Report: One NHL team is being blacklisted by free agents because of how it treats its players and personnel
When it comes to free agency, sure it can be intimidating for players, uprooting their lives in the cities and with the teams they know and setting off on a new adventure elsewhere. But for others, free agency provides an opportunity to get out of unfavourable situations and have some control over their own destiny.
Every year, teams scramble and make pitches to free agents in hopes that they can entice them to come on board and there's often heated competitions between teams for the same player. Sometimes, one team can have a distinct advantage over another for any number of reasons, from potential fit to organizational integrity, to a specific team being known to treat players well, right down to a team being in a desirable location. Well, when it comes to the latter, the Vegas might offer an exciting and luxurious lifestyle, but this year, players are seemingly avoiding it at all costs.
Per multiple NHL executives, the Vegas Golden Knights have had a difficult time signing players this year due to their treatment of their players and because the culture within the organization is heavy on the business side and not so much on the human side.
NHL Breakers on Instagram
So far, we've seen Vegas make commitments to players like Max Pacioretty, Marc-Andre Fleury and Evgenii Dadonov to name a few, only to turn around and essentially give them all away for absolutely nothing, even to locations which they've had no desire to go.
-Player agent on Vegas' treatment of their players
Yes, the NHL is a business and yes, teams do have to look out for their business interests. However, you absolutely have to take care of your people as well. These players have lives, and families and a lot of them are making tremendous sacrifices to uproot their lives and relocate to Vegas. To turn around and toss them aside like trash is a huge reason why players are beginning to shy away from pursuing opportunities there.
The organization will have some work to do to create more of an inviting and safe environment for players and their families. You'd think that an NHL franchise that is surrounded by the hospitality business would be a little more hospitable to its own people.
