OWNERSHIP – David and Lisa White
David and Lisa White made the leap into owning a junior hockey team in the inaugural 2009-2010 season with the Fresno Monsters in Fresno, California. This was few years after supporting local youth hockey, and then helping bring juniors to the area. Following the Monsters’ successful first season, the decision was made to have two junior hockey programs in Fresno, adding one in the North American Hockey League for the 2010-2011 season. This was to add a rung on the local development ladder as was present in the USA Hockey development model. The new NAHL team was in the same division with the Wenatchee Wild. David and Lisa White’s son Gunner would earn a spot on the Fresno Monsters’ roster, playing stints for both junior hockey teams. Gunner’s love for hockey was the reason the family grew an interest in developing 16-20 year old elite level players.
In spring of 2013, it was announced that the Wenatchee Wild’s former ownership group had plans to cease operations in Wenatchee and relocate the franchise to Texas. After several years of frequenting Wenatchee to watch the Fresno Monsters play there, David and Lisa White felt a huge connection to the town of Wenatchee. The amazing fans, the stunning arena, and the exceptional coaching staff. After several seasons with Wenatchee as the closest travel partner (1,000 miles away), and with the practice arena in Fresno unexpectedly shut down, the couple knew what they had to do. With league recommendation and support they decided to relocate the NAHL Fresno Monsters franchise to Wenatchee to keep the Wenatchee Wild train rolling – same team name and logo, same front office staff, and same coaching staff in place for what they hoped was a seamless transition for the players and fans.
In the 2015-2016 season, the Wenatchee Wild made the move to the British Columbia Hockey League as the only team in the United States. The transition to the BCHL would prove fruitful for David and Lisa. Besides a much better team travel situation, the Wenatchee Wild went on to become the 2018 BCHL Fred Page Cup Champion and the 2018 Doyle Cup Champion. This was their first junior hockey championship – an honor in which the couple are very proud of for the whole Wild organization.