Did Mike Gillis influence the construction of a new role in the Vancouver Canucks front office?

Mike Gillis served as the general manager (GM) of the Vancouver Canucks from 2008-2014; arguably the most successful stretch in the organization's history. The current GM, Ryan Johnson, and the co-
presidents of hockey operations, Henrik Sedin and Daniel Sedin, played for Gillis. When asked if any of them were to call for advice, Gillis said, "I would absolutely help them out". Perhaps the new role of "Director of Hockey Strategy" is exactly that.

Ryan Stewart was named the first "Director of Hockey Strategy and Player Evaluation" in franchise history. Johnson says that Stewart will be "someone we will lean on internally to help provide insight and information for our front office"; however, his specific responsibilities were not identified.

Mike Gillis is an innovator

The rookie leadership group of the Canucks would be foolish not to pick the brain of such an innovator. The Mind Room, the partnership with military sleep and fatigue scientists, the holistic player care technologies revolutionized aspects of athletes' physical and mental health and are believed to have translated directly to team success.

As outlined by Patrick Johnston at The Province, Mike Gillis was very detailed when he defined the role "hockey strategist" during his appearance on the Sekeres and Price show on May 21, 2026.

"“One of the positions that I wanted to create was a really high-level strategy and opportunity role for somebody outside the game, not currently in it. They would just look at the other 31 teams and constantly evaluate their vulnerabilities and where there’s an opportunity...They walk in and they go through every one of the opposition of every team in the league and say ‘OK here’s their weakness. This is what they’re going to be looking for. Here’s how we might be able to manage this. Do we have the pieces necessary? How do we go and get a piece necessary to get the one they might give up?

“How do we design our summer signings to reflect in a rebuilding situation like the Canucks’? How we’re going to trade players at the trade deadline for more capital. How we’re going to get that group of 21 to 24 year old players that become your core players at 25 to 29, that give you a chance to be in that five year window for a championship.

“To me, that role, I don’t see it anywhere.”"

Mike Gillis, Sekeres and Price Show

The position described by Gillis is unique and tremendously creative. The concept of identifying and acquiring the types of players explicitly needed by contending teams, not your own team, to then leverage that need for your team's benefit is so inventive.

There is no questioning Stewart's qualifications for a front office position. He has 20 years of administrative experience, starting with the Chicago Blackhawks before moving on to the San Jose Sharks four years ago. He advanced through the ranks of both organizations, reaching assistant GM in Chicago and Senior Advisor Pro Personnel in San Jose.

But does Stewart have the background, experience, and staff to put together dossiers and needs assessments on all the other 31 teams in the NHL? Does Johnson have the guts to make moves solely for this purpose? Is ownership financially willing to support such transactions?

Other NHL teams have directors of hockey strategy

A "director of hockey strategy" is not a new title to the NHL, but it is difficult to know how closely these roles resemble Gillis' vision. Teams are not likely to publicize their willingness to milk their fellow organizations. But there is no reason to doubt a well-connected individual like Gillis if he claims that this assignment is not present within any NHL front office.

Most, if not all, of the "hockey strategists" are analytics-focused. Alexandra Mandrycky was the director of hockey strategy and research for the Seattle Kraken in 2019 after four seasons working as a data analyst for the Minnesota Wild. Sam Ventura, the VP of hockey strategy and research for the Buffalo Sabres, has a Ph.D. in statistics. Dominik Zrim, a co-founder of CapFriendly with expertise in business and IT, was hired by the Blackhawks as the manager of hockey strategy in 2021 and currently has a similar role with the Edmonton Oilers.

Kerry Huffman is possibly the only director of hockey strategy (Calgary Flames) who played professional hockey (parts of 12 seasons in the NHL) and has expertise on "the developmental side of analytics".

Many unanswered questions

Stewart's hiring begs the questions: What are his specific responsibilities within the organization? Did Johnson reach out to Gillis? How similar is his job description to Gillis' vision for this role? Will Gillis be consulting on other matters moving forward? Does Stewart have the expertise in analytics to boost the data science aspect of player development, or is he simply filling the void left by the promotion of Cammi Granato from assistant GM to senior amateur advisor?

Gillis has proven himself a pioneer, a trailblazer, and an originator. And whether Johnson or Stewart chooses to admit it publicly or not, this role seems to have Mike Gillis' fingerprints all over it.

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