TEAM GUIDE

HOCKEY OPERATIONS
HOCKEY OPERATIONS
Chuck Fletcher is in his eighth season as Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Minnesota
Wild after being named to the position on May 22, 2009. He oversees the Wild’s hockey operations
department including all matters relating to the club’s player personnel, coaching staff, scouting
department and minor league operations.
In his 23rd season in the National Hockey League (NHL), Fletcher has helped guide the Wild to the playoffs
each of the last four seasons after a five-year absence. The Wild is one of seven NHL teams that
have advanced to the playoffs in each of the last four seasons. Under Fletcher’s leadership, Minnesota
has added a number of key players including Eric Staal (July 1, 2016), Devan Dubnyk (Jan. 14, 2015),
Nino Niederreiter (June 30, 2013), Jason Pominville (April 3, 2013), Zach Parise and Ryan Suter (July 4,
2012), Charlie Coyle (June 24, 2011) and Jared Spurgeon (Sept. 23, 2010).
Since the start of the 2014-15 season, the Wild has signed Jonas Brodin (6 years), Coyle (5 years), Dubnyk (6 years), Marco Scandella
(5 years) and Spurgeon (4 years) to multi-year contracts. Minnesota has also drafted Brodin, Matt Dumba, Mikael Granlund, Erik Haula,
Darcy Kuemper and Jason Zucker under Fletcher.
Prior to joining the Wild, he served as the Pittsburgh Penguins Assistant General Manager for three seasons, including the 2008-09
Stanley Cup Championship team. Fletcher worked closely with Ray Shero on all hockey-related matters, including scouting, overseeing
the development of young prospects and contract negotiations. He also managed hockey operations for Pittsburgh’s American Hockey
League (AHL) affiliate, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Under his leadership, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton reached the AHL’s Calder Cup
Final in 2007-08, and the division finals in 2006-07 and 2008-09.
Fletcher has also been to the Stanley Cup Final in management with the Florida Panthers and the Anaheim Ducks. His extensive NHL
management experience includes a four-year stint with the Anaheim Ducks from 2002-06 as Director of Hockey Operations, Assistant
General Manager, and Vice President of Amateur Scouting and Player Development.
The Montreal, Que., native also spent nine years in the front office of the Florida Panthers from 1993-2002, working seven seasons
as Assistant General Manager and one season as Interim General Manager. In 1996, the Panthers advanced to the Stanley Cup Final.
Fletcher, the son of Hockey Hall of Famer Cliff Fletcher, graduated from Harvard in 1990 and spent one year as the Sales and Merchandising
Coordinator for Hockey Canada and two years as a player representative for Newport Sports Management before making the
transition to the front office.
He and his wife, Rhonda, have a daughter, Kaitlin, and a son, Keith.
Brent Flahr is in his eighth season as Assistant General Manager for the Minnesota Wild after being
named to the position on July 28, 2009. He is responsible for overseeing all aspects of player development
and evaluation and assists General Manager Chuck Fletcher in player personnel decisions, contract
negotiations and league-related issues. Flahr oversees the organization’s preparation for and the
selection of players at the NHL Entry Draft. During his tenure, Minnesota has drafted Louis Belpedio,
Jonas Brodin, Matt Dumba, Joel Eriksson Ek, Mikael Granlund, Tyler Graovac, Jordan Greenway, Luke
Kunin, Gustav Olofsson, Alex Tuch and Jason Zucker. He also serves as General Manager of the Iowa
Wild of the American Hockey League (AHL).
Before his time with the Wild, Flahr spent two seasons (2007-09) with the Ottawa Senators as Director
of Hockey Operations. Prior to joining the Senators, he spent four seasons (2003-07) working as an Amateur Scout for the Anaheim
Ducks, including the 2007 Stanley Cup team. From 1996 to 2003, Flahr spent eight seasons as part of the Florida Panthers organization,
serving in a variety of positions, including Assistant to the General Manager and Scouting and Video Coordinator. He was also the
Director of Hockey Operations for the Panthers’ AHL affiliate, the San Antonio Rampage. Flahr has worked with Chuck Fletcher two times
previously, spending three seasons with him in Anaheim and six seasons in Florida.
The native of Courtenay, B.C., is a graduate of Princeton University, where he played four seasons of college hockey for the Tigers from
1992-96.
He and his wife, Dana, reside in Saint Paul.
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CHUCK FLETCHER
GENERAL MANAGER
BRENT FLAHR
ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER
BLAIR MACKASEY
DIRECTOR OF PLAYER PERSONNEL
Blair Mackasey (pronounced MACK-uh-see) is in his seventh season as the Minnesota Wild’s
Director of Player Personnel after being named to the position in July of 2010. He was originally
named the Director of Professional Scouting for the organization in January of 2006. Mackasey
oversees all aspects of the club’s professional scouting and performs special hockey operations
assignments.
He joined the Wild from Hockey Canada, where he was named Head Scout in June of 2002 and
was later named Director of Player Personnel in July of 2005. While with Hockey Canada, Mackasey
was responsible for all player evaluation and player selections for Canada’s National Junior
Team Development and Selection Camps as well as Canada’s Men’s Under-18 Program. He also
assisted Wayne Gretzky and Canada’s management and coaching staff in player evaluations for Canada’s 2006 Men’s Olympic
Hockey Team. During his four seasons with Hockey Canada, Mackasey won back-to-back World Junior gold medals (2005 and
2006) and two silver medals (2003 and 2004), overseeing player selection and operations of Canada’s National Team at the
IIHF World Junior Championships. He also won two gold medals with Canada’s National Under-18 Summer Team at the Junior
World Cup (2004, 2005), a silver medal with Canada’s National Team at the 2005 Under-18 World Championship and a gold
medal at the 2003 Under-18 World Championship.
Prior to joining Hockey Canada, Mackasey was a member of the Phoenix Coyotes’ scouting staff for six seasons (1996-2002).
He spent three seasons as a Head Coach in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with the Granby Bisons (1993-94) and the
Drummondville Voltigeurs (1994-96). Mackasey appeared in one NHL game with the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 1976-77
season. He also played minor league baseball in the Montreal Expos organization with the likes of Ellis Valentine and Gary
Carter.
Mackasey and his wife, Debbie, have four children, Andrea, Blair Jr., Erin and Dave. The family resides in Beaconsfield, Que.
BRAD BOMBARDIR
DIRECTOR OF PLAYER DEVELOPMENT
Brad Bombardir is in his seventh season as the Minnesota Wild’s Director of Player Development.
He is responsible for evaluating prospects in the Wild organization and implementing programs
to help continue their development including the team’s annual summer development camp.
Bombardir also serves as Senior Director of Community Relations for the organization and supports
a wide variety of the organization’s community partnership initiatives including the promotion
and support of Minnesota Hockey, the Hobey Baker Foundation, the Boys’ and Girls’ High
School Hockey Coaches Associations and the Minnesota Minute Men. Along with these responsibilities,
he represents the organization at various community events, is actively engaged in the
charitable interests of the Minnesota Wild and is Vice Chair of the Minnesota Wild Foundation.
Bombardir was acquired by Minnesota in a trade with the New Jersey Devils in June of 2000. The Powell River, B.C., native was
a member of the franchise’s inaugural team and played a total of 212 games in a Wild sweater. During his run in Minnesota,
he was named the monthly captain a franchise-record seven times. Bombardir also played an active role in all of the team’s
community relations affairs, making appearances at schools and hospitals, along with participating in the organization’s
charitable activities.
Originally drafted by the Devils in the third round of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, he recorded 54 points (8-46=54) in 356 games
during seven years in the NHL with New Jersey, Minnesota and Nashville. He made his NHL debut with the Devils during the
1997-98 campaign, and captured a Stanley Cup Championship in his third season with New Jersey in 2000. Bombardir played
four years at the University of North Dakota (1990-94) and spent three seasons (1994-97) with Albany of the American Hockey
League, and helped the River Rats win the 1995 Calder Cup.
He and his wife, Heather, reside with their three children in Woodbury.
THE STATE OF HOCKEY 2016-2017 MINNESOTA WILD TEAM GUIDE 2016-2017 MINNESOTA WILD TEAM GUIDE THE STATE OF HOCKEY
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