This article is part of our Rankings & Tiers series, an evaluation across sport about the key players, front offices, teams, franchises and much more.
As we did last year, we acknowledge right off the hop that this article isn’t going to be for everyone.
If you’re looking for a distillation of the consensus from NHL execs on the league’s top front offices, Wednesday’s front-office rankings were probably enough for you.
If you’re a hockey diehard and can’t get enough of execs’ thoughts about their colleagues, though, or a fan of one of the top-ranking teams who wants to read every last word we collected about your team’s front office, we do have more, redundant though it might be.
Surveying 37 NHL execs — with anonymity granted for the sake of being able to speak freely — The Athletic collected more than 1,500 words of insight into which of their peers they are most impressed with and why.
For Wednesday’s article, we used only the most relevant quotes for every top-10 team. Here, we’ll present the execs’ full quotes, uncut.
Full voting
Team1st2nd3rd4th5thPts
25
8
0
1
2
311
6
15
5
7
1
212
4
4
5
1
1
97
0
5
4
5
7
77
0
1
8
7
8
76
1
1
4
5
5
57
1
2
1
3
6
44
0
1
3
4
1
35
0
0
4
0
0
20
0
0
1
1
1
9
0
0
1
1
0
8
0
0
0
2
0
6
0
0
1
0
0
5
0
0
0
0
2
2
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
Did not receive votes: Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres, Calgary Flames, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings, Nashville Predators, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Ottawa Senators, Pittsburgh Penguins, San Jose Sharks, Seattle Kraken, Vancouver Canucks
1. Florida Panthers
Total points: 311 (25 first-place votes, appeared on 36 ballots)
Owner: Vincent Viola
GM and president of hockey operations: Bill Zito
Last year: 3
First-place vote, West assistant general manager: “Back to back and keep guys at discounted prices.”
First-place vote, West AGM: “The focus will probably be on the contracts. But for me, it’s the trades. (Sam) Reinhart and (Sam) Bennett were not nearly the players they were on their previous teams. They saw something others didn’t.”
First-place vote, East general manager: “Everybody says the tax thing, but you’ve still gotta make it work.”
First-place vote, West president of hockey operations: “Excellent pro player evaluators, best cap management in the NHL”
First-place vote, West GM: “He got Seth Jones done and figured out a way to keep his guys there. So I give Zito a lot of credit.”
First-place vote, East front-office exec: “As unlikeable as they are, you have to give them credit. They identify players that fit the way they want to play and fit in with their identity. “
First-place vote, East GM who used a few words to describe each of his picks: “Targeted.”
First-place vote, West AGM: “Bill and his team have done an exemplary job in pro scouting, asset management and team building. They find undervalued players and pay rock-bottom acquisition costs. It’s one thing to consistently find value like they have. But they know who their team is and how they want to play, and they’ve done a better job than most in supporting their superstars with like-minded and similar-styled support players.”
Second-place vote, West GM: “Built a culture, (Matthew) Tkachuk trade, two Stanley Cups and salary-cap gymnastics.”
Second-place vote, East front-office exec: “Lots of experience on staff at the top with good, solid ‘younger’ staff. Paul Fenton, Les Jackson, Rick Dudley … these guys often get forgotten.”
Fifth-place vote, West GM: “Convincing everyone to take less than market is maximizing the no-tax state. Besides, who else can come to practice in a golf cart?”
2. Dallas Stars
Total points: 212 (6 first-place votes, appeared on 34 ballots)
Owner: Tom Gaglardi
President and CEO: Brad Alberts
GM: Jim Nill
Last year: 1
First-place vote, West GM: “Have drafted well and have taken advantage of non-tax with getting the deal done with (Mikko) Rantanen.”
First-place vote, East front-office exec: “Continuity of staff. GM, AGMs, scouts-support staff … there are guys working there for 20-plus years at all levels.”
Second-place vote, West AGM: “Draft very well and are always deep. Aggressive to add to get over hump.”
Second-place vote, East AGM: “Consistently a contender.”
Second-place vote, West GM: “I think Jim Nill does a phenomenal job. … They’ve been able to add the (Miro) Heiskanens and the (Jake) Oettingers and the (Lian) Bichsels and that kinda stuff and still get better as they go, like the Rantanen trade.”
Second-place vote, East GM who used a few words to describe each of his picks: “Steady.”
Third-place vote, West president of hockey ops: “Excellent drafting team. Strong pro player evaluation.”
Fourth-place vote, West AGM: “This is mostly for their drafting. Rantanen trade was great, too. But they’ve put themselves in a phenomenal spot with their drafting.”
Fourth-place vote, East GM: “Drafting is elite.”
Fourth-place vote, West GM: “Consistently developing and in the mix every year.”
Fourth-place vote, West AGM: “The Derek Jeter of management teams, quietly executing on their strategy and consistently adding value without a lot of hype. Their superpower is in limiting mistakes, but they’ve also shown a willingness to take calculated risks. Part of why they’re able to do what they do is because of their success at the draft table, where they consistently outkick their coverage. They’ve maintained a position among the league’s best, even when factoring in their lack of elite draft pick capital. Most of their core was selected far outside the top 10. (Roope) Hintz (2015, 49th overall), Oettinger (‘17, 26th), (Jason) Robertson (‘17, 39th), (Thomas) Harley (‘19, 18th), (Wyatt) Johnston (‘21, 23rd) and (Logan) Stankoven (‘21, 47th) were all excellent picks and necessary when you’re also trading assets at the deadline every year to go for the Cup. Even Johnny Cash would be impressed with their ability to walk that line.”
Jim Nill speaks after winning the first of his three straight Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year awards. (Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
3. Tampa Bay Lightning
Total points: 97 (4 first-place votes, appeared on 15 ballots)
Owners: Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz
Chairman and Governor: Jeff Vinik
GM: Julien BriseBois
Last year: 2
First-place vote, East AGM: “Two Cups, always a contender.”
First-place vote, West GM: “Always make tough decisions, never second-guess decisions.”
Second-place vote, West AGM: “They want to win and will swing for the fences. They were a better team than their early exit indicates. Better health against Florida, and it could have been the Lightning winning it all.”
Second-place vote, West AGM: “Should be first, but wanted to give proper respect to the B2B Cup winners. No team has shown the ability to roll with the punches like they have — to maintain their roster despite cap and asset limitations while still putting out an elite on-ice product that is able to challenge for the Cup every year.”
Fourth-place vote, West AGM: “Will do what they need to try to win in their players’ window with assets they have.”
4. Winnipeg Jets
Total points: 77 (appeared on 21 ballots)
Owner: Mark Chipman
GM: Kevin Cheveldayoff
Last year: 16
Second-place vote, West president of hockey ops: “Small staff produces big results. Strong player evaluation at pro and amateur level. Despite small market challenges, they’re able to retain top talent.”
Third-place vote, East GM who used a few words to describe each of his picks: “Efficient.”
Fourth-place vote, East front-office exec: “In a market where you would assume it’s a constant turnover of players once they reach free agency, they continue to get good players to sign and stay.”
Fifth-place vote, West AGM: “They have no geographical or financial advantages, but they’ve built a quality team that has had a lot of success. They are able to retain their stars. And they’ve been able to make quality trades.”
Fifth-place vote, East GM: “Chevy’s done a great job.”
Fifth-place vote, East front-office exec: “The job that group has done to stay competitive in that market is impressive. Compare it to Calgary, Ottawa, Edmonton, Montreal, Vancouver, who have all had dips (and bigger peaks). Frugal with staff, but very loyal, very tight group, and while they haven’t broken through, to remain competitive like that is impressive.”
5. Vegas Golden Knights
Total points: 76 (appeared on 26 ballots)
Owner: Bill Foley
President of hockey operations: George McPhee
GM: Kelly McCrimmon
Last year: 4
Second-place vote, East GM: “They have advantages like taxes and everybody wants to be in Vegas, but you still gotta make it work. They’re bold.”
Third-place vote, West AGM: “Very aggressive and not afraid to make decisions to get better.”
Third-place vote, East AGM: “Will do anything to improve (their) team.”
Third-place vote, West AGM: “They have a strategy, and they have shown great flexibility, creativity and originality in executing it. They don’t shy away from ambitious moves and aren’t afraid to risk upsetting the apple cart — and they’ve maintained their culture and stability despite a fair amount of roster churn over the years. One thing of note: It must be a lot of fun to be a supporter of this team. They treat their fan base to one or two big acquisitions a year, and they do it without depleting the bottom of their roster.”
Fourth-place vote, West president of hockey operations: “Excellent pro player evaluation, ruthlessness in their approach to adding/changing roster to improve their roster, savvy cap management.”
Fifth-place vote, West GM: “Goes for it every year.”
Fifth-place vote, East GM who used a few words to describe each of his picks: “Star acquisitions.”
6. Colorado Avalanche
Total points: 57 (1 first-place vote, appeared on 16 ballots)
Owner: Stan Kroenke
President and governor: Josh Kroenke
President of hockey operations: Joe Sakic
GM: Chris MacFarland
Last year: 6
Third-place vote, West GM: “Bold moves, turned over roster last year in a hurry, fixed holes.”
Fourth-place vote, West GM: “Bold move to move off Rantanen. When you have (Nathan) MacKinnon and (Cale) Makar, you are a top contender.”
Fourth-place vote, East GM: “They’ve given their team a chance to compete but haven’t gotten back to the top.”
Fifth-place vote, West AGM: “A lot of changes from the beginning of last year — lots of moves and (they’re) built better now. Not easy to do in a year.”
Fifth-place vote, East front-office exec: “I thought, although it didn’t work, they really did a good job at the deadline last year and had a good offseason.”
Chris MacFarland lifts the Stanley Cup in 2022. (Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
7. Montreal Canadiens
Total points: 44 (1 first-place vote, appeared on 13 ballots)
Owner: Geoff Molson
President of hockey operations: Jeff Gorton
GM: Kent Hughes
Last year: 11
Second-place vote, East front-office exec: “We see rebuilds taking a decade or longer, and Jeff Gorton is now on his second one that’s taken less than five years.”
Fifth-place vote, East AGM: “Smart. They’ve handled the rebuild brilliantly up to this point.”
Fifth-place vote, East GM: “They’re tied with Anaheim for best emerging rebuild.”
Fifth-place vote, West AGM: “Their asset management is among the league’s best. Jeff and Kent have done an excellent job acquiring assets and maximizing their value. They have also done an excellent job identifying their core and getting them locked up on team-friendly deals. Where they have pushed ahead of the ‘up-and-comers’ group is their willingness to trade on some of their elite youth to bolster the NHL roster. They’re ahead of their peers in transitioning out of the ‘asset-harvest’ game and into ‘win-now’ mode. What remains to be seen is if they can shepherd their collection of young superstars into a team capable of consistently competing for the cup. If history is any indication, I believe they will.”
8. Washington Capitals
Total points: 35 (appeared on 9 ballots)
Owner: Ted Leonsis
President of hockey operations: Brian MacLellan
GM: Chris Patrick
Last year: 19
Second-place vote, West GM: “Have had a strong development path and have stayed strong and competitive when they were supposed to be in a retool.
Fourth-place vote, East front-office exec: “Succession plan for all employees. Treat staff and people extremely well and make them all feel part of the process. Extremely professional group.”
9. St. Louis Blues
Total points: 20 (appeared on 4 ballots)
Owner: Tom Stillman
President of hockey operations and GM: Doug Armstrong
President and CEO of business operations: Chris Zimmerman
Last year: 13
Third-place vote, West GM: “Doug Armstrong did a phenomenal job rebuilding that team on the go. (Philip) Broberg and (Dylan) Holloway was a ballsy move.”
Third-place vote, West GM: “They always just hang around. When you think they are out, they come back at you. Well managed and well coached.”
Third-place vote, East front-office exec: “Doug is playing chess while others are playing checkers. You don’t think he is adding (other GMs) for Hockey Canada to know them and their ‘tells’ better?”
10. Carolina Hurricanes
Total points: 9 (appeared on 3 ballots)
Owner: Tom Dundon
President: Vacant (Doug Warf stepped down on Oct. 6)
GM: Eric Tulsky
Last year: 8
Fifth-place vote, West president of hockey operations: “Intelligent and creative approach to player evaluation, willingness to take chances on undersized players, careful and measured approach to how they spend.”
12. Toronto Maple Leafs
Total points: 6 (appeared on 2 ballots)
Owner: Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment
President and CEO: Keith Pelley
GM: Brad Treliving
Fourth-place vote, East AGM: “Always top of the league.”