- Vancouver took Caleb Malhotra third overall at the 2026 NHL Draft on Friday
- Caleb is the son of new Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra, hired June 2
- Read below for the family quotes, the Steve Nash connection, and Caleb’s scouting report
Vancouver drafted its head coach’s son on Friday night.
The Canucks took Caleb Malhotra third overall at the 2026 NHL Draft in Buffalo. His dad, Manny, landed the Vancouver coaching job on June 2. Now they share a building.
The team made it official:
Caleb didn’t hide what it meant. Actress Cobie Smulders read the pick, and the young center watched it land with his family beside him. “This is unbelievable,” he said on the broadcast. “This is something I’ve always dreamed of.”
Manny tried to keep his two roles apart. Asked about coaching his own kid, he made clear which side he was on Friday, telling ESPN he was “only wearing my dad hat tonight.”
Watch the moment Caleb became a Canuck:
The family tree runs deep. Caleb’s uncle is Steve Nash, the two-time NBA MVP and brother of Caleb’s mom, Joann. Manny went seventh overall to the Rangers back in 1998, so the bloodlines were never a question.
The kid can flat-out play. He put up 29 goals and 84 points in 67 games as an OHL rookie with the Brantford Bulldogs, then led the team with 26 points in 15 playoff games. He made the OHL’s First All-Rookie team and committed to Boston University for next season.
He sees himself as a complete center. Caleb told NHL.com his game starts with responsibility and builds from there. “When at my best, I think I’m an elite centerman that can score and literally do everything,” he said. He pointed to Aleksander Barkov as his model.
Here’s Caleb right after the pick:
Malhotra is Vancouver’s first top-three pick since the Sedins in 1999. The Maple Leafs opened the night by taking Gavin McKenna first overall, and the Sharks grabbed Ivar Stenberg second. Then the Canucks called a name they already knew by heart.
