Just hours after formally announcing his resignation with the Chicago Blackhawks, Rick Dudley has been hired as assistant general manager of the Atlanta Thrashers.
''Rick has informed me that he has resigned from his position with the Blackhawks to pursue other opportunities,'' Blackhawks general manager Dale Tallon said in a statement. ''I would like to extend my gratitude to him for his work with our organization and certainly wish him well in the future.''
Dudley's career behind the bench began in 1982 when he was hired as head coach of the Buffalo Sabres. He remained in Buffalo for three seasons before being fired in 1992. He didn't find work in the NHL again until he was a mid-season replacement for the Florida Panthers in the 2003–04 season.
Dudley was the general manager of the Ottawa Senators in the 1998–99 season before moving into the front office of the Blackhawks' organization in 2004, hired as a consultant before becoming assistant general manager in 2006.
