Carolina Hurricanes part ways with senior vice president of hockey operations Rick Dudley

Rick Dudley

Rick Dudley of Toronto, Ontario, will no longer be the senior vice president of the Carolina Hurricanes according to Luke DeCock of the Raleigh News & Observer. Dudley had been with the Hurricanes in that capacity over the last two seasons, where he was working alongside Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell of Detroit, MI.

Dudley has a wealth of hockey experience, including four seasons as a head coach and seven NHL seasons as a general manager. He coached the Buffalo Sabres for three straight seasons from 1989 to 1992, and then was the head coach on an interim basis with the Florida Panthers from 2003 to 2004. While with the Sabres, Dudley posted a record of 85 wins, 72 losses, and 31 ties. Then with the Panthers, Dudley had a record of 13 wins, 15 regulation losses, nine ties, and three overtime losses.

As a GM, Dudley was with the Ottawa Senators from 1998 to 1999, the Tampa Bay Lightning from 1999 to 2002, the Florida Panthers from 2002 to 2004, and the Atlanta Thrashers from 2010 to 2011. He also worked five seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks from 2004 to 2009 as a team consultant, director of player personnel and assistant general manager.

Then after his time in Atlanta where he was also the Thrashers’ assistant general manager in 2009-10, Dudley returned to his home country of Canada, where he was the director of player personnel with the Toronto Maple Leafs from 2011 to 2012, and then six seasons with the Montreal Canadiens, where he was the assistant general manager and then senior vice president of hockey operations from 2012 to 2018.

Dudley also worked in many different professional hockey capacities outside the NHL. From 1982 to 1986, he was the head coach and general manager of the Carolina Thunderbirds of the Atlantic Coast Hockey League. That was followed by being the head coach of the Flint Spirits of the International Hockey League from 1986 to 1988, the head coach of the New Haven Nighthawks of the American Hockey League from 1988 to 1989, the head coach of the San Diego Gulls of the International Hockey League from 1992 to 1993, and the head coach of the Phoenix Roadrunners of the International Hockey League from 1993 to 1994.

From 1994 to 1998, Dudley was with the Detroit Vipers of the International Hockey League. He was the head coach and general manager for the first two years, and then the general manager for the last two years.

The Hurricanes made the decision to not only get rid of Dudley, but their massage therapist Tristan Simmons, as well. The decisions come about a month before the NHL restart is about to begin. The Hurricanes will play their Stanley Cup Playoff qualifier series against the New York Rangers.

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