Red Wings Name Shawn Horcoff Interim General Manager
Horcoff takes over day-to-day hockey operations in Detroit as the search for a permanent leader continues, with Steve Yzerman moving to senior adviser.
The Detroit Red Wings named Shawn Horcoff interim general manager on Tuesday, handing the assistant GM full authority over day-to-day roster decisions, the salary cap and hockey operations personnel while the club keeps searching for a permanent head of hockey operations.
Horcoff will report to governor and CEO Chris Ilitch during the interim period. He replaces Steve Yzerman, who was removed from his role as executive vice president and GM on July 15 and now officially transitions to senior adviser to the governor and CEO. Yzerman had been Detroit's GM since April 2019.
"As our process continues to find the best possible leader for Red Wings hockey operations, I'm appreciative of Shawn for stepping up to serve in this capacity," Ilitch said. "His knowledge of our organization and range of experience allows us to operate with a clear decision-maker in place for the season ahead, while maintaining our commitment to carry out a thorough, methodical search process on our own timeline."
Ilitch said the search has drawn significant interest from executives across the league, and that several candidates, Horcoff among them, remain in consideration for the permanent job.
Horcoff, who turns 48 on Thursday, joined the organization ahead of the 2016-17 season as director of player development and was promoted to assistant general manager in February 2022. He has also served as general manager of Detroit's American Hockey League affiliate in Grand Rapids.
He played 1,008 NHL regular-season games as a center with Edmonton, Dallas and Anaheim from 2000 to 2016, recording 186 goals and 325 assists, plus 30 points in 46 playoff games.
The timing is tight: Detroit's camp is opening, and the Red Wings went 41-31-10 last season and missed the playoffs for the 10th straight year. In its statement, the club said Horcoff "has been part of every conversation over the past months" and continues "with full knowledge of our direction and the decisions already in motion."
