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Board of Governors approves Jacksonville’s Transfer of Controlling Interest

Board of Governors approves Jacksonville’s Transfer of Controlling Interest

Tuesday, July 16th

The ECHL announced on Tuesday that the League’s Board of Governors has approved the Transfer of Controlling Interest in the Jacksonville Icemen’s Membership from EI Acquisitions, a group led by RonaldGeary, to SZH Hockey LLC, a group led by Andrew Kaufmann.

“On behalf of the League, I’d like to thank Ron Geary for bringing the team to Jacksonville and giving the community the chance to experience ECHL hockey,” said ECHL Commissioner Ryan Crelin. “With the success of the Icemen and their fan base, I look forward to even more growth with the excitement and energy that Andy is going to bring to the team, as well as his local presence in the community.”

Kaufmann is a successful entrepreneur and businessman who started in his family business (Revere Supply Company, a manufacturer of marine survival products) while in high school, working for his dad and compensated with baseball cards. After graduating from Emerson College, and a stint at Radio Disney in Boston, he moved back to New Jersey and assumed full responsibilities of business operations in 2001.

In 2010, Kaufmann acquired UST Brands. He spearheaded and oversaw all aspects of this venture which became a leading provider of high-quality survival and camping equipment with distribution nationally through such retail giants as Walmart, Dick’s Sporting Goods, West Marine, Advance Auto Parts and Meijer. Through Kaufmann’s leadership, Walmart quickly recognized and ultimately sold UST. After selling UST Brands, he acquired Majority Ownership of the Fort Myers Miracle Baseball team ("A" Florida State League) on Jan. 8, 2019. Andy determined that his next business would be a long-term family business where he can teach what he knows to his two sons as they grow. He decided to combine two of his lifelong passions, business and sports. Andy, his wife Farah and their sons Sawyer and Zachary live and are very active in the Jacksonville community.

About the ECHL

Began in 1988-89 with five teams in four states, the ECHL has grown into a coast-to-coast league with 26 teams in 19 states and two Canadian provinces for its 32nd season in 2019-20. There have been 662 players who have gone on to play in the National Hockey League after starting their careers in the ECHL, including 20 who made their NHL debuts in the 2018-19 season. The ECHL had affiliations with 25 of the 31 NHL teams in 2018-19, marking the 22nd consecutive season that the league had affiliations with at least 20 teams in the NHL. Further information on the ECHL is available at ECHL.com as well as on Twitter and Facebook.