Vancouver Canucks select Caleb Malhotra with third overall draft pick

Caleb Malhotra, right, stands with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, left, after being drafted by the Vancouver Canucks during the NHL hockey draft Friday, June 26, 2026, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)

The Vancouver Canucks have drafted their next hopeful franchise cornerstone, selecting Caleb Malhotra with the third overall pick in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft.

Malhotra spent the 2025-26 season with the OHL’s Brantford Bulldogs and scored 29 goals and 84 points in total.

Video posted on X showed Canucks fans cheering at a Rogers Arena watch party after the pick was announced.

It was speculated that Vancouver would select Malhotra at third overall, an idea that was amplified when the team hired the centre’s father, Manny, as their new head coach.

In last year’s draft, the Canucks selected centre Braeden Cootes with pick 15. Vancouver hasn’t selected as high as third overall since 1999, when they drafted Henrik and Daniel Sedin at picks two and three, respectively.

The Canucks had “How I Met Your Mother” star Cobie Smulders on stage to make the selection.

Vancouver finished last in the NHL this past season with a record of 25 wins, 49 regulation losses, and nine overtime and shootout losses, but slid to picking third in the draft after Toronto and San Jose moved up through the Draft Lottery.