The Franchise How Hockey Insiders Build Teams to Win

Draft Day meets Burke’s Law in this incisive, behind-the-scenes, and entertaining look at hockeys highest ranks.

Why do some franchises consistently win, while others may never get to see their players’ names etched on the Cup? Why do some teams draft poorly and others draft all-star teams? Why do some teams just seem to know how to win?

In The Franchise, Athletic sportswriter Craig Custance delves into the behind-the-scenes stories about the people who make the biggest decisions in hockey. For more than three years, Custance travelled far and wide to connect with the inner circle of hockey from the owner’s suite of the Carolina Hurricanes to a private championship ring ceremony with Las Vegas Golden Knights and to a country club for a breakdown of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He had frank conversations with new Leafs GM Brad Treliving, former Leafs’ GM Kyle Dubas, and three-time Olympic medal winner and former executive Meghan Duggan and discussed the revolution in women’s hockey.

For fans of any stripe, there are stories behind memorable trades, the biggest free agent signings, and insights into how some of the most successful teams of the last two decades were built. There are never-been-told details about trade demands, a prominent hire that one general manager regretted immediately, and the story of how one general manager risked his life to sign a player he thought could change the course of his NHL team.

The Franchise changes the way you look at hockey. Custance shows that it all starts at the top, not on the ice. The players win, but it’s the people up in the box who break down every aspect of their teams, execute the hard decisions, and make the magic happen. This is essential reading for every hockey fan who wants to get beyond the x’s and o’s in an absorbing story of why teams win.

For over a decade, Craig Custance has been a national hockey writer at ESPN and The Athletic, developing a reputation as a trusted source for thoughtful and comprehensive coverage of the NHL. He’s the author of the book Behind the Bench: Inside the Minds of Hockey’s Greatest Coaches, named as one of the greatest hockey books of all time by Book Authority, and was the longtime host of the in-depth interview podcast The Full 60. He’s currently the Head of Creative Development at The Athletic, a New York Times company. He lives in Michigan.