Pegula Sports & Entertainment's resources will be "divided” between the Bills and Sabres following the dissolution of the parent company, according to Jacob Tierney of BUFFALO BUSINESS FIRST. Yesterday's announcement of PSE disolving “did not detail” how Pegula-owned lacrosse teams the Buffalo Bandits and the Rochester Knighthawks will be affected by the change. A Sabres spokesperson said that the teams “will continue to operate as they have.” Tierney noted PSE COO John Roth will “continue to serve” as COO of the Sabres and EVP of the Bills, while owner Terry Pegula was named Sabres President, one month after taking over as Bills President. The dissolution is the “latest in a series of leadership shakeups within PSE” (BUFFALO BUSINESS FIRST, 8/28). In Buffalo, Michael Petro noted the change will separate the Sabres and Bills for the "first time since the Pegula family purchased the latter in 2014.” It has also resulted in “nine employees losing their jobs,” and a “number of employees moving from PSE to either the Bills or Sabres” (BUFFALO NEWS, 8/28).
KEY TIME FOR SABRES: Petro in a separate piece noted the divide comes at a “pivotal time for the Sabres,” playing in an “aging arena that is in need of upgrades at a time when the team is coming off a season when it barely missed the playoffs and expectations are high for further improvement in the upcoming season.” The Pegulas have been “investing money in the Sabres roster” and plan to make “some of needed improvements around the aging KeyBank Center.” The shakeup comes a little more than a month after the departure of former Bill EVP/COO Ron Raccuia, who “led the Bills through new stadium negotiations.” The Pegula’s have “put together a business committee” headed by Roth to oversee the Bills. Roth earlier this month said that he “anticipated there would be a similar structure for the hockey team.” Petro noted Pegula will “work closely with Roth on the business side of the Sabres,” and GM Kevyn Adams will “continue to run hockey operations -- just as Pegula has become more involved with the Bills’ business operations.” A Sabres spokesperson said that the dissolution of PSE will "not affect the operations of Black River Entertainment and all other formerly-PSE, Pegula-owned entities.” They “all had their own leadership” and “will continue to be owned and operated by the Pegulas” (BUFFALO NEWS, 8/28).
JOINING THE FAMILY BUSINESS? In Buffalo, Tim O’Shei writes whether Jessica Pegula, the daughter of Terry and Kim Pegula and a professional tennis player, “will take on a future leadership role with her family’s teams after her tennis career wraps is an open question.” Jessica said, “I feel like I find myself definitely drawn to being in sports, whether that’s in tennis or in something my family does.” When asked if she would follow her mother’s path as a leader in the family’s sports teams, Jessica said “we’ll see.” She added, “I don’t even know where I would begin with that. But that’s definitely something that’s in the back of my mind” (BUFFALO NEWS, 8/29).
