Carolina Hurricanes

Carolina Hurricanes hire Doug Warf to be new team president, oversee PNC Arena renovations

PNC Arena is the home of the Carolina Hurricanes of the NHL and also the home arena for NC State men’s basketball games.
PNC Arena is the home of the Carolina Hurricanes of the NHL and also the home arena for NC State men’s basketball games.

The Carolina Hurricanes turned to a familiar face in hiring its new team president.

The team announced Monday that Doug Warf would be president of Hurricanes Holdings, LLC, and would oversee the Hurricanes’ business operations and the operation of PNC Arena.

From 2007-17, Warf served as executive director of the Hurricanes Foundation, formerly known as the Kids ‘N Community Foundation. Under his leadership, the foundation set in-house records for funds raised and funds distributed – more than $5 million to more than 100 North Carolina non-profit organizations.

Warf succeeds Don Waddell, who was the Canes’ president and general manager until leaving to join the Columbus Blue Jackets.

“Doug brings a wealth of knowledge to this position,” team owner Tom Dundon said in a statement. “His experiences with the Hurricanes, in business and in the community make him well-suited to lead the organization. Doug will help us create the most exciting game-day environment in sports for our fans, as we look forward to arena renovations and construction of the mixed-use district.”

Warf recently served as president of MDO Holdings, a Raleigh-based investment and management firm. He oversaw business operations for nine operating portfolio companies from a variety of industries and provided business operations and marketing counsel to several key companies in the MDO Holdings investment portfolio.

Warf joined MDO Holdings in 2017 as chief marketing officer before becoming president in 2019.

I would like to thank Tom Dundon for entrusting me with this great opportunity. It’s a true honor to serve in this role,” Warf said in a statement. “Over the last 20 years, I’ve had the privilege of working with the last three team Presidents, so I know the expectations for this position are very high.”

Warf is a graduate of N.C. State, where he earned a B.A. in communication.

This story was originally published July 8, 2024 at 12:33 PM.

Chip Alexander
The News & Observer
In more than 40 years at The N&O, Chip Alexander has covered the N.C. State, UNC, Duke and East Carolina beats, and now is in his 15th season on the Carolina Hurricanes beat. Alexander, who has won numerous writing awards at the state and national level, covered the Hurricanes’ move to North Carolina in 1997 and was a part of The N&O’s coverage of the Canes’ 2006 Stanley Cup run.
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