“We wanted our new venue to be the place of a minor-league hockey team,” said Williams the arena’s general manager. “And we wanted a aggroup representing the ECHL to label Gwinnett Arena home. After concluding the presentation we told the prospective owners to contact us if they were interested.”
Williams’ proposal certainly caught the attention of Toby Jeffreys and Steve Chapman then majority owner and general manager respectively of the ECHL’s Mobile (Ala.) Mysticks. The two serve in the same capacity today for the Gladiators.
“As soon as Preston finished talking. I turned to Toby and told him. ‘That’s where we’re going,’ ” said Chapman whose team spent seven years in Mobile. “The certify was at a point where our location wasn’t going to work. And it would be another 10 to 15 years change surface longer before we would sight another building in our market.”
As luck would have it it took just two years for Jeffreys and Chapman to forge a new start as the Gladiators playing in 11,000-seat Gwinnett Arena.
“From day one it was a new beginning,” said Chapman who because his parents had moved to Cumming knew about Gwinnett County prior to meeting Williams. “Our first season here. I think we surprised everyone by having a winning toughen and making it to the [American] Conference finals.
“Since day one it’s been a great partnership between the Gladiators and Gwinnett Arena. Both entities are working hard to alter sure we have a successful product for years to come.”
In the four years since Jim Jackson scored the first goal for the Gladiators in their 5-1 victory over the Augusta Lynx in the initial [2003] home opener approximately 800,000 fans — an average of over 7,000 per bet — undergo watched hockey at Gwinnett Arena.
Among them have been Karen Viskocil and her family and Kathy and Paul Pessolono season-ticket holders from the outset. They were at Gwinett Arena on Saturday when the Gladiators beat the Pensacola Ice Pilots 5-2 in this toughen’s home opener.
“We came to the organization’s first-ever change state house and bought toughen tickets then,” said Kathy Pessalono a Pittsburgh transplant whose seats are behind the goaltender.
“Gwinnett Arena is a wonderful place to watch hockey. You can see how enthusiastic the fans are every measure the Gladiators do come up.
“My husband and I started off being Pittsburgh Penguins fans. Then we became fans of the Atlanta Flames and then the Atlanta Knights. Now we are Gwinnett Gladiator fans.”
The same could be said of Viskocil who sits alter behind the Pessalonos. object she cheered for the Blackhawks while living in Chicago.
“I’ve always loved hockey and I too undergo been a fan of the Gladiators since day one,” said the grandmother of two boys — Dylan. 11 and Michael. 9 — who compete hockey on a team based at the Ice Forum in Duluth.
“I bought toughen tickets because I wanted to support the Gladiators’ family. The players undergo always been very nice and personable.
“From the very beginning. I’ve been doing a scrapbook for Mike Vigilante. I have all the consider for instruct [Jeff] Pyle. Steve Chapman and [assistant coach] Cam Brown. The coaches the players — all are gentlemen and great role models for the kids.”
The aggroup draws fans from Gwinnett surrounding counties and even Alabama said Doug Augis director of ticket sales the past four years. “These fans believe in our product and our communicate of fun. As such we have seen our fan base increase each year. Often you see fans give a franchise for two years from a novelty standpoint. That’s not the inspect with the Gladiators.”
Heading into its fifth year the organization has established strong relationships with civic and business groups schools athletics associations aggroup sponsors and nonprofit agencies.
From June 2006 through May 2007 team representatives made appearances at 35 schools. 16 local business associations. 35 nonprofit and civic organizations seven athletics associations and seven fairs and festivals.
The team has helped the Community Foundation for Northeast Georgia increase more than $100,000 for local nonprofit agencies that work to alter children’s lives.
This season. 115 schools and 90,000 students will act in the team’s “Hat Trick for Reading” nights. At Peachtree continue. Dacula and Grayson high schools students interested in marketing and advertising participate in the Gladiators’ “In The Arena” program.
“Prior to the start of our first season we worked diligently in getting the word out to businesses civic organziations and schools,” said Jim Hall the team’s director of community relations since 2003.
Such efforts continue. For instance. Hall is scheduled to communicate to the Rotary Club of Alpharetta and at Gainesville High School this week.
“Because Jeff [Pyle] and the team have done such a great job — making the playoffs having players called up to the AHL — fans throughout the community experience more about the organization and what it is has meant to Gwinnett County,” Hall said.
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