Headlines

  • Islanders Sign Victor Eklund To Entry-Level Contract
  • Jets Re-Sign Morgan Barron To Two-Year Deal
  • Jeff Skinner Signs With Sharks
  • Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Henry Thrun
  • Avalanche Sign Josh Manson To Two-Year Extension
  • Stars Trade Matt Dumba To Penguins
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • MLB Trade Rumors
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors

Pro Hockey Rumors

  • Home
  • Teams
    • Atlantic
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Central
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Dallas Stars
      • Minnesota Wild
      • Nashville Predators
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Utah Mammoth
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • Metropolitan
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Pacific
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Partners
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Canucks Name Manny Malhotra AHL Head Coach

May 24, 2024 at 5:32 pm CDT | by Gabriel Foley 2 Comments

The Vancouver Canucks have named Toronto Maple Leafs assistant coach Manny Malhotra as the next head coach of the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks. Malhotra replaces Jeremy Colliton, who served in two seasons with Abbotsford, leading the team to two identical seasons – two 40-25-7 records and first-round exits. Abbotsford associate coach Gary Agnew will also be stepping away from the club after three seasons (Twitter link).

Malhotra’s experience in the NHL kicked off with his seventh-overall selection by the New York Rangers in the 1998 NHL Draft – a part of a top 15 that also featured Vincent Lecavalier, David Legwand, and Alex Tanguay. Malhotra would go on to play in 991 career games across 18 seasons and seven teams. He spent three-or-more seasons with four different teams, including the Vancouver Canucks, who he appeared in 159 games with between 2010 and 2013. Malhotra was never a strong scorer, with a measly career-high of 35 points posted in the 2008-09 campaign, but his intangibles are what made him distinct. He was a defensive specialist and boasted a dazzling 59.7 percent on faceoffs in the final eight years of his career – dating back to when the stat was first tracked.

Teams were eager to bring those traits behind the bench when Malhotra announced his retirement in the 2015-16 season. He didn’t wait long to kick off his coaching career as a result, joining Vancouver as an assistant coach in the 2017-18 season. He’d stay in Vancouver until 2020 when he moved east to join Toronto. Malhotra will now assume an Abbotsford lineup full of potential, largely thanks to the trio of top prospects Jonathan Lekkerimaki, Aatu Raty, and Danila Klimovich. Vancouver has made it clear that they want to offer the chance for prospects to crack the NHL lineup next season, though it will be Malhotra in charge of developing the ones who don’t make it.

Meanwhile, former Chicago Blackhawks head coach Colliton is back on the market after a pair of seasons in the minor leagues. Colliton became the youngest head coach since 1995 when he took over the Blackhawks in 2018, at the precise age of 33 years and 299 days. He was highly praised at the time, but quickly lost steam after totaling a 86-83-24 record over three seasons in Chicago. He hasn’t returned to an NHL role since, though that could be poised to change soon, with San Jose reportedly already engaging the AHL bench-leader. He becomes one of many coaches looking for new roles – joining a list of free agents now headlined by Todd McLellan, Dean Evason, and Jay Woodcroft.

Share 0 Retweet 0 Send via email

Coaches| Toronto Maple Leafs| Vancouver Canucks Manny Malhotra

Jets Name Scott Arniel Head Coach
Main
Evening Notes: Pospisil, Henrique, Hintz
View Comments (2)

Comments

  1. MacJablonski--NotVegasLegend

    1 year ago

    @Gabriel — Abbotsford didn’t lose in the first round this season. They won 2 games to 1. They also won last year, 2 games to 0.

    Reply
  2. dano62

    1 year ago

    Colliton would be a good fit as an ass’t for the Jets if someone isn’t dangling a head coaching job…

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.

Log in Register

    Top Stories

    Islanders Sign Victor Eklund To Entry-Level Contract

    Jets Re-Sign Morgan Barron To Two-Year Deal

    Jeff Skinner Signs With Sharks

    Toronto Maple Leafs Acquire Henry Thrun

    Avalanche Sign Josh Manson To Two-Year Extension

    Stars Trade Matt Dumba To Penguins

    Panthers Sign Mackie Samoskevich To One-Year Deal

    Golden Knights Beginning To Work Out Jack Eichel Extension

    Lightning Acquire Sam O’Reilly From Oilers For Isaac Howard

    NHL, NHLPA Ratify Four-Year CBA Extension

    Recent

    Flyers Promote John Snowden To AHL Head Coach, Hire Two Assistants

    Islanders Sign Victor Eklund To Entry-Level Contract

    San Jose Sharks Re-Sign Jack Thompson

    Edmonton Oilers Make Multiple Coaching Changes

    Jets Re-Sign Morgan Barron To Two-Year Deal

    Montreal Canadiens Wish To Retain Mike Matheson

    Five Key Stories: 7/7/25 – 7/13/25

    Daniel Sprong Receiving KHL Interest

    Lightning Sign Scott Sabourin

    Alex Ovechkin Could Play Beyond 2025-26

    Rumors By Team

    Rumors By Team

    • Avalanche Rumors
    • Blackhawks Rumors
    • Blue Jackets Rumors
    • Blues Rumors
    • Bruins Rumors
    • Canadiens Rumors
    • Canucks Rumors
    • Capitals Rumors
    • Devils Rumors
    • Ducks Rumors
    • Flames Rumors
    • Flyers Rumors
    • Golden Knights Rumors
    • Hurricanes Rumors
    • Islanders Rumors
    • Jets Rumors
    • Kings Rumors
    • Kraken Rumors
    • Lightning Rumors
    • Mammoth Rumors
    • Maple Leafs Rumors
    • Oilers Rumors
    • Panthers Rumors
    • Penguins Rumors
    • Predators Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Red Wings Rumors
    • Sabres Rumors
    • Senators Rumors
    • Sharks Rumors
    • Stars Rumors
    • Wild Rumors

    Latest Rumors & News

    Latest Rumors & News

    • 2025’s Top 50 Unrestricted Free Agents
    • Sam Bennett Rumors
    • Nikolaj Ehlers Rumors
    • Mitch Marner Rumors
    • Marco Rossi Rumors

    Pro Hockey Rumors Features

    Pro Hockey Rumors Features

    • Support Pro Hockey Rumors And Go Ad-Free
    • 2025 Free Agent Focus Series
    • 2025 Offseason Checklist Series
    • 2025 NHL Free Agent List
    • 2026 NHL Free Agent List
    • Active Roster Tracker
    • Coaching Staff Directory
    • Draft Pick Tracker 2025
    • Key Offseason Dates
    • Offseason Trade Tracker
    • Pro Hockey Rumors On X
    • Pro Hockey Rumors Polls
    • Waiver Claims 2024-25

     

     

     

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives

    PHR Info

    • About
    • Privacy Policy
    • Commenting Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

    Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

    scroll to top

    Register

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version