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Minnesota Wild Ban Agent from Excel Center

Guest contribution from Ryan Ballard, President of the Sports and Entertainment Law Society at Thomas M. Cooley Law School.

Minnesota Wild LogoNHL player agents haven’t had it easy this year.  First, David Frost was banned from Phoenix.  More recently, NHL agent Tobin Wright was banned from the Excel Energy Center– the home of the Minnesota Wild.  There are a couple of extrinsic facts at play here.  Wright represents former Wild defenseman Willie Mitchell.  Mitchell is in salary arbitration with the Wild right now and Wright refuses to testify.  Some say the Wild imposed the ban in retaliation of Wright refusing to testify because Wright has information favorable to the Wild, but not so favorable to his client.  The Wild issued a statement that the ban was imposed because they caught Wright wandering around areas he wasn’t supposed to be.  While he was in those restricted areas, and here’s the killer, the Wild say he was trying persuade players to leave their agent and jump on board with Wright.  Wright is new to the agent business.  Luckily, his boss has his back.

If the Wild are right about the situation with Willie Mitchell, it seems like Wright is serving his client right by refusing to testify.  But if the Wild are right about Wright recruiting players away from their clients while in restricted areas at the Excel Center, Wright might have an uphill battle gaining respect with more players.

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.

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