Killer Bees Earn CHL Franchise of the Year Honor

Published on June 7, 2004 under Central Hockey League (CHL)
Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees News Release


KILLER BEES EARN CHL's MOST PRESTIGIOUS YEARLY HONOR

"FRANCHISE OF THE YEAR" AWARDED TO RIO GRANDE VALLEY ORGANIZATION

HIDALGO, TX: June 7, 2004 – The Central Hockey League wrapped up their 2004 Spring Conference Saturday night in Phoenix with the annual CHL Spring Conference Awards Banquet and the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees were awarded the award for "Group Ticket Sales Franchise of the Year" and "Franchise of the Year," which is the league's top honor.

The "Franchise of the Year" honor is presented annually to the CHL franchise which best exemplifies operational excellence under the CHL system. Rio Grande Valley wrapped up their inaugural season with a playoff team that went 32-24-8 during the season and a second place finish in the Southwest Division, and with a front office staff that helped place the Killer Bees atop the CHL in various business categories. The Killer Bees averaged 5,114 fans in each of their 32 home games and saw over 163-thousand fans go through the turnstiles. The attendance figure ranked fourth in the CHL, beating several large markets including Indianapolis, Fort Worth and Memphis, and fourth amongst the 12 professional hockey teams in Texas (Texas has more professional hockey teams than any other state or Canadian province), finishing behind Dallas, Laredo and Houston. The Killer Bees had 12 sellouts (finished the season with 6 consecutive) and filled up the 5,500-seat Dodge Arena to an average of 93% capacity per game, which ranks second in Texas behind the Dallas Stars (99%). Rio Grande Valley also ranked third in the league in corporate revenue and established many community oriented programs including the "Reading & Writing with the Bees" and the Killer Bee Foundation. The Killer Bees front office accomplished their feats while also operating the Rio Grande Valley Dorados of arenafootball2, which has sold over 3,500 arena football season tickets.

Rio Grande Valley led the CHL in group ticket sales, which led to the "Group Ticket Sales Franchise of the Year" honor. The award is presented annually to the CHL ticketing department that demonstrates the highest overall group ticket revenue over the course of the season. Killer Bees Assistant GM & Director of Ticket Operations Grant Buckborough accepted the award, along with account executives Nick Pardo, Nathan Reilly and Jennifer Sides. The department broke league records in the amount of groups sold and revenue generated, and worked with corporate businesses, non profit organizations, and family-outings to average over 1,000 fans per game in groups.

The Killer Bees were also finalists for "Merchandising Franchise of the Year" and "Game Operations Franchise of the Year." On an individual basis, Grant Buckborough was a finalist for the "Ticketing Executive of the Year" and President/General Manager Trey Medlock was a finalist for the "Executive of the Year" award. The Killer Bees were finalists in six award categories, which co-led the CHL with Laredo.

If you would like to arrange an interview with Trey Medlock or any of the Killer Bees staff members, please contact Chris Due at the Killer Bees office. Any interviews with Central Hockey League staff members can be made by contacting Steve Cherwonak at (480) 949-8600.

"The Valley of Bees" will swarm the Dodge Arena again in October, as the Killer Bees are currently preparing for their second season. Season tickets and corporate opportunities are now available by calling the Killer Bees office at (956) 843-7825. For more information concerning Killer Bees hockey, please visit their website at www.killerbeehockey.com.

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Central Hockey League Stories from June 7, 2004


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