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Entries with the tag: jeff vinik
Lightning Owner Talks About Early Success
by Paul on 05/05/11 at 09:46 AM ET
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from Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune,
When he bought the Tampa Bay Lightning 14 months ago, Jeff Vinik’s goal was to build a team that would win long-term. He had no idea the short term would be so successful.
Though he made it clear he isn’t shocked by the Lightning’s run to the Eastern Conference finals, Vinik said in the wake of his team’s second-round playoff sweep of the Capitals on Wednesday that he didn’t see this kind of success coming this early for the team.
“No, I had no idea,” Vinik said when asked if he thought the Lightning would win this big this soon after he took ownership of the franchise. “But you know what, these guys have fought hard all year, and I think (general manager) Steve Yzerman and (coach) Guy (Boucher) have done a great job here.
“So nothing shocks me about these guys. I mean, they’re doing a great job here and it’s fun and exciting for everyone and fortunately we hired good people and this is what happens when you do that.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Tampa Bay Lightning, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: jeff+vinik
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Lightning/Stars, 10/18/10
by Jon Jordan on 10/19/10 at 01:51 PM ET
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When you get waxed as the Tampa Bay Lightning did Saturday night in Sunrise, 6-0 to the Florida Panthers, all you can ask for is a rebound to the tune of two points in the following game. The Bolts got just that last night against Dallas, so complaints can be held to a minimum. Besides, as head coach Guy Boucher said during the preseason, this team won’t be at their best in the first 5, 10, 15 games of the season. And who would want them to be? Certainly, all would rather a club peak much, much (much, much, much) later, no?
Nevertheless, analyze we must.
Hence, the original: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly...
Filed in: NHL Teams, Atlanta Thrashers, Carolina Hurricanes, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers, Montreal Canadiens, New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: adam+hall,
alex+ovechkin,
brad+richards,
brenden+morrow,
dana+tyrell,
dominic+moore,
guy+boucher,
james+neal,
jeff+vinik,
michael+vernace,
mike+smith,
nate+thompson,
sean+bergenheim,
sidney+crosby,
steven+stamkos,
toby+petersen,
victor+hedman
Turnaround in Tampa Starts at the Top
by Jon Jordan on 09/20/10 at 10:10 PM ET
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Before a single tweak to the roster, the Tampa Bay Lightning were already poised for improvement in 2010-11. With the tumultuous era of previous ownership already behind them when the sale of the team to Jeff Vinik was completed late last season, gone in an instant were any and all off-ice concerns and the circus went back to being an annual visitor to the St. Pete Times Forum rather than a permanent resident. With the appointment of Steve Yzerman as general manager, credibility returned to the franchise and new head coach Guy Boucher was widely regarded as the hottest commodity on the off-season coaching market.
Without a solitary player move, hockey life in Tampa was good again.
But far be it from Yzerman to rest on the comfort that fans surely feel by him simply not being one of those other guys. The addition of former Flyers forward Simon Gagne headlines a list of shrewd off-season maneuvers for the rookie GM and the revamped roster could very well translate to the sort of on-ice success that will make Lightning followers quickly forgot about three non-playoff seasons gone by.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Atlanta Thrashers, Calgary Flames, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers, Los Angeles Kings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Islanders, Ottawa Senators, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, San Jose Sharks, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals, | KK Hockey | Permalink
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antero+niittymaki,
antti+niemi,
blair+jones,
brad+richards,
brett+clark,
brett+connolly,
carter+ashton,
cedrick+desjardins,
chris+durno,
dan+ellis,
dana+tyrell,
dominic+moore,
dustin+tokarski,
eric+perrin,
guy+boucher,
james+wright,
jaroslav+janus,
jeff+vinik,
johan+harju,
kevin+quick,
khl,
kurtis+foster,
lady+byng+trophy,
marc+pouliot,
mark+barberio,
mark+parrish,
martin+st.+louis,
matt+lashoff,
matt+walker,
mattias+ohlund,
mike+smith,
mitch+fadden,
nate+thompson,
nhl+awards,
nhl+previews,
niklas+persson,
paul+szczechura,
pavel+kubina,
radko+gudas,
randy+jones,
richard+panik,
riku+helenius,
rocket+richard+trophy,
ryan+craig,
ryan+malone,
sean+bergenheim,
sidney+crosby,
simon+gagne,
simon+gagne,
stephane+veilleux,
steve+downie,
steve+yzerman,
teddy+purcell,
training+camp,
traverse+city+prospects+tournament,
ty+wishart,
victor+hedman,
vincent+lecavalier,
vladimir+mihalik,
zenon+konopka
Raw Charge’s Five Questions for JJ
by Jon Jordan on 09/08/10 at 12:10 PM ET
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The staff at SB Nation’s Raw Charge finishes up their Five Questions, Five Answers series today with my responses to their Southeast Division inquries.
Check out the entire piece here, as well as the previous two installments, featuring my The Bolts Beat co-host, Mike Corcoran and Pete Choquette from Bolt Prospects.
As I touched on in closing out this interview, this division as a whole is on the upswing, making the timing of my expanded coverage even more exciting.
Enjoy the Q&A here… And, please, pay my friends at Raw Charge a well-deserved visit.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Atlanta Thrashers, Carolina Hurricanes, Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: andrej+meszaros,
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brent+sopel,
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bryan+allen,
bryan+little,
cam+ward,
cory+stillman,
dmitry+kulikov,
dominic+moore,
drayson+bowman,
dustin+byfuglien,
evander+kane,
freddy+meyer,
jason+garrison,
jeff+vinik,
jiri+tlusty,
johnny+oduya,
keaton+ellerby,
maxim+afinogenovbryan+mccabe,
michael+frolik,
nathan+paetsch,
niklas+bergfors,
patrice+cormier,
pavel+kubina,
randy+jones,
rich+peverley,
ron+hainsey,
rostislav+olesz,
sean+bergenheim,
shawn+matthias,
simon+gagne,
simon+gagne,
stephen+weiss,
steve+reinprecht,
steve+yzerman,
tobias+enstrom,
tomas+vokoun,
zach+bogosian,
zach+boychuk
Lightning Owner Wants To Put Tampa On The Hockey Map Again
by Paul on 04/25/10 at 11:18 AM ET
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from Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe,
“My goal,’’ he said, “is to turn the Tampa Bay Lightning into a world-class organization,’’ said Vinik, who ran Fidelity’s Magellan Fund prior to opening his own hedge fund, Vinik Asset Management, which continues to be his day job. “To do that, I’ll hire a super CEO, and then it will be his job to hire a super GM, and it will be the GM’s job to hire a super coach.
“I want excellence throughout the organization, people who are great people with great vision and integrity.’’
If they come at a high cost, so be it, said Vinik, whose aim is to have the top three jobs filled by the time of the draft at the end of June. His career in finance has taught him that the best people often come with high price tags, but he’s OK with shelling out, “because in the end, you find those people pay dividends.’’
more plus other hockey topics…
Filed in: NHL Teams, Tampa Bay Lightning, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: jeff+vinik
Vinik’s Vision
by Paul on 04/13/10 at 12:50 PM ET
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The new Lightning owner talks about the future plus Vinny Lecavalier discusses the moves.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Tampa Bay Lightning, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: jeff+vinik
Afternoon Line
by Paul on 03/05/10 at 04:15 PM ET
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“My objective ... is to bring back a consistent winning hockey team and bring back the Stanley Cup to Tampa Bay.”
-Tampa Bay Lightning Owner Jeff Vinik. More on the official introduction of Vinik from the St. Petersburg Times.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Tampa Bay Lightning, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: jeff+vinik
The New Tampa Bay Lightning Owner
by Paul on 02/05/10 at 03:09 PM ET
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Meet Jeff Vinik.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Tampa Bay Lightning, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: jeff+vinik
Report- Lightning Have A New Owner
by Paul on 02/05/10 at 02:01 PM ET
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from David Shoalts of the Globe and Mail,
The Tampa Bay Lightning have been sold to Boston money manager Jeffrey Vinik.
An official announcement may come Friday afternoon after the final details were ironed out Friday morning. One source said Vinik will pay $170-million (all currency U.S.) in cash for the Lightning, the management lease to the lucrative St. Pete Times Forum and five and a half acres of land around the arena.
One thing that is certain is that neither Oren Koules nor Len Barrie will retain an interest in the team. Koules, the former co-owner with Barrie, was running the team by himself after a falling out with Barrie over the latter’s financial troubles.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Tampa Bay Lightning, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: jeff+vinik
Lightning Sale Is Close
by Paul on 02/02/10 at 03:00 PM ET
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via Damian Cristodero of Lightning Strikes,
Meetings that went through Monday and into Tuesday morning at the NHL offices in New York apparently have brought Boston hedgefund manager Jeff Vinik to the brink of buying the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Details are sketchy, and it was unclear how much more work has to be done. But Lightning co-owner Oren Koules apparently attended the meetings and at least representatives for co-owner Len Barrie and Vinik.
The deal would include the team, the St. Pete Times Forum lease and 5-1/2 acres around the arena.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Tampa Bay Lightning, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: jeff+vinik
