Position: C, Shoots: L
H/W: 6-foot-2, 183 pounds
Date of Birth: 2008-02-06
Arriving to the OHL via the BCHL’s Chilliwack Chiefs in the summer, Caleb Malhotra joined a loaded Brantford Bulldogs roster that had eyes set on a championship run. The son of former elite NHL faceoff man, and now Vancouver Canucks manager Manny Malhotra, Caleb is both a chip off the old block, but also a forward who possesses the potential to be a greater offensive contributor than his father.
Even with his pedigree, there was little hype for Malhotra as a high-end draft pick coming into the season after he elected to play his U17 year in the BCHL; his production was quite modest. However, he wasted little time making a splash in Brantford and was an immediate impact player as an all-situations pivot. That said, there was skepticism regarding his upside as an NHL player and for that reason, early lists had Malhotra as more of a late first round candidate.
Over the course of the season, Malhotra worked to rewrite the book on him and change the perception of his upside. He improved his skating and pace, becoming a fierce transitional attacker. His confidence with the puck grew, and as such, he was able to display greater creativity and play driving ability. Late in the year, we even saw more consistency from him physically and defensively; Malhotra had transformed into a potentially elite two-way, power pivot. The changing narrative saw Malhotra slowly emerge as the draft’s top center option and he pushed up draft boards to cement himself as a top five candidate. This status was cemented with a dominant showing in the OHL playoffs that saw Malhotra pace Brantford in scoring ahead of some other highly rated NHL prospects. Even though the Bulldogs were eliminated in disappointing fashion by Barrie, scouts had to have been impressed by Malhotra’s ability to step up his game in the playoffs.
Given his impressive in-season progression and transformation, Malhotra presents as both a high floor and high ceiling option to teams. At the very least, he’s going to be an elite level third line center who can provide secondary offense and top notch penalty killing ability. Best case, he’s an all situations top line pivot who can be an anchor for his team.
Skating
Malhotra is at his best attacking in straight lines because his top speed is quite good and he has learned to incorporate linear crossovers to help him become a more efficient and deceptive transporter of the puck. Earlier in the year, he was occasionally finding success on net drives because he’s strong and can put defenders on his back once he gains a step on them, but his attacks were often neutralized because he lacked variability. Once he gets a runway, he can really take off…and once he gets that head of steam, he can be very difficult to stop. When he has space, he has big, powerful strides that allow him to build to that solid top speed. Where Malhotra can struggle is with quick direction changes at full speed. He can lose speed or be forced to stop completely to evade stick or body pressure and doesn’t possess the elusiveness or smoothness on his edges to make quick, powerful cuts laterally. Given that his skating did improve this year, one has to believe that he can become more agile over the next few years to help him become a more unpredictable transitional attacker.
As mentioned, Malhotra struggled to consistently create in transition early on in the year because he had trouble building and sustaining speed, especially when forced to change direction to avoid defenders. This is a great example of that.
By the end of the year, he had learned to be more direct in his attacking patterns, incorporating linear crossovers to help him layer deception without losing speed. This was a game changer for him in terms of transforming into a true play driver.
That said, there’s still room for growth as a mover. He can struggle to build speed out of pivots and he can get bottled up without significant power off his edges to change direction quickly.
Watch how quickly Malhotra can close down opponents. His four-way mobility allows him to keep up with the incoming rush from the Spitfires powerplay unit, pivoting on his blueline twice to match the speed of Nathan Villeneuve (#89 in red) before arriving at the back post to tie up Liam Greentree (#66).
Malhotra’s feet are always moving, and he remains engaged deep in his stance to maintain power through all his strides.
Here’s an example of what he’s capable of with a full head of steam. Malhotra enters the zone with two feints of the shoulder, breezes by all five of his opponents and snipes one past the ear of the goaltender.
This clip demonstrates what he can do when he puts it all together. These types of rushes became commonplace for the Bulldogs as Malhotra evolved into one of their top playdrivers.
Another goal that starts with Malhotra rushing from his own end. This time, he leaves a drop pass for Marek Vanacker, who uses the Attack penalty killer as a screen and scores.
At top speed, Malhotra is near impossible to stop at the junior level. He’s so effective at using his reach to shield the puck on the rush and keeping his balance. A lot of players have trouble with their “hands not catching up to their feet.” In Malhotra’s case, I think his feet have actually caught up with his hands.
At the end of this clip, we see Malhotra escape pressure below the goal line by exploding quickly off his edges to create space to exploit as a playmaker. This is different from the ability to change direction smoothly and quickly when attacking linearly, which was alluded to earlier as a need for him to improve.
Grade: 55
Shot
Malhotra definitely leans playmaker first; he’s a secondary shooter in most instances. However, his shot and scoring ability are not weaknesses. He’s most dangerous near the crease where he has the hands and quick release to score from in tight; he could easily be a bumper powerplay guy at the NHL level. His wrist shot is his primary weapon from a greater distance. He has a whip-like release that generates good power and he’s fairly accurate, showing the ability to pick corners through traffic. Malhotra flashes the ability to utilize a one timer from the half wall, but he’s currently more comfortable as a catch and release shooter.
Malhotra shows off the whip-like wrister.
Here he picks the corner, low blocker side through traffic. Just an incredibly well placed shot.
One of Malhotra’s prettiest goals this year. He shows off the skating power and then goes bar down.
He’ll utilize one touch to finish near the crease.
Another heavy wrister that hits the bar and then a teammate finishes things off.
Grade: 52.5
Skills
Early on this season, Malhotra was pretty reserved in his approach and that didn’t give scouts an opportunity to truly assess his skill level and offensive upside. Additionally, it seemed like there was an adjustment to the pace of the OHL coming from the BCHL; the feet and hands needed to catch up in order for him to play at the pace he wanted to. With each passing month, his confidence improved as an on puck player and that eventually allowed his creativity to shine. That hasn’t stopped some from questioning his offensive skill; this narrative obviously developed early on this year. It’s similar to the narrative that surrounded Brady Martin last year. Yet, the analytics show a different story. Malhotra was right near the top of the OHL in successfully completed dekes and if you truly watch him, he’s a talented play creator. He can create time and space with his hands; he can miss sticks and escape pressure. He navigates high traffic areas really well. This is especially true of his work near the crease and in the slot, where his ability to draw in pressure, escape it, then pass out of it, is key to his high end passing and playmaking success. If there’s a concern here, it’s that Malhotra can struggle to make skilled plays moving East/West, but that has more to do with some skating limitations than his lack of skill.
As mentioned earlier, earlier in the year Malhotra had trouble blending skill and pace and this is a good example of that. There were flashes of ability to create in transition, but his control was massively inconsistent. This obviously improved.
Strong puck protection skill by Malhotra as he escapes the half wall and draws a penalty getting to the net.
Quick finish in tight showing off the good hands.
Malhotra’s lack of explosiveness forces him to be strong on the puck and in puck protection scenarios like this.
Beautifully executed saucer pass.
Another skilled pass; a saucer with a little more mustard on it.
Strong transitional play here. Good defensive support leads to a breakout. Then Malhotra grabs a loose puck at full speed and continues the rush, eventually finishing off the play from his back.
Beautiful pass here on the backhand.
A collection of skilled plays made by Malhotra in this year’s Eastern Conference Championship series.
Grade: 55
Smarts
As you might expect from the son of such an intelligent player, Malhotra is very much a chip off the old block. He has Manny’s outstanding passing vision and two-way sense. He can create in transition with the skill and vision to make plays at top speed. However, he’s also extremely efficient at a slower pace. He is so comfortable drawing in pressure and passing off after coverage breaks down; he’s such an effective play connector. Malhotra is best classified as one of those players with eyes in the back of his head. Malhotra also has excellent anticipation off the puck as an offensive player. He not only outworks defenders to get inside leverage or to open space, but he is a step ahead of them mentally, securing loose pucks or timing cuts to slip coverage. As a defensive player, Malhotra projects as a potential shutdown center because of his physical advantages and strong support instincts. Early in the year, there were times where his defensive play suffered from mental lapses; he was caught puck watching. However, that really ironed out later in the year when Malhotra transformed himself into one of the OHL’s elite two-way players.
Malhotra is a master of the slip pass.
Exhibit B.
Exhibit C.
What a patient play by Malhotra as he outwaits the defense and finds Luchanko for the goal.
Was Malhotra just trying to shovel this to the net, or did he sense/see a teammate streaking behind the coverage? You be the judge.
An example of how Malhotra can impact the game at both ends. Strong defensive play in the neutral zone then a great pass to set up a scoring chance.
Malhotra springs Benak.
Compilation of Malhotra’s outstanding ability to create near the crease.
During the Panthers' run to a second Stanley Cup last postseason, Kevin Bieska highlighted several instances of faceoff ready. Here, we see Malhotra executing that in a rare instance where he’s not taking the draw.
Grade: 60
Physicality/Compete
It will be interesting to see how this part of Malhotra’s game continues to blossom as he improves his strength and conditioning at Boston University and through to the start of his pro career. Over the course of this season, we saw significant growth in his ability and desire to play a power game. He’s effective on the forecheck and his ability to gain inside positioning on defenders is a consistent strength; he loves to use the reverse hit to clear space to ensure he secures possession. Malhotra also consistently drives the net and is center of the ice focused; he’s willing to take a hit to make a play and is comfortable and confident playing through traffic. Defensively, Malhotra engages physically to separate his man from the puck and he consistently supports his defenders down low by taking away passing lanes to the slot or by providing an outlet. There were times earlier in the year where his physical intensity and focus wavered, but that really shored up by the end of the season.
That’s Malhotra matched up against Cole Beaudoin and Barrie’s top offensive unit. Impressive defensive work.
Malhotra’s persistent pressure on the forecheck leads to a turnover and a goal.
An idea of Malhotra’s compete level. He ends up losing the battle, but as he bulks up, he may not lose these types of battles in the future.
Subtle physical play that allows Malhotra to gain space in the middle of the ice to redirect this pass in.
Good PK shift by Malhotra.
Good work in the cycle draws a penalty.
Malhotra is a master of the reverse hit. The one against Saginaw, in particular, is such a great example of the impact his physicality can have.
Grade: 55
OFP: 55.875
A note on the 20-80 scale used above. We look at five attributes (skating, shooting, puck skills, hockey IQ and physicality) for skaters and six for goalies (athleticism/quickness, compete/temperament, vision/play reading, technique/style, rebound control and puck handling). Each individual attribute is graded along the 20-80 scales, which includes half-grades. The idea is that a projection of 50 in a given attribute meant that our observer believed that the player could get to roughly NHL average at that attribute at maturity.