HOCKEY EAST STAFF
HOCKEY EAST STAFF Smith enters his eighth season with the Hockey East Association and fifth as Associate Commissioner in 2020-21 after spending three years as Director of Communications. In his role, he is responsible for external operations from the league office, including all marketing and public and media relations efforts. During the summer of 2019, Smith engineered and negotiated Hockey East’s first-ever multi-media rights deal, aggregating all Hockey East content within the linear television and digital space. Under the multi-faceted agreement, Hockey East cemented its relationship with NESN as the league’s premier television partner while also joining forces with one of the most highly-trafficked streaming services in the country, CBS All Access. With Hockey East’s rights centralized, live and on-demand content from the league’s 12 member institutions became more accessible to fans across the league, and North America, than ever before. During his time with Hockey East, Smith has revitalized the digital presence of the conference by revamping the league website, HockeyEastOnline.com, multiple times and growing its social media channels to develop the most heavily followed accounts in all of college hockey. Smith also served as the main media contact for the 2015 Frozen Four, hosted by Hockey East and the TD Garden, and has assisted in the successful execution of the Friendship Four Tournament in Belfast, Northern Ireland and Frozen Fenway events. Smith has been involved with numerous other endeavors during his time with Hockey East, including assisting with NCAA Ice Hockey Officiating Department programs, serving on the media relations team at multiple Frozen Fours, directing the 2015 U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, aiding with the media operations of the American Hockey Coaches Association, and serving as Assistant Venue Press Officer for Gillette Stadium during the 2016 Copa América Centenario. Prior to joining the conference in July 2014, Smith spent two years with USA Hockey as the Brian Fishman Intern, a prestigious program that develops young professionals in the athletic communications business. Dividing his time with USA Hockey between the national office in Colorado Springs, Colorado and the National Team Development Program, then located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Smith traveled extensively while assisting in numerous international tournaments as the main media contact for U.S. national teams. While with the NTDP, Smith served as the main media contact for both the U.S. National Under-17 and Under-18 teams. Additionally, Smith played an integral role in the execution of the 2012 and 2013 U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies. Smith also has spent time working with the Boston Bruins and New England Revolution in various roles. With the Bruins from 2010-12, Smith worked alongside a communications staff that received the Dick Dillman Award and was charged with media relations duties during the 2011 Stanley Cup Final. With the New England Revolution, Smith oversaw all aspects of the New England Revolution Charitable Foundation and assisted with all match day operations, including international friendlies at Gillette Stadium. A former high school hockey player at Woburn Memorial High School, Smith is a 2012 graduate of Boston College with a degree in English and Communications. He earned four varsity letters in track and field while competing in the Atlantic Coast Conference during his time with the Eagles.
Brian Smith Associate Commissioner
McAfee was named Associate Commissioner of Hockey East in April 2020. She was appointed a member of the NCAA Women’s Ice Hockey Committee in November 2019. She previously served as Associate Athletic Director for Event Management at the University of New Hampshire, working as the on-site administrator for multiple intercollegiate athletics events at UNH, including men’s and women’s ice hockey, football, field hockey, men’s soccer, and women’s lacrosse.
Kate McAfee Associate Commissioner
McAfee has extensive experience managing high-visibility hockey collegiate tournaments, as she served as the Tournament Manager for the 2016 NCAA Women’s Frozen Four Tournament, Assistant Tournament Manager for the NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Regional five times between 2011 and 2019, and was a Quarterfinal Site Representative for the National Collegiate Women’s Ice Hockey Tournament in 2018 and 2019. In addition to her role on the NCAA Women’s Ice Hockey Committee, McAfee was previously a member of the NCAA Lacrosse Rules Committee from February 2013 to September 2017. She was awarded the President’s Cup by the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Association in November 2018 for her work to promote, develop, and enhance intercollegiate women’s lacrosse. The Hampton Falls, New Hampshire native was a field hockey and lacrosse letter-winner at Western New England College, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History in May 2000. McAfee earned a Master of Science: Kinesiology Sport Studies degree from the University of New Hampshire in May 2017. Since then, she has been an adjunct instructor for the Department of Recreation Management and Policy. She currently resides in Hampton Falls with her husband Bryan and their children Amelia and Fiona.
Bryce Aldrich Graduate Assistant
Bryce Aldrich is a native of Lebanon, Maine and is 2021 graduate from the University of New Hampshire where he majored in Sport Studies.
Aldrich brings a variety of experience to Hockey East as he coached lacrosse at Noble High School (North Berwick, ME) for three seasons. He has worked the last three years for the Maine Mariners of the ECHL, most recently as a Media Assistant. During Aldrich’s time at UNH, he held an internship with TorchPro where he worked directly with professional athletes creating a brand for themselves. He also spent time volunteering with the UNH Men’s Hockey team during the 2018-19 season where he assisted with video and statistics. Prior to college, Aldrich attended Noble High School (North Berwick, ME) where he was a four-year letter winner in both lacrosse and ice hockey. Aldrich attended the NHL Draft in 2016 in Buffalo, NY and 2017 in Chicago, IL with a drive to learn about the business side of the sport and follow his passion and goal of working in hockey.
Seamus Kelley Graduate Assistant
Seamus Kelley is a 2021 graduate from the University of Massachusetts Amherst where he earned a degree in Communication, with a minor in IT. He is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Corporate and Organizational Communication from Northeastern University.
During his time at UMass, Seamus was actively involved in sports media and UMass Athletics. He was a member of the UMass Men’s Hockey Beat for WMUA Sports Radio, where he was able to cover the team as a beat reporter, which culminated in the opportunity to commentate the 2021 Frozen Four and National Championship game in Pittsburgh. He also worked as a production assistant for UMass Sports Network, where he filled various TV studio positions in the production of UMass Athletics games and events on ESPN+ and NESN. Outside of UMass, Seamus has over 7 years of experience as a freelance graphic designer, specializing in sports-centric graphics ranging from cover art to social media infographics. He previously worked as a graphic designer for Future Considerations Hockey, as well as a TV production assistant this summer for NBC’s broadcast of the Premier Lacrosse League at Gillette Stadium. A native of Norwood, Massachusetts, Seamus grew up playing and watching hockey. He is looking forward to learning from the Hockey East Staff while getting professional experience in Athletics Communications, as well as the opportunity to start a career working in hockey.
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