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Youngstown Phantoms

Troy Loney Introductory Press Conference - Full Transcription

March 13, 2014 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Youngstown Phantoms News Release


Phantoms introduce Troy and Aafke Loney as ownership and operational partners

Press conference - 3.13.14

Troy Loney (TL): "First, thanks everybody for coming out this morning. On behalf of Aafke and myself, we are extremely excited to be here. As I look back on how we ended up in this spot, it's always interesting when you're at a point in your life when you can take a look back and ask, "˜how did this all come about?' For us, when our son Ty played here for the Phantoms a few years ago, we got to see and learn about the Youngstown area, the Phantoms, the USHL, and how kids go on to college. Our son, Ty, is now at the University of Denver playing Division I hockey. We got to see how that all came about.

"You flip back in your mind and you look back to 20-some years ago when I was with the Pittsburgh Penguins. I was probably 22, 23 at the time. The DeBartolo family asked me to come to a sports banquet in Boardman, Ohio. I go to the sports banquet and I'm sitting at a main table with Tommy Lasorda-I felt a little out of place in that environment. That was my first exposure to the Youngstown area. About a year ago, I got a text out of the blue from Ty's billet family when he was here, Todd Franko. He had some questions for me. He's obviously a well-known person in the area, and again, I got something out of the blue from Todd just a couple weeks ago asking for suggestions as his son is trying to move along in the hockey world. All of those things culminated, coming back, and combining, and I look at it as all of these pieces starting to come together.

"I've had great fortune. Aafke and I have had a great ride in the hockey world. I've had the great fortune to play with some tremendous players, Hall of Fame guys: Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Ron Francis, Bryan Trottier. I've had the great fortune to win two Stanley Cups with great coaches: Bob Johnson, Scotty Bowman. I've had a tremendous opportunity to see how ownership works: the DeBartolo family, when I was with the Penguins, and when I moved on to the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Disney owned us. Michael Eisner was in the locker room, movie stars were always there, and I guess that's the point when we really started to understand. We had championships, and hockey, and the atmosphere that we had to develop when we were with Pittsburgh, but then we moved into the entertainment industry. Trust me, the Ducks were in the entertainment business. When Tinkerbell comes down and slashes you with her wand after you score a goal, you know you're in the entertainment industry! (laughter) So we started to understand how that whole business works together.

"I had a chance to play with the Rangers, which was an incredible experience for Aafke and I. We got to go in the famous green room at Madison Square Garden, where all the big acts would go, and understand how that would all work together. I then retired from hockey, and then thought, "˜what's the next step?' I've had the great fortune of being in the business world for the last 15 years in executive positions, most recently with a company who is a Fortune 250 company, as one of the presidents in the organization. I've developed a business aspect of how business works. I kind of knew how contract stuff worked as a hockey player, but I didn't understand the true business world. Combining all of those together puts us here in a position where we're able to be partners with Bruce [Zoldan] as owners of the Youngstown Phantoms.

"We are really excited. We've dealt with parents, with our son Ty going through the experience that these young men are going through now. We've seen how colleges look at things. We've seen how the business part of it works together. We're parents first, especially Aafke, who has a big nurturing role with our kids. We're excited to see what Anthony [Noreen] and his staff have done with the team. We think there's a solid foundation here on the ice. We think Bruce has built a solid foundation off the ice. We're looking forward to taking the organization and moving and going forward and forward as we go along."

Anthony Noreen (AN): "For the Youngstown Phantoms family, it's an extremely exciting day. For the area, for our fans, it shows a huge commitment level to the Youngstown area. For us, as players and staff, it's extremely exciting to have a resource of Mr. Loney's caliber. He's someone who's been there. He's played at the top level, and someone who's won the ultimate prize in hockey. I think we all aspire to be there one day, including these guys here (gestures to players in attendance) as well as our staff. To have that here every day as a resource is an unbelievable opportunity that not many people at this level have.

"For our families and players coming in, and for this area of youth hockey players, to have a family who has been through it, a family who's raised a kid playing hockey in this area, knows what it's like to have a son move away for junior hockey, knows what the experience is about, has a son move away for college hockey, someone for the people in this area who want their sons to grow up and play for the Phantoms, play in the USHL, or play college or pro hockey-people that they can use as a resource. That's an unbelievable addition to our Phantoms family.

"I said it on my first day at my press conference-any organization or team is only as strong as the people it's surrounded with, and I think the people who we have at the top, including Aafke and Troy Loney, and the Zoldan family, I think we have as good of people at the top of our organization as any in sports, and I'm excited to see what it brings here in the future."

Questions

On the terms of the partnership...

TL: "Bruce and I are equal partners, along with Aafke, Aafke and I are equal partners with Bruce."

Does that mean you've invested money into the club?

TL: "Yes."

I'd love to know how much?

TL: "So would we, eventually (laughter). The goal is that we want the Youngstown community to understand what a great product we have in hockey. There really is an entertainment value in the community. We want them to come down to this world-class facility that is the Covelli Centre. We think there's an excellent way to grow our fanbase and get people into the arena that will make it fun for the fans, players, and the team. I think that breeds the atmosphere that everyone looks to accomplish."

On what he will bring that is different...

TL: "From a business perspective, I have ideas and thoughts that I've used in the business world before, whether it comes from organizational structure. I think from a hockey side, I have a lot of contacts. I've had some in-depth discussions with the Penguins. The Penguins are very excited for this. They're looking to continually grow hockey, grow the fan base, and grow the interest in hockey in all areas around Pittsburgh. Their involvement and support is definitely going to help us. It's also, "˜what can we do that's different?' Let's take the atmosphere that we have at the Covelli Centre during games, and make it fun. Hockey is a lot of fun, as much as there can be situations where you get your tooth knocked out, but nonetheless, it's fun. Let's continue to make it fun. It's Anthony's responsibility to keep the team focused and on track."

On when the partnership starts...

TL: "It starts today. We're pending league approval and review, so I guess that's number one right now. But after that, I plan on coming in and rolling up my sleeves to get going as quickly as I can. I mentioned to Anthony yesterday that I do want to travel with the team, on the bus. I've spent a lot of time on buses throughout my junior days, and I just want to understand how things work around here. As a team, what are we doing on the road? Maybe I'll see if there are ways we can build on it. I'm excited, Aafke's excited, our kids are excited-we had to keep them quiet for a little while, but we're definitely enthused."

On what the tiebreaker is in a 50/50 partnership...

TL: "Bruce and I have had some discussion about this, and we've talked about things that we feel each of us can bring separately to the table. He's been very good with setting direction. He's given the coaches and staff responsibility for building the team, and you've seen that success. Everyone always wants to be better, and push to keep getting better. On the business side, Bruce is looking for me to come in and build off of my business side and experience. We both came to an agreement in the end."

Question for Aafke on her role...

Aafke Loney (AL): "I see my role as mainly supporting Troy and Bruce in the front office. I also see myself working to help the billet families. Billet families are the players' home away from home. The success of the team is important, but the families and behind the scenes work are also important. I really want others to understand this, and to know how much they mean to the players. I have a business where I provide students advice for potential careers through individual learning plans. With my son playing for the Phantoms, and now playing D-I hockey, I know what these players are going through. It's very difficult, as education is not on the forefront, and I'd really like to help them boost their interests. Being a wife and a mother of four, you have to understand what a team player is. With Troy as well, we feel that what we bring to this team is great."

On if this is an open-ended agreement or if there are years on it...

TL: "It's open-ended. I'm looking forward to a long-term partnership. There's no time frame set upon it, so we're looking forward to keeping hockey here in Youngstown, building a fanbase, getting excitement in the area, building the team, and continuing to move forward."

On if he assumes the Covelli Centre will be the Phantoms' home despite the contract expiring in April...

TL: "Yes. We are in active discussions right now. I'm loosely using the term "˜we' as of about ten minutes ago, but we are in active discussions with the Covelli Centre. I know there have been some parameters and some basics put up in place, but we're confident in the near future, we'll have a deal in place."

On if he has a plan B for an arena, such as one in the Pittsburgh area...

TL: "That has not even been a thought in my mind. We are committed to this town and to this arena right now. You look around, I've been to different arenas whether in college hockey or in USHL towns, and we have, one of the best, if not the best facilities in the league."

On his confidence to get the whole Youngstown area rallying around the team and supporting hockey as well as football...

TL: "They did it in Pittsburgh. My first soiree into Pittsburgh was in 1983, and hockey was batting third behind the Steelers and the Pirates. I was fortunate enough-we went through a lot of ups and downs with the Penguins in those years, and we saw us go from last in the league to first in the league. The fanbase was growing in that area, and I don't see any reason why we can't repeat the same thing."

On a relationship with the Penguins currently...

TL: "My conversations with the Penguins have been advice and support, which is really key and important. How do we develop? How do we improve what we offer, not only to the marketplace, but also from a staffing, marketing, or coaching perspective? I've talked to Anthony, hopefully we can get him involved in some of the Penguin talks that I'll have with the coaches. Their support and involvement, and my relationship with Mario [Lemieux] and David Morehouse is really important. They've been really supportive throughout this process. This is not something I sprung on them yesterday. I've had a lot of discussions."

On if he plans to spend a lot of time in Youngstown or even relocate...

TL: "I would say I will spend a lot of time here. I plan on being [in the office] a lot. Right now, it's about a 50-minute drive from our house. We've lived in New York, and we've lived in Los Angeles, so 50 minutes is going to grab a gallon of milk (laughter). We've been talking, do we get an electric car, do we not? (laughter). All of those kinds of things have come up in our discussions. We'll determine how we'll move forward from there."

On if he anticipates any joint promotional activites with the Penguins...

TL: "This year, there was already a Penguins night in mid-January. The staff has already laid those steps and the foundation. The Penguins are excited to do more of that, so I would think we'd be able to accomplish something like that. Maybe we can take Malkin for a night, slip him into a jersey, and try to pass him off (laughter)."

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