ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, April 20, 1996 TAG: 9604220038
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR. STAFF WRITER
NOTE: Above
ROANOKE EXPRESS' majority owners have lost their board posts after a feud with minority owners.
A brewing feud among the group that owns the Roanoke Express boiled over Friday, as the East Coast Hockey League team's minority owners embarked on a power play.
Hockey Roanoke Inc., the group that owns the Express, underwent a shake-up Friday when team President and Chief Executive Officer John Gagnon and General Manager Pierre Paiement were removed as officers of the board of directors.
Gagnon and Paiement, Roanoke-area businessmen who led a group of investors that saved professional hockey in the Roanoke Valley three years ago, will retain their combined 60 percent ownership of the team. Gagnon, a Botetourt County resident and owner of a Covington trucking company, owns 50 percent of the team; Paiement holds 10 percent.
Gagnon was replaced as president of the board by Richard Macher; Paiement, who played minor-league hockey with the Roanoke Valley Rebels in the early 1970s before becoming a Roanoke restaurateur, was removed as secretary and replaced by Michael Stevens.
Friday's moves are largely symbolic acts that reflect the growing rift among the Express owners, although more changes could follow in the coming weeks. There will be a news conference Tuesday to publicly address the management changes.
``That all remains to be seen,'' said Joe Steffen, the board's vice president and director of communications. ``I'm not just saying that as a fluff answer. I really don't know. There are a lot of things that remain to be seen.''
Richard Yancey was elected treasurer; Cassandra Bell, who owns part of the team with her husband, Dickie, was named business manager. All officers will keep their new positions at least until the board meets in May.
Steffen said he did not foresee any changes in the front office staff, although one ownership source said Paiement might be replaced as general manager.
The contention among Hockey Roanoke's seven principal owners began in January, when Gagnon and Paiement announced they were launching an ECHL expansion team in Biloxi, Miss., for the 1996-97 season. The Express also is a member of the ECHL.
Paiement pulled out of the Biloxi deal in February at the request of Express minority owners who thought Paiement would have a conflict of interest in running the day-to-day operations of the Express while maintaining a financial interest in another ECHL team.
The minority owners' concern over Gagnon's dual ownership of the Roanoke and Biloxi teams apparently led to his ouster as president of the Express board.
Gagnon confirmed that he ``stepped aside [as president of the board of directors] at their request.''
``The other owners thought it would be better to bring Richard in as president for now,'' Gagnon said. ``Obviously, a couple of guys are not happy they were not invited to Mississippi. ... I'm still the majority shareholder. The perception was that I was spending too much time in Mississippi. That's not true.''
Still, Gagnon added, ``Maybe this [board of directors shake-up] is better for the franchise at this time.''
Paiement could not be reached for comment.
Gagnon and Paiement formed Hockey Roanoke Inc. in an effort to keep professional hockey in Roanoke after the valley lost its ECHL franchise, the Roanoke Valley Rampage, in March 1993.
The two recruited five other investors to help with the $500,000 franchise fee. Hockey Roanoke Inc. was awarded an ECHL expansion franchise May 15, 1993. The group chose the name Express after a name-the-team contest sponsored by The Roanoke Times.
The team has made the ECHL playoffs in each of its three seasons, setting Roanoke Valley attendance records each year. The team's average of 5,679 fans per game this season was the highest per-game average ever for Roanoke Valley hockey.
Roanoke, one of the smallest markets in the 21-team ECHL, ranked seventh in attendance during the regular season. The team sold nearly 1,900 season tickets last season and already has sold more than 1,400 season tickets for next season.
Gagnon and Paiement were named the ECHL's Executives of the Year after the Express' inaugural season of 1993-94.
LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshots) Gagnon, Paiement. color.by CNB