MAINEiacs announce new minority owner, assistant coach
DRUMMONDVILLE, Tuesday, June 1, 2010 – The Lewiston MAINEiacs announced today that Paul Spellman, a local fixture in the business community during the past 25 years, has joined the team in a minority ownership capacity.
Serving most recently as Chief Operating Officer of Federal Distributors, Inc., Spellman is the immediate past president of the Board of the Pine Tree Council, Boy Scouts of America, serves on the board of St. Mary’s General Hospital, and has served as Region Chair of the National Beer Wholesalers Association, representing all beer wholesalers in New England, New York and Pennsylvania.
In his new role as partner, Spellman will spend a considerable amount of time working closely with the soon to be announced new team president on community relations, group sales and special projects.
Reached by phone on Monday, Spellman made a point of noting that he feels strongly that junior hockey in the Twin Cities carries a future full of promise.
I am very confident that the plans Mark (Just) and Roger (Shannon) have in place, as well as the fact the entire organization is totally committed, and in full agreement, that the blueprint is in place for this team to be here for a very long time. The fans will like what they are going to see.
In making the announcement MAINEiacs majority owner Mark Just states: It has been a goal of mine for the eight years I have been in Lewiston to find a local person to invest in our team who has business acumen, passion for the organization, commitment to its success, a strong work ethic and the integrity necessary to elevate the perception of our team both in Lewiston and around the league. I am delighted to welcome Paul Spellman aboard as a minority shareholder of the MAINEiacs and look forward to working with him for many years in Lewiston.
In addition to the naming of Spellman as Partner of the club, MAINEiacs General Manager Roger Shannon announced that former long-time NHL defenseman Steven Finn has joined the team as an assistant coach. Finn, 44, a native of Laval, Quebec, logged 725 games in the NHL from 1985-1997, including a 10 year span with the Quebec Nordiques. Selected 57th overall during the 1984 NHL entry draft, Finn is the father of MAINEiacs Defenseman Samuel Finn and holds the distinction of being a member of the last edition of the Nordiques during the 1994-95 season before the club’s eventual departure to Colorado.
Finn finished his NHL playing career skating his last two seasons with the Los Angeles Kings. At the conclusion of his last NHL season in 1997 he spent his final year on the pro hockey circuit as a member of the Long Beach Ice Dogs in what is now a defunct version of the International Hockey League.
No stranger to the inner workings of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Finn spent three seasons with the Laval Voisins twice being named to the QMJHL All-Star team along with teammate Mario Lemieux.
In making the announcement, Shannon listed some motives for bringing Finn on board, stating:
Steven will work with our Defense; show the finer points which made him so successful while also assisting us in Quebec with our scouting staff by serving as the Coordinator for the province. Steven joins Gerard Shaw of Nova Scotia who serves as our Atlantic Canada Coordinator. I am excited now with the people we have on staff going forward.
Equally excited is team owner Mark Just who added his own words of praise:
What a coup, we have a terrific young coaching staff with J.F. Houle, Jeff Guay, and Reg Bourcier and now to be able to land a veteran of many NHL years to our team bringing experience and wisdom into the mix is a formula for success. Steven Finn is not only a very knowledgeable hockey person but someone who will represent our organization with class. With this hiring, we are showing the hockey world that we get it and that the Lewiston MAINEiacs will reclaim our rightful place as an organization to be admired, respected and feared on the ice. Welcome aboard Steven.
