I know next to nothing about Pegula.

[Oaf]

Why should I be excited, besides the fact he resides in Buffalo and intends to keep them around? I know that is a massive relief. Is there anything else? What is his track record like with the Sabres?

[Famous Amos]

I suppose you could start with his Harbor Center Project he began a year ago.

So he buys the Sabres, remodels some of the arena including the locker rooms, instills a sense of pride and awe in the history of the Sabres, he honored the French Connection by putting up a statue of them, spent a ton of money on the team with free agents, and after making the mistake of keeping the status quo of the front office and coach, he got rid of them and started over with a no nonsense hockey guy as GM (Tim Murray) and hired (or rehired) a proven motivator and player's coach in Ted Nolan (jury is still out on whether that was a good idea). Team sucks now, but they are slowly building it up.

back to harbor Center. Right across from the First Niagara Arena, this is a project that was planned and implemented in addition to owning the Sabres, Rochester Americans (minor league affiliate) and indoor LaCorsse team Buffalo Bandits. He used his own money, over a hundred million bones to build a state of the art hockey practice facility with two full sized rinks on the upper floors of the center, with ground level retail and dining and a work in progress hotel on the back end. This facility has already brought the NHL combine as well as other high profile events, with more to come. It adds to the fabric of the inner harbor, making it that more exciting. The reason why I think it is an amazing development is because it's all private. No public subsidies, and it kind of came out of left field. it wasn't as if the city wanted him to build this project, Pegula just felt that Buffalo needed a high profile facility so that Buffalo can become a world class hockey destination.

Now he buys the Bills. The possibilities are mind blowing! Look what he did with a the Sabres, which is worth a tenth of that of the Bills. Imagine what he can do with the Bills.

[ghz in pittsburgh]

Sounds like his Chinese ethnic wife will be more involved as the owner of the Bills.

[Famous Amos]

Sounds like his Chinese ethnic wife will be more involved as the owner of the Bills.
His Chinese ethnic wife is a native WNYer.

[BLeonard]

The more I read, the more I like...

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=6147411


Starting today, there will be no financial mandates on the Buffalo Sabres hockey department


"Starting today," Pegula said, "the Buffalo Sabres' reason for existence will be to win a Stanley Cup."


If I want to make some money, I'll go drill a gas well


On whether he'll spend to the player salary cap, "We'll put the pedal to the metal as capably as we can," he said. "I don't know if it's wise to spend to the cap every year. But we're not in this to save money, that's for sure."

http://espn.go.com/nhl/story/_/id/6970871/buffalo-sabres-players-owner-terry-pegula-deliver-season-tickets-fans


Pegula's first visit of the day was to Barb Hummell's residence, where at first, the 40-year season-ticket holder wasn't exactly sure who the strange man with the jeans, sneakers, and a Sabres golf shirt was standing on her porch. But with her trusty dog that is aptly named "Sabre" by her side, she quickly became aware this wasn't some slick salesman trying to sell her a vacuum.

"I was surprised," she said. "I expected just some person to come with my ticket."

Hummell even put her reporter's cap on and flat-out asked the owner if he was going to sign defenseman Tyler Myers to a contract extension.

"Tyler," he said with a grin, "isn't going anywhere."

http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-1/Wilson-trust-reaches-definitive-agreement-with-Pegula-family/b00d5820-fe52-4255-a2f5-50943235f6e9


Our interest in owning the Bills has everything to do with the people of Western New York and our passion for football. We have knowledgeable, dedicated fans here and along with our ownership of the Buffalo Sabres, it is gratifying to reassure these great fans that two franchises so important to our region are both here to stay.


If awarded final approval, we will be driven to achieve a singular goal: To win a Super Bowl for our fans.

I never recall hearing that kind of talk from the ex-owner and right now, that's good enough for me. It's a hell of a lot better than constantly hearing about the Bills moving to Toronto, LA, or God knows where else.

I'm also betting we'll never hear the phrases "Bills Toronto Series" or "Cash to the Cap" ever again, either. Like I said, right now, that's good enough for me.

-Bill

[BuffaloRedleg]

I think that he thought winning in Hockey would be easy and got a little ahead of himself. Someone as successful as himself is not used to losing, so he thought he could walk into NHL ownership and win by pure force of will.

He has since developed a more deliberate path to success for the Sabres, I think he learned his lesson that building a champion takes time and there are no quick fixes. I think he will be a superb owner for the Bills. The most important thing is that he gives a ton of ****s, and isn't overly concerned with money.

[ghz in pittsburgh]

His Chinese ethnic wife is a native WNYer.

Ha, Tiger Mom!

[Ed]

It sounds like Kim will be the one making executive decisions.