Kevin Maxwell Named General Manager of Springfield Thunderbirds

SPRINGFIELD — St. Louis Blues President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Doug Armstrong announced that the team has hired Kevin Maxwell as general manager of the club’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds, as well as a pro scout.

Maxwell joins the Blues organization following 14 seasons in the scouting department with the New York Rangers. Since 2011, Maxwell had served as the Rangers’ director of Professional Scouting. New York reached the Stanley Cup playoffs in 10 of Maxwell’s 14 seasons in the organization, including a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals last season.

Maxwell was a third-round selection by the Minnesota North Stars in the 1979 NHL draft following an All-American season at the University of North Dakota in 1978-79, when the center amassed 82 points in 42 games for the Fighting Sioux.

Maxwell turned pro in 1980 and skated in eight professional seasons, including 66 NHL games with the North Stars, Colorado Rockies, and New Jersey Devils. In his AHL playing career, Maxwell was a member of two Calder Cup winners with the Maine Mariners in 1984 and the Hershey Bears in his final season in 1988.

After retiring from his playing career in 1988, Maxwell immediately jumped into the scouting ranks, spending three seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers scouting department from 1988 to 1991. Following a brief stint as the head coach for the Western Hockey League’s Brandon Wheat Kings in 1991-92, Maxwell spent the last 30 years in NHL scouting roles with the Hartford Whalers (1992-96), New York Islanders (1996-2006), Dallas Stars (2006-08), and Rangers (2008-2022). He has served as the director of Professional Scouting for the Whalers, Islanders, and Rangers over his tenure as an executive.