SPRINGFIELD, Mass. … The American Hockey League has named Mike Peck, the director of business operations for the Rockford IceHogs, the winner of the league’s Ken McKenzie Award for the 2015-16 season.
Recognizing the important role played by team management in building a successful franchise, the Ken McKenzie Award is presented annually to an AHL team executive who most successfully promotes his or her own club.
Peck has been a member of the IceHogs organization for 15 seasons, serving as the club’s director of communications and play-by-play broadcaster before assuming the role of director of business operations in 2014. Peck is now responsible for overseeing the IceHogs’ ticket and corporate sales, game operations and communications departments, all of which have experienced record growth over the last two seasons.
The AHL’s Ken McKenzie Award, first presented in 1978, honors Ken McKenzie, the founder and long-time publisher of The Hockey News and a 1997 media honoree by the Hockey Hall of Fame as the Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award winner. Mr. McKenzie was also the NHL’s first publicity director and creator of its first media guide.
In operation since 1936, the AHL continues to serve as the top development league for all 30 National Hockey League teams. More than 88 percent of today’s NHL players are American Hockey League graduates, and more than 100 honored members of the Hockey Hall of Fame spent time in the AHL in their careers. In 2015-16, over 7.1 million fans attended AHL regular-season and playoff games across North America, the highest total attendance in league history.
