Flahr '96 jack of all trades for Ottawa Senators

While established National Hockey League players Jeff Halpern '99 and George Parros '03 represent their alma mater well with their on-ice play, not all Princeton alumni in the NHL do their work on two thin blades of steel. Such is the case with Brent Flahr '96, who has worked in professional hockey for over a decade and was named director of hockey operations for the NHL's Ottawa Senators last summer.

"It's been pretty positive all around," Flahr said of his new job in Kanata, Ontario, just outside the Canadian capital. "I can't complain."

As one of the most powerful people in one of the NHL's most successful franchises, Flahr's duties as director of hockey operations are many — "a little of everything," according to Flahr. He oversees, among other things, contracts, including arbitrations and signings; pro and amateur scouting; the organization's American Hockey League affiliate, the Binghamton Senators; and general day-today operations of the franchise.

Before landing his high-ranking position in Ottawa, however, Flahr had to work his way up in the business, just as a player has to progress through the minor leagues.

His first job out of college was with the Florida Panthers, where he served in a variety of lower-level positions.

"I was a young guy just starting out, doing a lot of stuff that wasn't overly glamorous," Flahr said.

Eventually, he gained the trust of his superiors, Flahr said, and in 2002 he was named director of hockey operations for the Panthers' AHL affiliate in San Antonio.

After a successful year in Texas, Flahr left the Panthers and joined the scouting staff of the Anaheim Ducks, where he worked as a scout for four years before accepting his new position in Ottawa. Along with Parros, Flahr was a member of the Ducks organization when they won the Stanley Cup last June.

"Obviously, it was a pretty memorable year," Flahr said of the Ducks' 2006-07 championship season. "It was just a typical year until the playoffs, and then in about the second round I realized we had a pretty good chance. Right until the last second of the last game I pretty much chewed my nails off."

Though his psychology degree isn't very applicable to the front offices of the hockey world, Flahr said that the University prepared him well for his career.

"I learned a lot at Princeton. Just like any Princeton kid you come out of there and you're pretty well grounded, whatever field you're in," Flahr said.

Flahr was a defenseman on the men's hockey team for four years, serving as a captain his senior season. Unfortunately for the Tigers, Flahr broke his neck as a sophomore and missed considerable time as a result, but he returned the next year, in 1994-95. That season he registered three goals and 23 assists for 26 points, good for fourth place all-time in points and third place all-time in assists by a Tiger defenseman in a single season.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

Though Flahr said the team struggled a bit in his first two years, it got consistently better, and during his senior year the team had a lot of good young players who went on to play professionally, including Halpern, who now plays for the Dallas Stars.

"Overall I had a great time," Flahr said. "I wouldn't do it any other way."

As for pursuing a possible career in hockey, Flahr said he was realistic about his level of talent.

"I could have played lower minor-league level, but I knew I wasn't an NHL-caliber player. I didn't see any point in making $15,000 a year in the East Coast [Hockey] League," Flahr said.

Despite being a very busy man now, Flahr still tries to keep up with Tiger hockey, maintaining contacts with other hockey alumni and current Tigers.

"I talk to [men's hockey head coach] Guy Gadowsky once in a while. I follow [Princeton hockey] on the internet as much as I can. I don't get to as many games as I'd like to, but I try to get out there at least once a year," Flahr said.

Having worked in the hockey world for so long and in so many different capacities, Flahr knows what it takes to make it in the big leagues, and current and future Princeton players will be pleased to know that they have someone high up who hasn't forgotten his old Tigers.

"I had one of our scouts at both the Notre Dame games," Flahr said. "Our guys are on it. Guy's got the program going in the right direction, and I think they'll see a lot of success in the next couple of years."