The Abbotsford Canucks, with the help of rookie head coach Manny Malhotra, have been cruising in the AHL Calder Cup playoffs.
What you may not know, however, is that even though the Milwaukee Admirals are out of the playoffs now at the hands of the Canucks' opponents, the Texas Stars, a former Vancouver Canucks scout has helped turn them into a quality year-over-year AHL team.
That's none other than former Canucks scout Karl Taylor, who tried his hand at the NHL level only once, serving Vancouver in this capacity for one season only in 2012-13.
In parts of six seasons, Taylor, 54, has racked up a 244-133-31-12 record and a .632 points percentage, all the while developing players like Tommy Novak, Cody Glass, Mathieu Olivier, Adam Wilsby, Joakim Kemell, Phil Tomasino, Yaroslav Askarov, Zach L'Heureux, Fedor Svechkov, and Canucks forward Kiefer Sherwood, among others.
Some AHL coaching news. Two Head Coaches have signed extensions with their respective clubs:
— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) May 31, 2025
- San Jose Barracuda Head Coach John McCarthy
- Milwaukee Admirals Head Coach Karl Taylor
As a reward for his strong efforts in the lower ranks, the former Canucks scout has reportedly signed a contract extension with the Admirals, as reported by NHL insider David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period.
Sometimes, success comes in unexpected ways, and despite coaching professional hockey for 20 years, Taylor appears to have found a home in Milwaukee, serving as their head coach for six of the last seven seasons.