R. Thomas Gaglardi (born December 7, 1967)Stars introduce owner Tom Gaglardi
November 21, 2011
ESPNDallas.com
Accessed November 21, 2011 is a Canadian business executive, and the owner of the

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The Stars ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

Career

Gaglardi is president of

Northland Properties Northland Properties Corporation is the parent company of multiple hotel chains, restaurants, sports teams, and Northland Asset Management Company. Northland was founded in 1963 and is owned by the Gaglardi family. Bob Gaglardi is the founder and ...

Corporation of

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, which he and his family own. The company operates hotels and restaurants in Canada and employs more than 10,000 people. He also serves as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Sandman Hotels, Inns & Suites and Moxie's Grill & Bar. He has been a Director of Leading Brands, Inc. since October 1998 and Secretary since June 1999.R. Thomas Gaglardi EXECUTIVE PROFILE
Bloomberg-Business Week, Accessed November 21, 2011

Hockey Owner

Gaglardi first showed interest in buying a

team in 2004, when he and business partner Ryan Beedie made a bid to purchase fifty percent of the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. The Canucks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conferenc ...

from then-owner John McCaw, Jr. A competing bid by a former partner of both Gaglardi and Beedie, Francesco Aquilini, was accepted by McCaw; Aquilini would acquire full ownership of the Canucks in 2006, but a high-profile legal battle would ensue between the former business partners over the ownership of the team, with the

Supreme Court of British Columbia The Supreme Court of British Columbia is the superior trial court for the province of British Columbia, Canada. The Court hears civil and criminal law cases as well as appeals from the Provincial Court of British Columbia. There are 90 judici ...

ruling in Aquilini's favour in July 2009. In April 2010, Gaglardi proposed purchasing the

Atlanta Thrashers The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League (NHL) on June 25, 1997, and became the League's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL sea ...

and relocating the team to

Hamilton, Ontario Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Hamilton has a 2021 Canadian census, population of 569,353 (2021), and its Census Metropolitan Area, census metropolitan area, which encompasses ...

. This potential move, although it never drew the amount of opposition that Jim Balsillie's similar efforts have provoked, never happened, and

True North Sports & Entertainment True North Sports and Entertainment Limited (TNSE or TNS&E) is a Canadian company based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, that owns and operates Canada Life Centre in downtown Winnipeg and the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League. The company also o ...

purchased the team instead, moving it to

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

to become the second and current incarnation of the Jets. Gaglardi was formally introduced as the new owner of the

hockey team on November 18, 2011. He first expressed an interest in buying the Stars in 2009 and spent more than a year going through the process of completing the deal for the team, which went through a bankruptcy proceeding. As the new owner, Gaglardi's first move was bringing back former Stars president

Jim Lites James R. Lites (born 1953) is an American sports executive who is CEO and alternate governor of the Dallas Stars of the NHL. He was formerly the president of Hicks Sports Marketing Group, and as such was president of the Stars and Texas Ranger ...

to once again take the reins as team President & CEO. A bankruptcy court judge approved the bid for an

enterprise value Enterprise value (EV), total enterprise value (TEV), or firm value (FV) is an economic measure reflecting the market value of a business (i.e. as distinct from market price). It is a sum of claims by all claimants: creditors (secured and unsecure ...

of $240 million. First line creditors got about 75 cents on the dollar. The Stars lost $38 million during their last fiscal year and $92 million over the last three seasons.Dallas Stars Sale To Tom Gaglardi For $240 Million Pummels Team's Creditors
November 22, 2011
forbes.com
Accessed November 23, 2011 He also is part of the ownership group of the

Kamloops Blazers The Kamloops Blazers are a Canadian major junior ice hockey team based in Kamloops, British Columbia. The team plays in the B.C. Division of the Western Hockey League's Western Conference and plays its home games at the Sandman Centre. The Blaze ...

of the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hocke ...

and, as of 2014, owner of the

Texas Stars The Texas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Cedar Park, Texas. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the National Hockey League's (NHL) Dallas Stars. They play their homes games at the H-E-B Center. History In ...

, the Dallas Stars' AHL affiliate.

Personal life

His grandfather,

Phil Gaglardi Philip Arthur Gaglardi (January 13, 1913 – September 23, 1995), often known as Flying Phil, was a politician in the Canadian province of British Columbia. He served in the provincial Cabinet from 1952 to 1972. Private and family life Gaglardi ...

was a politician in

. His mother is a native of Longview,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

and he said he has “serious

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

relatives” who live west of

Fort Worth Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaglardi, Tom 1968 births Living people Canadian people of Italian descent Canadian sports businesspeople Businesspeople from Dallas Businesspeople from Vancouver Northland Properties Dallas Stars executives

Owners Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as ''title'', which may be separated and held by diffe ...