NHL team can't trade player because he, “had a great dinner with the owner in his draft year.”

I'm not about to tell you that this next story is about the Vancouver Canucks, but I'm definitely not going to tell you that it's NOT about the Vancouver Canucks.

Catch my drift?

Rachel Doerrie of The Hockey News (THN), formerly of the New Jersey Devils' and the Vancouver Canucks' front office staff has penned a column for THN today that takes a look at the case of the Philadelphia Flyers and their recent decision to rebuild their roster. In the column, Doerrie explains how NHL general managers often serve the interests of the team's owner, rather than the interests of the team itself. Again... I'm not saying this is about the Canucks but... well... just read some of Doerrie's column:

At the end of the day, the people who own the team chart the direction, regardless of whether it makes sense or not. In sports, owners rarely know much about the sport. They make their money in business and buy a team as a toy of sorts. Fans play Be a GM mode in NHL 23, owners play Be a GM mode with the actual franchise.

Some GMs are outright told how to operate, who to sign, who they can and cannot trade. I’ve seen and heard it all. There is one team who is not allowed to trade what equates to a B prospect because he had a great dinner with the owner in his draft year and is now the owner’s favorite player. Another team is not allowed to trade from a certain pool of prospects because that is how the owner believes the team should be run.

Another team is not allowed to rebuild because the owner is worried fans may not show up for two years…not realizing that if you have a sustainably competitive team, you can make longer playoff runs, where tickets are more expensive, and the revenue is not shared.

- Rachel Doerrie

Honestly, I could read an entire book on just how hamstrung some of these GMs have been by their bosses. We often hear about the interactions that GMs and coaches have amongst themselves, but it's pretty rare to hear about the interactions between an owner and his GM. Fascinating.