 6 was played on a late June Charlotte day where the temperature outside was over 100 degrees, slowing down the ice and the puck movement. Malhotra had the Canucks prepared to play that game and win the title with a 2-1 victory. 

Malhotra can adjust to the in-game situations and set the team up for success. He also knows how to connect with every type of player, from the stars to the depth players. It makes sense since his son Caleb is a star in the making (and projected top-three pick), who Manny has mentored the right way by keeping his distance (some elite talents need the coaches to get out of the way). It also makes sense for him to coach depth players because he was that journeyman fighting to stay in the game. 

This season wasn’t a red flag for Malhotra. Instead, it was a reminder that he can only do so much. The Canucks had no talent. Some of that was mismanagement from the front office (trading Arturs Silovs and letting the veterans leave without replacing them), while some of it was because of the call-ups (the NHL was also depleted of talent). 

The Canucks were at the bottom of the Pacific Division all season and ended up 15 points out of a playoff spot. There’s a good chance the NHL team isn’t good this season, next season, or for the next three seasons, considering they are depleted of talent throughout the roster. Malhotra might win them a few games but he won’t turn the Canucks around. 

That leads to another question: Is Malhotra a team-builder or a coach who takes a good team and brings them over the finish line? There’s an art to coaching great teams, something John Tortorella is proving he can do with the Vegas Golden Knights and Mike Keenan did with the New York Rangers in 1994. Malhotra can do that but it’s unclear how he’ll do with a rebuild. 

The good news for Malhotra is that he’ll have time to build up the Canucks. He’s a young coach (46 years old), and this team is heading towards a rebuild. It starts with the third overall pick in the upcoming draft and continues with the younger roster and more trades on the horizon).

For Malhotra, the key is building up the young players he worked with in Abbotsford to be great in the NHL. The players to watch are Aatu Raty and Jonathan Lekkermaki, two forwards who must take big steps forward and can under Malhotra. If he does that, the Canucks will be great in a few years.