PHF Announces Trio of New Front Office Hires
August 26, 2022 – Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) News Release
BOSTON, MA – The Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) today announced the addition of three new staff members to a growing list of front office leaders ahead of the 2022-23 season. The new hires include Brianna Decker who joins as Team and Player Development Advisor, Marissa Halligan named Lead, League Operations Developer, and Nichole Bargo who has been appointed to the role of Director of Finance.
“As we continue building the best thriving and sustainable home for women’s professional hockey, it’s energizing that our mission is supported by a roster of experienced, credible, accomplished, results oriented, and purpose driven staff who will help achieve our goals,” said Reagan Carey, PHF Commissioner.
“Brianna Decker is a one-of-a-kind proven leader on and off the ice! Her commitment to development has earned her the title of one of the best players in the world, but it’s her dedication to sharing her time, knowledge, and experience with the next generation that makes her such a valuable and respected member of the women’s hockey landscape. She has won at every level of the sport, and we’re excited to have her competitive drive onboard with the PHF. Marissa Halligan is a dynamic and experienced manager who was the essential backbone across multiple women’s hockey programs during her time with USA Hockey that produced a record number of wins at the U18 and National Team level for Team USA. She’s an exceptional teammate and her commitment to the sport, details, and process improvement will ensure many more victories for the PHF. I am excited to welcome Nichole to the league and appreciate her recognition for how competing in sports growing up has positively contributed to her ability to thrive in her career. We are excited to bring her and her finance skills to the league!”
Decker returns to the PHF where she was a member of the 2016 Isobel Cup champions and earned back-to-back MVP honors with the Boston Pride during the league’s first two seasons. The native of Dousman, WI amassed 60 points in 33 games, for a 1.82 points-per-game average that ranks the highest in PHF history. She’s also one of the most distinguished players to ever compete for the U.S. Women’s National Team, with a career that includes U18 gold, eight-straight IIHF Women’s World Championship medals including six gold, and medals at three-straight Olympic Winter Games including gold in 2018. Decker attended the University of Wisconsin where she won a national championship with the Badgers in 2011 and received the Patty Kazmaier Award as the top NCAA player in 2012. Off the ice, she graduated with a degree in Human Development and Family Studies. Her new PHF role will be served in a part-time capacity as she maintains her position at Shattuck-St. Mary’s (SSM) as the Girls Prep Associate Head Coach and Special Advisor to the SSM Hockey Program. The PHF Team and Player Development Advisor position is designed to support the PHF’s commitment to the consistent elevation of training and competition standards at the highest level. Her experience will help assess the league’s on and off ice environment to ensure it is optimal for players seeking continued development at an elite level.
“I am thoroughly excited to be back with the PHF,” said Decker. “It’s amazing to see the progress the league has made in such a short amount of time, and I look forward to helping lead in any way possible to further the growth of the game. Ultimately, we all want players to continue to develop their abilities to the highest level and strengthen the overall playing field. I hope that my experiences on and off the ice can assist with that process.”
Halligan has close to 15 years of leadership and operations experience in hockey, including more than a decade of steadfast commitment to the U.S. Women’s National Team and Development Programs in her role as USA Hockey’s Manager, Women’s Ice Hockey. During her 2008-19 tenure, she accumulated program management and operations experience that covered two Winter Olympic Games, nine IIHF Women’s Under-18 World Championships, and annual USA Hockey events nationwide. Prior to joining USA Hockey she spent three seasons as the Assistant Director of the Annual Fund and Girls Varsity Ice Hockey Head Coach at St. Mark’s School in Southborough, MA. Halligan played four years of collegiate hockey at Hamilton College where she graduated in 2005, then earned a master’s degree in Sports Leadership from Northeastern University in 2010. Her new full-time role as Lead, League Operations Developer is designed to meet the needs of a growing and thriving league by supporting the direction, management, and execution of various PHF-related events, programs, communications, projects, and processes.
“It’s been exciting to see the growth of the PHF and professional women’s hockey, and I look forward to joining the collective effort of making continued progress as the league evolves,” said Halligan. “Commissioner Reagan Carey is a dynamic, forward-thinking leader with a track record of success, and I am eager to collaborate once again to help drive the vision and momentum of the PHF forward.”
Bargo resides in Niles, IL where she is the Co-Owner and Founder of Esteemed Profit LLC, a small business aimed at assisting other small businesses to help conserve start-up funds normally spent on payroll and accounting costs. She has also spent nearly two years at Million Dollar Round Table, serving most recently in the role of Senior Manager, Finance and Member Processing. Her professional experience in finance launched following graduation from Concordia University Chicago in 2014 with a Bachelor of Science, Accounting degree. While studying she also competed as a member of the Cougars track and field team for two seasons. Bargo also holds a Master of Business Administration with a Finance Concentration from Benedictine University which she acquired in 2017. As the PHF’s Director of Finance, she will be responsible for managing all aspects of day-to-day financial operations including budgets, accounting, treasury, and financial functions, along with serving as a strategic financial thought partner supporting the Commissioner and the Board of Governors.
“I’m elated to be a part of the PHF and look forward to providing value to the organization and its players,” said Bargo. “As a life-long athlete, this opportunity fulfills a passion of mine: to be engaged in a capacity to make change for women’s athletics. I am honored to work with the PHF’s innovative minds and forward thinkers. Hockey is a sport of resilience, toughness, and strategy; values to strive to pull into all aspects of life. I am excited to build upon the financial foundation and find areas of strategic opportunity and improvement to continue to enhance the league’s financial aptitude.”
Since Carey was appointed PHF Commissioner in May, the front office has expanded with industry leaders that include Jim Pfeifer in the role of Chief Marketing Officer, along with Kacey Bellamy, Scout and Player Relations Liaison, and Mel Davidson, Director of League and Hockey Operations. The PHF’s developing business model, bolstered by a commitment from the Board of Governors to invest more than $25 million over the next three years, will continue to distinguish North America’s only professional women’s hockey league as a leader in sports.
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