- Ryan Papaioannou is the new head coach of AHL Abbotsford, the fourth in the club’s six-year history
- Vancouver offered the job to Jussi Ahokas first and got turned down
- Read below for his lone pro season, his 16 years at Brooks, and the Norris winner he developed
The Canucks have their Abbotsford coach, and they only got him after someone else said no.
Vancouver named Ryan Papaioannou the fourth head coach in the AHL club’s six-year history on Friday, filling the chair Manny Malhotra left behind when he moved up to run the NHL bench.
Jussi Ahokas got the offer first. Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK reported Thursday that the Memorial Cup-winning coach out of Kitchener turned Vancouver down, and by Friday afternoon Ahokas had surfaced as the new head coach of AHL Colorado.
Richard Seeley, the Abbotsford general manager who doubles as a Canucks assistant GM, built his statement on the hire around teaching rather than winning:
“Ryan has a unique talent for teaching and relating with players. His preparation both technically and tactically has led him to outstanding accomplishments at the junior level, as well as an impressive first season in the ECHL.”
That first season in the ECHL is the entire professional resume. Papaioannou coached the Wheeling Nailers last year, then Pittsburgh’s affiliate, and went 46-20-6. His 46 wins were the most in Wheeling since 2003-04, and the Nailers pushed to the Eastern Conference Finals before Florida ended it.
Everything before that came in junior hockey. He ran Brooks for 16 years as head coach and general manager across the AJHL and BCHL, took AJHL coach of the year three times, and once ripped off a 57-3-0 season in 2018-19. Cale Makar came through his room.
Abbotsford could use that development touch right now. The club won the Calder Cup in 2025, missed the playoffs entirely a year later, and now sits at the center of a Canucks rebuild that has no quick exit.
Papaioannou opens his AHL career Oct. 2 against the Wranglers in Calgary. The home debut follows Oct. 17 against Coachella Valley.
