Fresh face in Fanshawe's Athletics department

With 19 years of sport management and administration experience, Nathan McFadden has landed his next gig as Fanshawe's new manager of Athletics. McFadden has replaced Mike Lindsay, who retired this year after 41 years with the Falcons. "I'm really, really excited; I've got lot of ideas going through my head and I'm really ready to get going," McFadden exclaimed.

He was selected from a nationwide search, and Fanshawe is proud to have him on board. "We are excited to welcome Nathan to build on our already strong program," said Heather Cummings, Fanshawe College executive director of student success. "The search to fill this position took us coast-tocoast, and Nathan's resume speaks for itself. We are looking forward to having him lead us into the next stage of Fanshawe Athletics."

With experience both at the professional and amateur levels, McFadden said he's well prepared for the role. "I've been very fortunate throughout my career to work in a number of different areas from media relations to marketing to hockey operations, which will translate well into the Athletics department … There's a whole whack of different areas I've been exposed to so it's something I think I'm well-rounded in."

His resume is impressive with a long list of reputable accomplishments. "With the Toronto Maple Leafs' organization, probably the biggest one (achievement) was the 2007/08 season; we set the Maple Leafs' all-time record for an affiliate with the most wins and points in a season," McFadden said. They also captured the Club's first regular season and playoff division titles that season.

Prior to his career with the Leafs organization, he spent six years at the American Hockey League head office in Springfield, Massachusetts, as the League's manager of hockey operations. "I was exposed to a lot of different avenues and was able to make a solid imprint on what went on," said McFadden. He directed the AHL Central Registry, which included approving all player contracts, compiling contract information, and updating the AHL Reserve List. He was also responsible for the administration and compliance of the AHL Collective Bargaining Agreement, AHL Constitution, By-Laws, Policies, and Procedures.

McFadden is a University of New Brunswick grad and worked as the director of sports information there for two years. McFadden recalled a great moment of success from his career at UNB, "I worked with all of the teams, but probably a bit more with the hockey team there. We won the national CIS Hockey Championship, so that was a great feeling."

Originally from Fredericton, McFadden's passion for sports started at a young age. "I grew up playing all kinds of sports: tennis, basketball, hockey, and baseball, golf ... I've certainly had a lifelong love of sport," he said.

Despite all of the achievements on his resume, McFadden said it's the relationships that make it all worthwhile. "The biggest achievement would probably be the number of people I've been able to work with and learn from and become really good friends with over the years — that's something that you never lose even though time moves on, you still stay in contact with those people and it's very rewarding."

He said he's looking forward to working with students once again, "I always find that the students themselves bring so much energy. Just talking to them and seeing how they develop as people, those are two things that really, really excite me and continue to make me want to do well for them and put them in positions where they can succeed."

McFadden began his new role on December 3.