Barely a year after first hiring her, the New Jersey Devils are giving Meghan Duggan a promotion. Duggan will be made director of player development, moving up in the department she joined in 2021. The team has also announced the hiring of Dr. Angus Mugford as senior vice president, player development and performance.
Duggan, 34, is one of the most decorated players in U.S. hockey history, having won eight World Championship medals (seven gold) and three Olympic medals (one gold), along with three NCAA championships and a Patty Kazmaier Award as the nation’s top player. She wore the “C” as captain of Team USA for years, including her final appearance at the 2018 Games.
She joined the Devils last year in a manager role within the player development department and has obviously done well enough to now deserve a promotion. At the time of her hiring, Hayley Wickenhesier was sitting as the highest ranked woman in an NHL front office with her role as senior director of player development with the Toronto Maple Leafs. That has since changed dramatically, with the appointment of Cammi Granato and Emilie Castonguay as assistant general managers with the Vancouver Canucks.
Duggan was just entering the national team program as Granato exited her playing days but Wickenheiser was a regular opponent at international events. They now continue to set the path forward for women in NHL front offices, this new promotion just another step along the way.
Mugford, meanwhile, is coming over from the baseball world, where he spent the last seven years with the Toronto Blue Jays. As the leader of the team’s high performance department, he overhauled the Blue Jays’ player development and integrated a sports science department. As part of a lengthy statement about the hire, Devils’ general manager Tom Fitzgerald explained:
Angus has an outstanding background in culture, care and development and has all the attributes required to build a model that will help our players get the best out of themselves and direct them to their next level.
Emily Kaplan of ESPN broke the news of Duggan’s promotion.
Dr. Angus Mugford sounds like a fake name to me, is he another one of Dr. Evil’s Scottish henchmen?