By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

Pelham’s new hockey director said he has hit the ground running over the past few weeks, and is working to boost enrollment in the city’s hockey-related programs.

Randy Murphy, a former professional hockey player who began serving as the Pelham hockey director about three weeks ago, said he has spent plenty of time networking with local schools since his arrival in the city.

“We’ve been to several schools already, and we are excited about what we’ve heard,” Murphy said during a Nov. 13 interview.

Shortly after taking the reins of the city’s ice hockey programs at the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena, Murphy said he began working to finalize schedules and rosters for the season while working to expand the program’s enrollment.

While searching for the city’s first hockey director since 2010 over the summer, Pelham leaders said the city’s hockey programs have experienced declining enrollment over the past few years.

Murphy said he is working not only to market the hockey programs, but also the Civic Complex as a whole.

“Long term, my goal is to just create more awareness of who we are and what we have to offer,” Murphy said. “We’ve got a great foundation. We’ve had success here before, so the long-term plan is to continue to grow.”

Before he came to Pelham, Murphy served as the director of hockey at the Mid South Ice House in Memphis, Tenn., and spent 12 years playing for several professional hockey leagues.

He also served as the head coach and director of hockey operations for the Huntsville Havoc hockey team from 2009-2012.

Pelham Civic Complex Director Danny Tate previously said Murphy grew hockey enrollment form 115 to 180 in the year he was in Memphis, and said Murphy has a wide range of experience in youth and adult hockey programs.

Murphy was hired after an extensive search and interview process, which was headed by a committee composed of Pelham and city skate program officials and representatives from the University of Alabama Frozen Tide hockey team.