“In my whole life, I have known no wise people (over a broad subject matter area) who didn’t read all the time. None. Zero.

-Charlie Munger

What is the last book you read?

It probably says something about you.

Maybe it’s a biography of a famous president, or how to keep your dog from chewing the couch, or what makes Amazon so successful.

You set aside the time to actually read that book. And if you went as far as putting the book on your shelf at work or recommending it to a friend, that book probably really had an impact on you, right?

Back in 2019, I started keeping track of books recommended by NHL General Managers, coaches, and executives (or ones seen on their desks and bookshelves). This list is obviously far from comprehensive, but it offers a glimpse into their influences and serves as an initial foundation for studying their process.

While the theme of this website is hockey, I’m actually most interested in books these executives are reading from outside of the hockey world. How are these executives utilizing the lessons in their management styles and decisions?

This project is a journey. It’s about getting exposed to ideas from less familiar domains and thinking about how we can apply them to hockey, business, and daily life.

Finally, if you see a book missing from this list or have any great recommendations, don’t hesitate to reach out via email.

“Develop into a lifelong self-learner through voracious reading, cultivate curiosity, and strive to become a little wiser every day.”

-Charlie Munger

Originally Posted: March 2019

Last Update: March 2025

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Kyle Dubas (Pittsburgh Penguins President)

• Behind the Moves by Jason Farris
• Belfry Hockey by Darryl Belfry
• Belichick by Ian O’Connor
• Blink by Malcolm Gladwell
• Ego is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday
• Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown
• First, Break All The Rules by Gallup
• Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
• A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
• Good to Great by Jim Collins
• Hockey Abstract 2017 by Rob Vollman
• Hockey Confidential by Bob McKenzie
• In Defense of Troublemakers: The Power of Dissent in Life and Business by Charlan Nemeth
• Leadership: In Turbulent Times by Doris Kearns Goodwin
• Loonshots by Safi Bahcall
• Mastery by Robert Greene
• Meditations by Marcus Aurelius
• Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss
• Ohio by Stephen Markley
• Originals by Adam Grant
• Pep’s City: The Making of a Superteam
• Range by David Epstein
• Stillness is the Key by Ryan Holiday
• Team of Teams: New Rules of Engagement for a Complex World by Stanley McCrystal
• The Cubs Way by Tom Verducci –> (5 Lessons Recap)
• The Extra 2% by Jonah Keri
• The Rise by Sarah Lewis
• The Score Takes Care of Itself by Bill Walsh
• The Signal and the Noise by Nate Silver
• The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis
• Thinking in Bets by Annie Duke
• Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
• Other Influences mentioned –> with possible books listed:
  
  • Bill James –> The Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract
  • Golden State Warriors –> Betaball by Erik Malinowski
  • Houston Astros –> Astroball by Ben Reiter(5 Lessons Recap)
  • Johan Cruyff –> My Turn: A Life of Total Football by Johan Cruyff
  • Jurgen Klopp –> Bring the Noise: The Jürgen Klopp Story by Raphael Honigstein
  • Michael Lewis books (multiple)
  • New England Patriots and Bill Belichick –> Gridiron Genius by Mike Lombardi
  • San Antonio Spurs and Gregg Popovich –> The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle

Julien Brisebois (Tampa Bay Lightning GM)

• Alex Ferguson: My Biography by Alex Ferguson
• Behind the Moves by Jason Farris
• First, Break All The Rules by Gallup
• Howard Stern Comes Again by Howard Stern
• John Adams by David McCullough
• Living with a SEAL by Jesse Itzler
• Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
• Practice Perfect by Lemov, Woolway, and Yezzi
• Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
• The Captain Class by Sam Walker
• The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google by Scott Galloway
• The MVP Machine by Ben Lindbergh and Travis Sawchik
• The Outsiders by William Thorndike
• The Success Equation by Michael Mauboussin

Doug Wilson (Pittsburgh Penguins Senior Advisor)

• • • All In by Adrian Gostick
    • Legacy by James Kerr
    • Orr: My Story by Bobby Orr
    • The Company: A Novel of the CIA by Robert Littell
    • The Secret Race by Tyler Hamilton and Daniel Coyle
    • The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle
    • Other Influences mentioned –> with possible books listed:
      • Bill Walsh –> The Score Takes Care of Itself by Bill Walsh
      • Bob Myers (Golden State Warriors GM) –> Betaball by Erik Malinowski

Brian MacLellan (Washington Capitals President of Hockey Operations)

• The Disappearance of the Universe by Gary Renard

Brad Alberts (Dallas Stars President & CEO)

• This Kind of War: The Classic Military History of the Korean War by T.R. Fehrenbach

Brendan Shanahan (Toronto Maple Leafs President)

• Behind the Moves by Jason Farris
• Big Data Baseball by Travis Sawchik
• Good to Great by Jim Collins
• Legacy by James Kerr

George McPhee (Vegas Golden Knights President of Hockey Operations) 

• Argo by Antonio Mendez
• Fair Game by Valerie Plame Wilson

Paul Maurice (Florida Panthers Head Coach)

• Churchill: A Life by Martin Gilbert
• Ego Is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday
• The Art of Learning by Josh Waitskin
• The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday
• The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle

Jon Cooper (Tampa Bay Lightning Head Coach)

• The Captain Class by Sam Walker

Pete DeBoer (Dallas Stars Head Coach)

• The Essential Vince Lombardi by Vince Lombardi (received from Lou Lamoriello)

Mike Babcock (Former Columbus Blue Jackets Head Coach)

• Above the Line by Urban Meyer

Steve Griggs (Tampa Bay Lightning President & CEO)

• The Power of Who by Bob Beaudine

Jeff Vinik (Tampa Bay Lightning Owner)

• Walkable City by Jeff Speck

Vincent Viola (Florida Panthers Owner)

• The Medium is the Massage by Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore

Gary Bettman (NHL Commissioner)

• Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Dorin Kearns Goodwin

Bruce Cassidy (Vegas Golden Knights Head Coach)

• The Teenage Brain by Frances Jensen and Amy Ellis Nutt

Dan Bylsma (Seattle Kraken Head Coach)

• The Art Of War by Sun Tzu

Jim Montgomery (St. Louis Blues Head Coach)

• Good to Great by Jim Collins
• The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle

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Jarmo Kekalainen (Former Columbus Blue Jackets GM)

• • Intangibles by Joan Ryan
  • The Captain Class by Sam Walker

Jeremy Colliton (Former Chicago Blackhawks Head Coach)

• • • Legacy by James Kerr

Dallas Eakins (Former Anaheim Ducks Head Coach)

• • • Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
    • The Dichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin

John Chayka (Former Arizona Coyotes GM)

• • • Behind the Moves by Jason Farris
    • Ego Is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday
    • The Cubs Way by Tom Verducci
    • The Mamba Mentality by Kobe Bryant (recommended by Clayton Keller)
    • The Obstacle Is the Way by Ryan Holiday

Dean Lombardi (Former Los Angeles Kings GM)

• • • The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins

Brian Burke (Former NHL GM & President)

• • • Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
    • The Pioneers: The Heroic Story of the Settlers Who Brought the American Ideal West by David McCullough
    • Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow

Chuck Fletcher (Former Philadelphia Flyers GM)

• • • Paris 1919 by Margaret MacMillan

Dale Tallon (Former Florida Panthers GM)

• • • Done Deal by Linda Cashdan and Michael Benoliel

David Poile (Former Nashville Predators GM)

• • • Good to Great by Jim Collins
    • Great by Choice by Jim Collins
    • Leadership by Rudy Giuliani
    • Orr: My Story by Bobby Orr
    • Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam
    • The 8th Habit by Stephen Covey
    • The Trident by Jason Redman
    • Wooden by John Wooden and Steve Jamison

Other Recommendations from Hockey Executives who prefer to remain anonymous:

• • • • Behind the Moves by Jason Farris
      • Behind the Bench by Craig Custance
      • Grit by Angela Duckworth
      • Inside the Empire by Bob Klapisch and Paul Solotaroff
      • Inside Out Coaching by Joe Ehrman
      • It Takes 23 to Win by Jason Farris
      • Mindset by Carol Dweck 
      • Superforecasting by Philip Tetlock
      • Team of Teams by McChristal, Collins, Silverman, Fussel
      • Thank You For Being Late by Thomas Friedman (via Morgan Rielly)
      • The Cardinals Way by Howard Megdal
      • Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss
      • Turn the Ship Around by L. David Marquet 
      • Relentless by Tim Grover
      • Unbeatable Mind by Mark Divine
      • War Room by Michael Holley