USA Hockey Names Don Waddell General Manager For 2005 National Team

[VodkaFish]

USA Hockey announced today that Atlanta Thrashers Executive Vice President and General Manager Don Waddell will serve as the General Manager for the 2005 United States Men's National Team, which will compete in the 2005 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championship, to be held April 30-May 15 in Innsbruck and Vienna, Austria.

"It's an honor to continue my association with USA Hockey and an outstanding privilege to represent my country," said Waddell. "This year's World Championship promises to be a unique event with more players available to participate than in the past. I embrace the opportunity of working with everyone at USA Hockey to assemble and guide a successful team that the United States will be proud of."

Waddell has a long-standing relationship with USA Hockey as a player and in management and most recently served as Assistant General Manager for USA Hockey's entry in the 2004 World Cup of Hockey. In addition, Waddell served as the Assistant General Manager of the 2004 United States Men's National Team, which captured the bronze medal at the 2004 IIHF World Championship, a feat that qualified the U.S. for the 2006 Olympic Winter Games.

"Don is one of the most respected GM's in the NHL and this appointment is a reflection of his long-standing commitment to the continued growth of the great sport of hockey in this country," said Bruce Levenson, one of the Thrashers owners. "On behalf of ownership, we are proud of all that he has accomplished in Atlanta, building what we believe is the best young team in hockey, and we are equally as excited for his opportunity to assemble and lead a strong USA squad in the upcoming World Championships."

Waddell also served as General Manager for both the 2001 and 2002 United States Men's National Team. In 2001, the U.S. finished in fourth place with a 4-4-1 record at the IIHF World Championship in Germany, which at the time was the best result for an American team since winning the bronze medal in 1996. Then in 2002, the U.S. went 3-3-1 at the IIHF World Championship in Sweden to finish seventh. He also served as Assistant General Manager of the 1999 U.S. National Team that competed in the IIHF World Championship in Norway.

His international playing experience includes helping lead the 1983 U.S. National Team to the IIHF Pool B World Championship in Tokyo, Japan. Waddell was a member of the first-ever U.S. National Junior Team in 1977 at the IIHF World Junior Championship and returned with the 1978 U.S. National Junior Team.

On June 23, 1998, Waddell was named the first-ever Vice President and General Manager of the Atlanta Thrashers. He guided the NHL expansion franchise, which began play in 1999-2000, and established a foundation that is anchored with several young stars, including Dany Heatley and Ilya Kovalchuk. He also hired Stanley Cup winner Bob Hartley to lead the club as it moves forward and fulfills its growing potential.

Prior to joining Atlanta, Waddell served as Assistant General Manager for the Stanley Cup Champion Detroit Red Wings in 1997-98. His extensive organizational experience includes guiding two other professional hockey franchises, the San Diego Gulls and the Orlando Solar Bears of the International Hockey League.

Before his tenure with the Detroit Red Wings, Waddell was Vice President of RDV Sports where he served on the executive committee, which oversaw operations of the National Basketball Association's Orlando Magic, the IHL's Orlando Solar Bears, the Magic Fanattics retail entity, and Magic Carpet Aviation.

While at RDV Sports, Waddell was Vice President and General Manager of the Orlando Solar Bears from 1995-97. He held the same roles with the IHL's San Diego Gulls from 1990-95. He also served as the team's Head Coach in 1991-92, taking the Gulls to their first-ever playoff berth. He spent two seasons with the IHL's Flint Spirits, where he served as Head Coach/General Manager in 1988-89 and General Manager in 1989-90.

As a player, Waddell was drafted by the NHL's Los Angeles Kings in 1978 while playing college hockey at Northern Michigan University (1976-80). He spent three years with the Kings' organization from 1980-83. Waddell played in more than eight seasons of professional hockey, primarily in the IHL, finishing with 372 points (95-277) in 904 IHL career games. His best output came in 1981-82, when he tallied 95 points (26-69) for the Saginaw Gears, and earned the Governor's Trophy as the IHL's top defenseman. Waddell was named an IHL First Team All-Star in 1982 and 1986, and a Second Team All-Star in 1988.

Team USA will compete in Group B of the 2005 IIHF Men's World Championship alongside Canada, Slovenia and Latvia. The U.S. begins the tournament playing each team in its group in a round-robin format. Following the preliminary round, teams are re-seeded within their groups according to points (two pts. for a win, one pt. for a tie and zero pts. for a loss).