The Evansville Thunderbolts announced today the addition of Ian Moran as head coach and Adam Stio as general manager. Moran becomes the second head coach in franchise history, succeeding Jeff Pyle. Stio becomes the third general manager in franchise history, succeeding Pete Xander.
Moran, native of Cleveland, Ohio, had an illustrious playing career, including 12 seasons in the National Hockey League, most of them with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Following his playing career, Moran founded his own hockey training school, IM Hockey School, based out of Dedham, Mass., and more recently became head scout in New England. “Coaching professional hockey is something I have wanted to do for a long time, since my retirement as a playerâ€, said Moran. “This is a great opportunityfor me and I felt the time was right to start my professional hockey coaching career. It’s gonna be a blast, I am all about community involvement, helping players move up to the next level, and building a winning culture. I’ve worked with and played under a lot of great coaches and managers, such as Kevin Constantine, Mike Sullivan, Herb Brooks, Randy Carlyle, and especially Craig Patrick. I take a little bitfrom each of those and adapt that into my coaching style that I will be bringing to Evansville with me.â€
Stio has held several hockey coach and general manager positions, including a stint as assistant coach for the Elmira Jackals of the ECHL. Most recently, Stio was head coach and general manager of the Las Vegas Cavalry, a semi-professional club in the MWHL. “I’ve dreamed of having this kind of role in aprofessional hockey organization for a long time, so I am extremely excited,†said Stio. “I am lookingforward to working with Ian (Moran) and the rest of the staff and helping out in all areas of the organization and help build on the success the team had last season. There are a lot of greatpromotions on the schedule for this season, so it is going to be an exciting year.â€
