Moore gets new title in Hitmen shakeup
WHL club is in market for new general manager after disappointing season
The Calgary Hitmen are searching for a new general manager, but Mike Moore will be sticking around the Saddledome.
The Hitmen announced a “restructuring” of their hockeyoperations Monday, with Moore appointed vice-president and alternate governor for the local Western Hockey League squad.
That leaves a vacancy at general manager, the position he held for the past four seasons.
“Mike’s leadership and continuity is critical to our ongoing and future success,” said Ken King, president and CEO of Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation, in a statement.
According to Monday’s release, Moore’s redefined role “will see a continued focus on business operations while also acting as an adviser and providing support to the general manager.”
His previous business card also included the title of vice-president of business operations.
“I’m excited. I think it’s a great move for the organization and for myself,” Moore said. “We are always trying to get better on and off the ice, and I think this provides us great opportunity to do that.
“I think we’ve built a pretty good foundation here, and I’m excited to be part of where we’re going. Someone will be focusing on the hockey stuff day-to-day, and it will allow me to focus on league stuff, business stuff and some hockey stuff, as well, as an adviser and support role for that position.
“I just think it’s a really good structure, as far as how we can move things forward both for our fans and for our players.”
Moore has two decades of experience in the WHL, half of that in Calgary.
He started as assistant general manager with the Hitmen for the 1997-98 season before stints as GM of the Kamloops Blazers (19982004) and Medicine Hat Tigers (2004-05).
He returned to the Saddledome in 2008 as director of business operations, then doubled as Kelly Kisio’s right-hand man for the winter of 2012-13. Moore was promoted to general manager that summer when Kisio — now a pro scout for the NHL’s expansion Vegas Golden Knights — was elevated to president of hockey operations.
The Hitmen posted a 165-97-1412 record under Moore’s watch as GM.
The worst of those four campaigns was this past one, when they claimed the final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference with a 30-32-8-2 mark but were quickly ousted by the Regina Pats in a firstround sweep.
(The Pats advanced to the WHL Final, but lost Game 7 to the Seattle Thunderbirds in the league final.)
Moore believes Calgary’s next general manager will inherit a team headed in the right direction.
“Obviously, this year was challenging and disappointing at the same time, and we thought we’d be better than we were,” he said. “But we think we made some good strides in areas and we have a really good core of young players that are coming and that are here already and a strong foundation in place that we should be able to build forward in a positive direction.”