Canucks’ Gillis, Law ‘89, is the top NHL GM

Photo by Jeff Vinnick

Mike Gillis, Law '89, Vancouver Canucks GM, speaks at a press conference

Mike Gillis, Law ‘89, the man who in just three years built the Vancouver Canucks team that advanced to Game 7 of this year’s Stanley Cup final, received the NHL’s 2011 General Manager of the Year Award, chosen by his fellow GMs and a panel of league executives. The facts were clear: ever since 2008, when Gillis joined the then under-achieving club, they’ve won their division title, and in 2010-11 they easily skated off with the President’s Trophy as the league’s best regular season team. They are, in fact, the most successful team in Canucks’ history.

Gillis says he was happy with his award as well as players Daniel Sedin’s and Ryan Kesler’s trophies. “When you have personal success in a team concept, it’s usually a reflection of team strength.”

The GM adds that his legal education has come in handy in the hockey world. “We try to be logical and consistent; that’s from the legal training. Those principles have guided us since I’ve been here, and our record’s been good.”

Gillis, who hails from Kingston, played in the NHL from 1978 to 1985 before entering Queen’s Law. He found the academic environment “challenging and refocusing.” In the 1990s, he returned to teach the Sports and Entertainment Law course. Then he analyzed how NHL teams were managed and what factors differentiated consistently good teams.

Queen’s, he told the Globe and Mail, is where he learned that “meticulous planning, a strong work ethic and unrelenting attention to detail” could put you ahead of the pack -- something that’s come in handy during his time as a sports agent, Canucks’ GM, and also President of Canucks Sports & Entertainment. Using that philosophy, he has built a contender by doing everything from convincing star players to re-sign for lesser salaries to ensuring players have the best nutrition plan.  

“We’re not going to change our core group of players,” he told Queen’s Law Reports in July.  “We’ve been active in the free agent market, but we’re also going to give our own young players a chance.”

If there’s one thing he wishes he’d heeded more from his time at Queen’s, it was not to change your game plan under pressure. He says he watched fellow students crumble under the stress of writing 100% final exams. “This year when we got to the finals we made changes that were inconsistent -- not really what we were as a team. In law school, I learned it’s when you’re approaching the most pressure-packed time that you have to be the most calm.”

He’s sure to be thinking of that when his Canucks get to the playoffs in 2012.