Richard Seeley has seen the AHL evolve through his nine years in a head office role in the league.
The Assistant Manager of the Vancouver Canucks and General Manager of the Abbotsford Canucks wants to set everyone in the Abbotsford's organization up for success, from the players to the coaching staff, equipment staff, and anyone in between.
He enjoys the different aspects of being in a managerial role and the challenges that come with it.
“It's rapidly changing. It's trying to build relationships with agents, players, and coaches, so I think for me, I really enjoy the variety of it. It's definitely a challenge and it's definitely changed, but I think that variety of it for me, there's something different every day,” Seeley said.
“Your time management wears it best, you can have a lot of holes to fill, but you’ve also got to prioritize of what holes need to be filled now and prioritize your time and things accordingly.”
One of the things that he tries to instill in staff and players is the importance of meeting the work with passion and having fun at the rink.
“You’ve got to enjoy the grind. So, I think that's a good mindset. We want to make these players better every day, collectively as a staff, and get better every day, and that takes a lot of work,” Seeley said. “I think the best way to go about doing that is when you're looking forward to going into that place.”
Seeley played in the AHL from 1999-2006 and discussed the evolution of the AHL over the last 20-plus years, from rule changes to AHL cities and arenas. Over the last five years, he's noticed that players are more skilled; the Pacific Division in the AHL has become more competitive, with strong young prospect pools.
Through his journey as a GM, Seeley has learned that player development isn’t linear. Patience and continuing to help build a player up are key, as is pushing to make them better.
“It takes patience for me, and there's a process to it. I think the ones that are successful, like I think there's a lot of benefit in a guy working through a lot of things and having 100 pro games to get a good evaluation. I think that's important,” Seeley said.
Listen to this and much more as Seeley joins Chris Faber on the latest episode of the Canucks Insider Podcast.
