Peter Karmanos Jr., Chief Executive Officer, Owner and Governor of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced a group of 10 new partners in the ownership of the team. Nine of the team’s 10 new investors are based locally in North Carolina.
“These new partners are devoted to the continued success of the Hurricanes in North Carolina,” said Karmanos. “Their investments in our team further solidify our franchise’s standing in the National Hockey League and the North Carolina sports community.”
Eight of the ten partners are: Michael Kahn, Capitol Broadcasting Company, Inc. (James Goodmon, A.J. Fletcher Foundation), Matthew Szulik, Ice Puck LLC (Orris Temple Sloan, Jr.), Clancy & Theys Construction (David Tim Clancy, Joel Thomas Irving Clancy, Kathryn Virginia Clancy, Robert Todd Clancy, Sarah Elizabeth Sturm), Jim Rutherford, Hurricanes Investment, LLC (Abel Zalcberg, Barbara Zalcberg) and Whitney Holdings Inc. (Frederick J. Whitney, Timothy M. Whitney). The remaining two investment partners have chosen to keep their partnerships private.
Born and raised in Atlanta, Michael Kahn has been involved in a family-owned wine and spirits business all of his life. He is the chief operating officer of Empire Distributors Inc., originally founded by his grandfather in 1940. Kahn, who has been nominated as Outstanding Philanthropist of the Year, currently resides in Charlotte with his wife, Wendy, and three sons. Kahn is the Owner and Governor of Carolina’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers.
Capitol Broadcasting Company, Inc. is a locally-owned communications company which owns WRAL-TV, WRAZ-TV, WRAL-FM, WCMC-FM, WDNC-AM, WCLY-AM, Microspace, CBC New Media Group and Wolfpack Sports Marketing in the Triangle; WJZY-TV and WMYT-TV in Charlotte; WILM-TV and Sunrise Broadcasting in Wilmington, NC; and real estate interests including the American Tobacco Project and Diamond View office buildings in Durham. Jim Goodmon serves as President and CEO of Capitol Broadcasting. Capitol Broadcasting Company owns and operates the Durham Bulls of the International League, the Triple-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays, and Capitol property 99.9 The Fan (WCMC-FM) is the flagship station of the Carolina Hurricanes’ radio network.
Matthew Szulik is the retired Chairman and CEO of Red Hat. He served as the Chairman of the Science and Technology Board for the State of North Carolina, Chairman of NCTA, a Trustee of Appalachian State University, a Director of the University of Notre Dame School of Engineering and Trustee of the Healing Place. Szulik has been recognized by CIO Magazine with its 20/20 Vision Award, and as a Technologist of the Decade. He was North Carolina’s first national winner of the 2008 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award.
Temple Sloan, Jr., has sat or is currently sitting on the boards of some of the most prominent businesses in the Triangle community. He currently serves as chairman of the board for General Parts International, Inc.; Trail Creek Investments, Inc.; and Highwoods Properties. He was the former Lead Director for Lowe’s Companies and also for Bank of America, as well as a partner of Ready Mix Concrete and Al Smith Buick. Sloan was inducted into the North Carolina Business Hall of Fame in 2010.
Clancy & Theys Construction was founded in Raleigh in 1949 by brothers-in-law E.I. Clancy and John Theys. Today the company is owned by the late E.I. Clancy’s family, and is managed by his sons. Tim Clancy is president, and his brother Tick is executive vice president. Clancy & Theys provides a diverse range of construction and construction management services for public, commercial, industrial, retail and residential clients. In addition to its Raleigh headquarters, Clancy & Theys operates offices in Wilmington and Charlotte, Newport News, VA, and Orlando, FL.
Jim Rutherford is in his 18th year as general manager of the Carolina Hurricanes, making him the longest-tenured general manager in franchise history and the second-longest tenured general manager currently serving in the NHL. Under Rutherford, the Hurricanes have earned a 487-432-139-20 regular-season record since arriving in North Carolina, including a pair of trips to the Stanley Cup Final and the first Stanley Cup Championship in franchise history in 2006. Rutherford’s management efforts were recognized in 2002 and 2006, when The Hockey News named him “Executive of the Year,” and in 2006 when he was voted by his NHL management peers as the Sporting News’ “Executive of the Year.” In 2006, he was also named the Triangle’s “Businessperson of the Year” by the Triangle Business Journal.
Abel and Barbara Zalcberg are co-founders of OFM, Inc., a family-owned importer and distributer of office furniture to the trade located in Holly Springs, NC and Phoenix, AZ. OFM is a past winner of the Triangle Business Journal’s “Fast 50” award, recognizing the fastest-growing private companies in the Triangle. The Zalcbergs’ professional interests also include partnership in a land development company in Holly Springs and Clayton, NC and a private jet charter company at RDU. Devoted philanthropists, Abel serves as chairman of the Children’s Flight of Hope, which offers free air transportation to children and families to and from hospital facilities, and Barbara works with the Frankie Lemmon School for developmentally disadvantaged children. Abel and Barbara also share a strong commitment to the V Foundation for Cancer Research. Abel and Barabara have two children, Blake Zalcberg and Cara Zalcberg Hylton, who each reside in the area.
The investment corporation, Whitney Holdings Inc., was created by Frederick J. Whitney and Timothy M. Whitney in August 2011 for the purpose of investing in the Carolina Hurricanes Hockey Club. Originally from Cleveland, Fred has called Raleigh home since 1974. He began his professional career as a city planner before becoming a financial planning investment advisor. Born in 1978, Tim Whitney is a Raleigh native. He joined Fred in the financial planning industry and operates as a portfolio manager. Together, the father and son team are partners of Whitney Wealth Management. Fred and Tim are active supporters of the local community and believe that Raleigh greatly benefits from the presence of a professional sports franchise.
The Carolina Hurricanes continue a three-game home stand on Friday against the Washington Capitals (7 p.m., FOX Sports Carolinas HD, Hurricanes Radio Network). For information on 2011-12 Carolina Hurricanes ticket packages, please visit www.CarolinaHurricanes.com, or call 1-866-NHL-CANES.