When young hockey fans realize that they are not going to be NHL superstars one day, the majority of fans suddenly develop an urge to become an NHL General Manager – the man in charge of the hockey side of an organization. What better way to learn the art of becoming one of the 30 men that control an NHL franchise than by hearing it from one of the men that has been in that position.
That is precisely what Jason Farris’ groundbreaking new book,
Behind the Moves: NHL General Managers Tell How Winners Are Built, accomplishes. Farris, who is currently the Executive Vice President of Business Operations and Development for the Dallas Stars, explains purpose of his book in his introduction: “paint the picture of what it’s like to be a part of, and operate within, the community of NHL general managers.” And he does that just perfectly.
Unfortunately, many people see the title of the publication and assume that the book, which sells for $99.95 (and $139.95 for the deluxe version) only at NHLGMs.com, is
the recipe for how to build a Stanley Cup champion. But fortunately for Farris and his readers, he paints a beautiful picture, showing that building a successful NHL team is not simply a recipe that involves a trade, a draft pick, and a free agent signing. It varies per team, person, and situation, and the magic of the book is his ability to present so many different views of the GM position, without ever claiming that any way is right or wrong. Through his five-part book, he runs through every General Manager that has led a team to the Stanley Cup final since 1967, including Serge Savard, Pierre Lacroix, Brian Burke, Stan Bowman, and Ken Holland, along with many others in the industry that have been involved in the sport for decades.
The book’s five parts include two-to-four page features on each of the aforementioned GMs, armed with hilarious anecdotes about our favorite players and coaches; challenges of being a GM (including getting hired, dealing with players, coaches, ownership, agents, and the media, building a team, making trades, and even some espionage); an all-time NHL GM roster, and 16 pages of statistical charts that would make any scholar proud.
Many hockey fans have barked at the pricey-ness of the book, as it runs for five times what a normal book would cost. However, the work took many years to put together, with Farris travelling over 60,000 miles, recording over 120 hours of interviews with scores of hockey men. It is a work that, when read straight through, will occupy hours of your day in a blink of an eye.
The meat of the book is made up of a collection of quotes from the men interviewed, and only a small part of the book is written in typical narration form. Personally, this was more favorable, as you felt the GM was speaking directly to you, rather than a diluted collection of article that many books such as this can become. Farris does an incredible job of organizing the book so that you feel you are sitting one-on-one with each mastermind, picking their brain as he did.
I would recommend this book to everyone, but with the price so high, many would be unwilling to do so. If you’re just looking for a casual hockey read, the price sticker might be the reason that you stay away. But with the price in mind, I would especially recommend this book to those that are very serious about their knowledge of the NHL industry, those in the media, or even those that have a serious dream of entering NHL management one day. If it’s something you have a serious interest in, I can guarantee that there will never be another book like it.
Get more information on the book: http://nhlgms.com
Buy the book at http://www.circanow.com/ProductDetail.aspx?ID=115
Alan Bass, a former writer for The Hockey News and THN.com, is the author of "The Great Expansion: The Ultimate Risk That Changed The NHL Forever." You can contact him at [email protected], or on Twitter at @NHL_AlanBass. 
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