If you run a Google search for “NHL news” right now, chances are, you’ll see some sort of coaching-related headline.

Patrick Roy out in Long Island in favour of Pete DeBoer, along with the Vegas Golden Knights replacing Bruce Cassidy with John Tortorella, are obviously the two big ones from this past week.

But you might also see some speculation about the Toronto Maple Leafs‘ head coaching job, currently held by Craig Berube. The Leafs parted ways with General Manager Brad Treliving after a disastrous 2025-26 season, and many anticipate that Berube could be next.

And while much of the discussion around the Leafs has been centred around who could fill their vacant roles in management — my colleague Arun Srinivasan wrote an exceptional piece about Sunny Mehta being the next GM in Toronto — there’s also beginning to be some chatter around the Leafs’ next head coach.

One name drawing some attention: Current Abbotsford Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra.

On Monday’s edition of the 32 Thoughts Podcast, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said the following:

“ I don’t think Toronto was gonna go after DeBoer. I think if they wanted to hire him, they could have done it earlier in the year. My theory on Toronto is if they do make a coaching change, maybe like a Manny Malhotra is the kind of guy that they look at.”

After that, theleafsnation.com published a piece titled “The case for Manny Malhotra to be next head coach of the Leafs.”

With Mike Gillis rumoured to be in the running to land the Leafs GM job, Malhotra would certainly be a name to watch, given the two’s history in Vancouver. But even if Gillis isn’t the next man up in Toronto, Malhotra is certainly going to garner attention — whether that be in Toronto or elsewhere.

Malhotra’s name popped up plenty last offseason, though most vacant NHL coaching jobs were filled by the time Malhotra’s Abbotsford Canucks became AHL champions and won the Calder Cup. The Canucks and Malhotra at least discussed the possibility of him taking over the Vancouver bench after Rick Tocchet announced he was leaving, but the team ultimately hired Adam Foote for that job.

Given his success in getting the most out of multiple players currently on the Canucks’ NHL roster — Linus Karlsson, Max Sasson, Elias Junior Pettersson, Aatu Räty, and Jonathan Lekkerimäki all come to mind — along with his reputation among players both past and present, many fans seem to want to see Malhotra promoted to run the Vancouver bench.

And while those arguments might carry some weight, there’s been no indication that the Canucks plan to make a coaching change this offseason.

Malhotra is signed through next season to coach the Abbotsford Canucks, but NHL organizations don’t typically block their AHL coaches from pursuing NHL opportunities, so if the right one comes up, Malhotra could be headed out the door.

Of course, this wouldn’t be the first time Malhotra earned a better opportunity outside of Vancouver, and it wouldn’t even be the first time that Malhotra left the Canucks to join the Toronto Maple Leafs.

From 2017-18 to 2019-20, Malhotra served as an assistant to Travis Green’s staff. At practice, he was often out working with players on the details of their games, and yes, faceoffs too. During games, Malhotra typically observed from the press box rather than behind the bench. He would provide real-time feedback to players during intermissions based on his high-vantage observations.

Beginning in 2020-21, Malhotra was on the Leafs’ bench under Sheldon Keefe for four years. While he initially joined the team to manage the power play, Malhotra transitioned from the power play to coaching the forwards in their defensive game following the hire of Spencer Carbery in 2021. And yes, Malhotra was also tasked with providing guidance on faceoffs in that role as well.

Following the 2023-24 season, however, Malhotra returned to the Canucks to accept his first pro head coaching role, leading Abbotsford to a championship in his first season behind the bench.

And now, it only appears like a matter of time before he gets an opportunity to run an NHL bench. Will that be in Vancouver? Toronto? Someplace else? That remains to be seen.

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