Leafs vs Canucks fighting for the same big name and one of them is about to lose
Frank Seravalli dropped this one on FAN Pregame, and it's already cooking on Tuesday. The Toronto Maple Leafs want Manny Malhotra. The Vancouver Canucks have a choice to make.
Seravalli's framing was blunt. If Toronto pushes for permission to talk, Vancouver either lets a wanted assistant walk, or they fire head coach Adam Foote right now.
Foote was hired in Vancouver on May 14, 2025. One year ago. Almost to the day.
His team finished 25-49-8 this season. Fifty-eight points. Dead last in the league at 32nd overall.
A minus-100 goal differential. Nine wins at home all year. That's the resume the front office is now being asked to defend, just to keep an assistant coach off the Toronto bench.
Craig Berube had his own problem in Toronto. The Leafs went 32-36-14 for 78 points. Twenty-eighth in the league. Outside the picture entirely.
Why the Toronto Maple Leafs are circling a Vancouver assistant coach
A seven-game losing streak ended Toronto's regular season. Two wins in their final ten.
Malhotra has been on multiple NHL benches over the past decade. Faceoffs, structure, bottom-six identity. Things Toronto stopped doing well two months ago.
So why does this become a Foote story? Because team-to-team permission for an assistant only matters when the lateral move makes a head coach look replaceable.
If Vancouver blocks it, they're publicly saying their staff is set. After 58 points. After watching the building empty out by January.
If they grant it, they're admitting the room needs a reset and Foote is the first piece they're willing to weaken. Neither answer flatters anyone in that organization.
Here's the Seravalli clip outlining exactly how Vancouver's hand could get forced.
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The wider read on this is uglier than one assistant coach. A first-year head coach already being measured against his own staff isn't usually a head coach who survives the summer.
Tuesday morning, this looks like a personnel request. By the end of the week, it could be a firing.
After leading the Abbotsford Canucks to a Calder Cup championship in his first season behind the bench, Malhotra has gained significant momentum around the league as a rising coaching talent.
His previous experience with Toronto as an assistant coach, combined with his reputation for communication, structure, and player development, makes him an appealing option for a Leafs organization searching for a fresh direction.
Reports from insiders such as Elliotte Friedman suggest Toronto is seriously considering younger, modern-minded coaches, and Malhotra's name continues to surface near the top of that list.
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MAY 18, 2026
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| Alex Newhook | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Alexandre Carrier | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Kaiden Guhle | - | 1 | 1 | |
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| Beck Malenstyn | - | 1 | 1 | |
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