The ECHL [https://thehockeynews.com/echl/https://thehockeynews.com/echl/]is holding its annual Summer Meetings in Orlando this week. One of the items of business was handing out the Executive of the Year Award. The league announced that Maine Mariners [https://thehockeynews.com/echl/latest-news/americans-complete-futures-trade-with-mariners]Chief Executive Officer/Alternate Governor Adam Goldberg is the 2024-25 recipient of the Blake Cullen ECHL Executive of the Year Award. The award, which is determined in voting by the ECHL Board of Governors, is presented annually to the top executive in the League. In 2023, the award was renamed in honor of Blake Cullen, who was inducted into the ECHL Hall of Fame in 2009. Cullen founded the Hampton Roads Admirals in 1989, and owned the team for seven seasons through 1995-96. During the 2024-25 season, Maine saw a 20 percent increase in aggregate total ticket revenue and a 16.7 percent increase in aggregate total revenue. Nearly a third of the home schedule saw sellout crowds, as 11 games reached full capacity, including five in the season’s final two months. This was an important step forward for the Mariners. Having never exceeded 6,000 fans prior to the 2024-25 season, the club had five crowds over 6,000, including a team record 6,361 on Apr. 13. Goldberg has been a pillar of the Maine community since the Mariners came to fruition back in 2018. This season, he has been largely involved with the team’s University of New England partnership which gave students the opportunity to research and analyze data in three primary sectors: Hockey Operations, Market Demographics and Practice Facility Proformas. Goldberg spoke at multiple student events as well as networking events offering his mentorship. He was also the point person in the ongoing creation of the Maine Mariners Foundation, which will look to bolster youth hockey in the state of Maine. Goldberg worked directly with the Mariners’ new Director of Marketing, taking the lead in the team’s marketing initiative, all while leading the transition of the team’s purchase from Comcast-Spectacor to Powerplay LLC. This included setting up payroll, human resources, health insurance and 401ks. (Photo Courtesy of the ECHL)
