According to IL Indoor’s Bob Chavez, the Buffalo Bandits have removed the title of GM from head coach Darris Kilgour and sent associate general manager Derek Graham packing. Kilgour will remain behind the bench in his head coaching role for the 2013 season.

These two moves leave a gaping hole atop the Bandits’ organization, but are nevertheless signs that the current setup wasn’t working. In 2012, a season that saw Buffalo finish with a 7-9 record and suffer a first round playoff loss to Toronto, Kilgour held both the head coach and general manager roles—but there were signs that he was losing control over a giant amount of responsibility.

Moreover, Kilgour’s recent personnel moves—the sacrifice of two future first round picks for Anthony Cosmo (who had a stellar finish to the season, at least), the trade of fan-favorite defender Chris Corbeil last year and the inability to inject life into a stagnant offense late in 2012—may have signaled that it was time for Kilgour to concede the role of head decision-maker.

Kilgour has coached the Bandits since 2004 and served in the GM role since 2004. It will be interesting to monitor his relationship with the incoming general manager, as Kilgour is unaccustomed to an authority above him.

A former Bandit himself, Graham was promoted to associate general manager status in 2009, a position where he’d work with Kilgour to handle personnel decisions. Graham was an assistant coach and a team scout for the two seasons leading up to his appointment as associate GM.

(Header photo courtesy of Dave Marino from 2011—full gallery here)