Jeff Dickerson of Spire Sports spoke to the media as the new owner of the Trois-Rivieres Lions, the ECHL affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens.
The purchase of the Trois-Rivieres Lions by Jeff Dickerson from former owner Deacon Sports Entertainment (DSE) was approved by the ECHL on Monday. Dickerson is co-owner of Spire Holding, the parent company of Spire Sports + Entertainment, Spire Motorsports, Spire Hockey, and Track Enterprises.
He met virtually with local media on Wednesday as health reasons prevented his physical presence in Trois-Rivieres.
"I understand if there's going to be skepticism. This is our third press conference in markets that we've come in and we just want to hug and let them know everything is gonna be okay, but I'll let our track record speak for itself," said the new owner.
The Lions became the third ECHL franchise owned by Spire Hockey, along with the Rapid City Rush (Calgary Flames) and Greenville Swamp Rabbits (Los Angeles Kings).
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Long-Term Commitment
DSE has a long list of debtors that the new owner has committed to make right. "We don't expect to ask a city to love us, if we don't show them love first. We want everybody to know that all of the known obligations that are owed to the city of Trois-Rivieres, the province, the league and all the businesses of Trois-Rivieres will be paid when this transaction is finalized," noted Dickerson.
The city cashed in on a $650,000 bank guarantee letter to cover a portion of the estimated $1.1 million owed to them by DSE. The amount owed to other debtors has not been divulged.
Dickerson plans on keeping the team in the province of Quebec for a long time and negotiations with the city have already begun. "We are in this for the long haul with you and we'll be working with the city after the season is over to finalize a long term lease not short of 10 years."
The Colisee Videotron is owned by the city and has already agreed to renegotiate the original lease that was signed by DSE for usage of the arena.
"We’re not looking for a discount. We want to make sure this is a win-win partnership. We didn't come to this opportunity because we want to pay zero rent and we win you guys lose," stated the co-owner of Spire Holdings.
Dickerson is familiar with the city of Trois-Rivieres as Spire Motorsports owns three-car NASCAR series team that participates in the Trois-Rivieres Grand Prix.
Extending the Affiliation
The Lions affiliation agreement with the Montreal Canadiens expires at the end of the season. Todd Mackin, President of Spire Hockey, already met with the team to begin discussions about extending the deal.
The affiliation adds depth to the Canadiens in case of injury or other roster changes at the AHL and NHL level. The proximity between Montreal, Laval, and Trois-Rivieres has benefitted the organization as it facilitates player movement between the three rosters.
(With notes from Le Nouvelliste)
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