Penguins name Alec Schall director of hockey operations

Former player agent Alec Schall has been named the Pittsburgh Penguins’ new director of hockey operations, general manager Ron Hextall announced Tuesday.

Schall will be responsible for working with player contract negotiations, managing the salary cap and assisting with other hockey-related duties.

“Having spent over 25 years in professional sports, Alec brings a wealth of knowledge and experience with contract negotiations,” Hextall said in a statement. “His unique perspective and background make him an exciting addition to our hockey operations staff.”

Schall has spent the previous nine years as director of athlete representation at LEGACY Global Sports, a sports marketing firm for amateur and professional athletes where he scouted and recruited clients and was a liaison with teams and the media.

Before that, he founded R4PA in 2001, which was an independent agency specializing in the comprehensive representation of professional hockey players. R4PA was acquired by LEGACY Global Sports in 2012.

He was an NHLPA agent for several players, including James van Riemsdyk, Alec Martinez, Connor Clifton, Joel Farabee and Luke Glendening. He has negotiated more than $200 million in contracts.

Schall, who has an MBA from Columbia Business School, got his start in professional sports with Advantage International, a sports marketing and representation firm now called Octagon, as their manager of the hockey division from 1994-98.