The Kamloops Blazers have announced this morning that General Manager, Matt Bardsley has resigned from the hockey club for personal reasons. Bardsley will transition out of his current positon over the coming weeks.
“This was a very difficult decision for me and my wife, but one we needed to make for our young children,” said Bardsley. “When we moved here in 2018, we planned on making this our home for many years. Unfortunately because of COVID-19, it has restricted our ability to see our family as they reside in the United States.”
Bardsley was named the General Manager of the hockey club on June 1, 2018. Over three seasons with the Blazers, Bardsley’s teams had a record of 87-54-9-3 over 153 games. He was also named Western Conference Executive of the Year for the 2019-20 season. The Blazers won back-to-back B.C. Division championships in 2019-20 and 2020-21.
“I am so proud of what our team has accomplished during my three seasons here in Kamloops,” continued Bardsley. “From the exciting tie-breaker win in 2019 to the back-to-back B.C. Division Championships in 2020 and 2021. I am disappointed to have to leave this special group of players, coaches and staff, but feel confident they will continue to achieve great success individually and as a team going forward.”
“I would like to thank Tom Gaglardi, Shane Doan, Darryl Sydor, Mark Recchi, Jarome Iginla and Don Moores for trusting in me to come to Kamloops and carry on the tradition of excellence. Finally, our family would like to thank the city of Kamloops and #Blazernation for welcoming us during our three years here. Kamloops will always be a special place for us,” concluded Bardsley.
“We appreciated having Matt and his family move to another country and be part of the Blazers family,” said President/COO, Don Moores. “While we are saddened with his decision, we respect the difficulty Matt and Stacy have had dealing with the challenges of the pandemic and their inability to see their families who reside in the Portland area. We wish Matt and his young family all the best in the future.”