The L.A. Kings are now "overseeing the operations" of Eisbären Berlin of the German Hockey League (DEL), according to Chuck Penfold of DEUTSCHE WELLE. This comes toward the end of "another disappointing regular season" for the former German champions. The arrangement is designed to "deepen the already existing cooperation between the two clubs," both of which are owned and operated by U.S.-based AEG. L.A. Kings President of Business Operations Luc Robitaille said, "The results the last few years in Berlin have not been the championship standards that we all expect. It became clear that our relationship needs to go beyond collaboration and move to a complete connection to ensure the team and organization has what it needs to return this club to the type of team our fans expect and have demonstrated passionate support for." Robitaille was appointed president of the club's board of directors, which means that Eisbären Berlin Managing Dir Peter John Lee "will now report directly to Robitaille" (DW, 2/21). In addition to Robitaille, Lee and his team, including Dir of Business Operations Thomas Bothstede and Dir of Hockey Operations Stefan Ustorf, will work closely with L.A. Kings and AEG Sports COO Kelly Cheeseman, as both Cheeseman and Robitaille have been named to the Eisbären Berlin board of directors (L.A. Kings)
