The following was written by investigative journalist Ken Cosentino.
The contested Hyde Park Ice Pavilion operator contract was not on the City Council agenda last Wednesday. According to the current operator of the pavilion, the agenda item is presumed (though not confirmed) to have been moved to the council meeting on Wednesday, September 17th.
If passed, the council resolution will award the operating contract to Legacy Hospitality & Entertainment Group, Mayor Restaino’s choice for operating vendor; according to its terms therein.
Local vendor Mike Carella’s company Niagara Sports Tournaments (NST) has held the contract for the past 14 years. Among his many supporters is the champion semi-pro hockey team whose home ice is Hyde Park.
Last Tuesday, Mike Carella made a public Facebook post informing his supporters that the agenda item has been moved. Anyone who wishes to support NST should plan to attend the council meeting on September 17th.
One of Carella’s public supporters is Buffalo Tempest owner Paul J. Tatu who commented, saying “If Legacy comes in we could be forced to move to somewhere outside of Niagara Falls, but with ice rinks in Buffalo – getting time for skates is limited and we fortunately have a great relationship with Hyde Park and happily bring business to Niagara Falls while we can. That can change outside of our control.”
REBRANDING – FROM THE FALLS TO BUFFALO
Early last year, Mayor Restaino represented the team as Niagara Falls’ own local semi-pro hockey team. There was a small uproar of about 200 or so locals on social media who voiced their disdain for the team’s original name, the Niagara Falls Buffalos. Admittedly, I was among those who immediately rejected this name.
Many locals commented, suggesting Niagara-centric names; such as the Daredevils, the Thunderbirds, the Mobsters, etc. (one cheeky person even suggested the team should be called “the Crackheads”).
Basically “anything but the Buffalos” was the overall vibe (maybe not “the Crackheads”).
In response, a former owner of the team made a public comment in which he said “I love the idea, we might change the name in the off-season, but we had nothing to do with the name… but it will definitely be a good idea.”
Having read this, people were pacified and filled with hope. One local art teacher even floated the idea of having a contest in which students could come up with the team’s new mascot.
There was some buzz, but it died quickly and abruptly when the team announced that it would now be called the “Nickel City Buffalos”. This seemed to suggest that the team was leaving Niagara Falls and moving to Buffalo.
The team never actually left the Hyde Park Ice Pavilion, however they did ditch the previous owner and quickly rebrand into the Buffalo Tempest. The business is now based in Buffalo, NY.
Many readers might wonder why the team is now called the “Buffalo Tempest” and not the “Niagara Falls Tempest”, and Tempest owner Paul J. Tatu provided answers.
Says Tatu, “The name change came when we moved to our own team and [it] was not a slight at the Falls and surrounding community, we just had to make moves and quickly.”
SO WHAT REALLY HAPPENED?
It was a bit off-putting that the team would transform from the Niagara Falls Buffalos into the Nickel City Buffalos; especially after the previous owner replied favorably to local feedback.
“The team isn’t based out of Niagara Falls, they play in Niagara Falls. The team is based in Buffalo. That’s where the business is,” says Tatu, “When it comes to hockey, Niagara Falls is associated with Canada.”
He added, “Teams we play say they’re coming to Buffalo and people know where they’re going. They say Niagara Falls and then it becomes Canada in the mind of who they’re speaking to.”
What Tatu said is a reality colder than the ice on which his championship team skates swiftly like the wind.
The City of Niagara Falls, NY is just not ready for its own semi-pro hockey team. I love our hometown as much as anyone else, but this is the bitter truth. It’s not just because of our list of problems from management on down – but we have to compete with a well-established, major Canadian market that already has a Niagara presence.
Simply put, the name is already taken.
Also, the City of Niagara Falls, NY itself has a major marketing problem. Our community is virtually invisible to tourists since our marketing team Destination Niagara focuses most of their promotion on the state park and other state affiliates. Local businesses typically rely on Google reviews for tourist traffic to know that they even exist.
Tatu likened Hyde Park as the Buffalo Tempest’s home ice to the New York Jets or Giants playing in New Jersey.
He wrote, “Where we play is based on what ice is available and all of Western New York is very hard to find ice, especially for 3 hours Saturday and 3 hours Sunday. There are travel teams, high school teams, college teams and a lot of local youth teams that don’t travel.” He added, “We have a good relationship with Hyde Park and that gives us the ability to play there. That’s all it is and why we’re in Niagara Falls.”
Tatu acknowledged the marketing issue that was both caused and left behind by the previous owner. “We just hired a marketing director,” he said, “Niagara Falls Buffalos was the last owner who isn’t with the team anymore.”
FATE HANGS IN THE BALANCE
Last year, I was invited to watch the Niagara Falls Buffalos in action by raging forward Rein Butterworth (#36). My family and I attended a game at Hyde Park, and we had a fantastic time. One of the referees gave my sons a game-used hockey puck.
The team itself is amazing. The game was exciting. Niagara Falls is definitely very lucky to host the Buffalo Tempest and we as a community should make it a point to attend their games. The fact that our city hosts a championship team is pretty cool and even though they’re based in Buffalo, we should be proud that they call the Falls home.
Unfortunately, we could be at risk of losing the team forever if Legacy is awarded the operating contract. There’s no telling what Mayor Restaino won’t sacrifice just to have his way.
When he’s not busy blaming kids for city issues, closing splash-pads, using children as pawns in his political games, or cutting funding for youth summer programs; Mayor Restaino is typically running businesses out of town.
While it’s obvious that his Useful Idiot Jim Perry and rubber stamp Traci Bax will follow Mayor Restaino off a fiscal cliff, the thoughts of the other three council members (Archie, Myles and Zajac) remain unknown. Hopefully they will remember their duty to our community and not outsource such an important contract to Albany.
Lastly, though it may seem as if the scarcity of available ice is a feather in Mayor Restaino’s cap for his Centennial Park event center – it most certainly is not. If anything, Centennial Park would likely crush the Hyde Park Ice Pavilion under Restaino’s management and force it to close indefinitely. Then all loyal partnerships forged by Mike Carella would either have to use the event center or look elsewhere for available ice time.
Buffalo Tempest season tickets are on sale now for only $130. Season ticket holders will be able to attend all home games, including playoffs; and they will also receive a Buffalo Tempest hoodie of their preferred color and size.
