Dave Nonis played his minor hockey with the Burnaby Minor Hockey Association, moving up the ranks and playing on the Association’s top Rep teams as a strong defenseman. In 1982-83 he jumped to the Junior A Burnaby Bluehawks before attending University of Maine where he served two seasons as captain of the hockey team, leading them to back-to-back NCAA championship tournaments.

After playing one year professionally in Denmark he returned to Maine and earned his MBA before joining the Vancouver Canucks in a corporate and administrative capacity. He eventually directed all areas of the Canucks hockey operations before being named the ninth, and youngest ever, general manager of the Canucks in 2004.

He left the Canucks to join the Anaheim Ducks as senior advisor of hockey operations and in January 2013 was named Senior vice-president and general manager of Toronto Maple Leafs.