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Two surprising teams top the list of worst run franchises according to NHL agent poll


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Tyler Ball
April 13, 2026  (3:15 PM)
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Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson (40) skates against the New York Rangers in the third period at Rogers Arena.
Photo credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images

A new poll conducted by The Athletic has identified the best and worst organizations according to NHL agents and two unexpected teams top the bad list.

It’s no secret that not every NHL organization is created equal while some run efficiently and are perennial contenders others are frequent bottom dwellers who cannot seem to crack the code.
Today, a new poll put together by some of the top journalists from The Athletic dug into which franchises agents respect and which fall short of expectation.

Two surprising teams named worst run franchises by NHL agents

According to the poll results, the Vancouver Canucks were overwhelmingly considered the worst run team in the league.
Vancouver almost double the amount of votes as the second place New York Rangers.
When asked why they felt this way about the Canucks, the agents from the poll referenced a lack of support and constant drama coming out of the organization and into the public.
They really don’t have the infrastructure that the players need to remove excuses. It just seems there’s a lot of soap opera stuff going on around there. I just think management needs to do a better job of keeping things in-house.

As for the second team on the list the New York Rangers, a lack of empathy and care for their players is the chief complaint from one agent.
Deep down, they forget everybody’s a human being. They’re too forceful, and I think everything can be worked out one way or the other.

With these quotes from the agents, it seems that both franchises have failed in their ability to connect with their players and see them as human beings.
Nothing makes this more clear than the reported feud between J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson that led Miller to be traded to the Rangers.
Most recently, the Canucks trade sending away captain Quinn Hughes also comes to mind.
From the Rangers side of things, they also had drama with former captain Jacob Trouba before dealing him to the Anaheim Ducks.
In a sport that can be as mentally and physically demanding as hockey, taking care of your players to the highest degree should be priority number one but just does not seem to be for these teams.
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Two surprising teams top the list of worst run franchises according to NHL agent poll

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