Rink

After working with STAR for the past several years, Don was recently hired by the NHL. What Are Your Primary Responsibilities? Ice conditions are the primary focus of the job, but I will be involved with any issues relating to the building and opera- tions. I'll be focusing on many details such as whether or not golf carts will be allowed on the ice prior to games and tweaking shoveling procedures during time-outs. I will be representing the league during games and communicating a consistent message to all NHL buildings and assisting staff about following league procedures. How Did STAR Help Your Career? STAR has been invaluable. STAR put me in a position to work so many special events, from figure skating nationals to international events including the Olympics. All of the experiences have been invaluable, and getting to know all of the great people in the industry and tapping into their knowledge and experiences has been great. There is no doubt that without STAR I wouldn't be where I am today. Memorable Experience I definitely feel that working the Olympics was a highlight of my career. There is so much going on and so much planning that you can't help but get wrapped up in it. But even with all of the planning, things don't always go as planned so you need to be ready to improvise! Funny Story At the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Dave Wescott and I were helping with the ice and game operations for the NHL game that took place there. Once the game started we stood in the resurfacer entrance and noticed a few famous people in the seats nearby. Later we were talking about a person sitting right near us. Dave said, yes, he saw the person and that it was Jesse James, who Dave is a big fan of. I said wait a minute, I'm talking about a woman. Turns out that Dave is such a big fan of Jesse's that he never even noticed his wife, Sandra Bullock, sitting right next to him! Advice Work hard and learn as much as you can through on-the-job experiences, talk- ing with other people in the industry and taking classes. If you have passion for your job and career, you will be successful! First Fun Experience With The NHL Recently I got to sit in the "War Room" in the NHL offices in Toronto. The room is nothing short of the hub for all of the games taking place and is packed full of televisions and technology. It's quite a place to watch hockey! ★ ■ Training, and recognition of training, is the best way to let colleagues and potential employers know who you are and what you have accomplished. Almost every industry has a measuring stick to help employers gauge the level of competency of a future employee. industry spotlight 62 R INK MAGAZ INE NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2008 Don Moffatt X X Facilities Operations Supervisor for the National Hockey League STARrinks.com All of the experiences have been invaluable, and getting to know all of the great people in the industry and tapping into their knowledge and experiences has been great. There is no doubt that without STAR I wouldn't be where I am today. Apr 2008: Worked as Lead Ice Tech at Frozen Four Event in Denver CO Jan 2008: Assigned as Ice Tech at US Figure Skating Nationals in St Paul, MN 2007: Assigned as Ice Tech at Four Continents International Figure Skating Event in Colorado Springs, CO Feb 2006: Lead Ice Tech at XX Winter Olympic Games at Torino Italy. Jan 2006: Ice Tech at US Figure skating Nationals at St Louis, MO

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