Manny Malhotra was hired on Monday and officially introduced on Thursday, and by his first weekend as the new head coach of the Vancouver Canucks, the question is being asked: will Malhotra reach a point where he coaches playoff games with the rebuilding hockey club?

"The important thing is how we responded," Linden said. "We responded the right way." Henrik Sedin matched Linden with one goal and one assist, both on power plays, and Roberto Lu

Manny Malhotra, who played 18 NHL seasons before becoming a coach, has been hired by the Vancouver Canucks, who have struggled since reaching the 2011 Stanley Cup final. The Canucks have missed the playoffs in five of the past six seasons and have not gone beyond the second round since falling to Boston in the 2011 NHL Final.

There might be some clarity on the direction the Vancouver Canucks will take with the third overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. CHEK News’ Rick Dhaliwal recently reported that the Canucks are having dinner meetings with four prospects at the draft combine in Buffalo this week.

Malhotra’s hire is the latest example of the growth and influence of people of South Asian heritage within hockey. Sunny Mehta became the first NHL general manager of South Asian descent when the New Jersey Devils hired the former Florida Panthers assistant GM on April 16.

The Canucks have agreed to a one-year, two-way contract with Ilya Safonov after the forward helped Ak Bars Kazan reach the KHL Final.

VANCOUVER - The Vancouver Canucks have signed forward Ilya Safonov to a one-year, two-way contract, the NHL club announced Tuesday.

Manny Malhotra knows there will be hard days ahead as the new coach of the rebuilding Vancouver Canucks, but said he believes a cultural reset focused on finding joy in the process and rooted in a consistency of attitude and execution will get them through it.