Former NHL player buys into ownership of Carolina Hurricanes

The Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon has announced that he has sold a stake in his team to investors Brett Jefferson, Bobby Farnham, and Marc Grandisson.

The Hurricanes did not disclose financial terms in their press release announcement but sports business journal Sportico reported last week that Dundon had agreed to sell 12.5% of his ownership stake for approximately $332.5 million.

“Brett, Marc and Bobby are accomplished business executives whose experiences and knowledge will help us continue to grow our team’s success and impact,” Dundon said in a prepared statement. “Brett lives in the (area) and Marc will soon relocate to Raleigh, so their influence will be locally-based. As a former NHL player, Bobby is uniquely positioned to help our ownership group as we move forward.”

As Dundon mentions, Farnham is a former NHLer with 67 games split between the Pittsburgh Penguins, New Jersey Devils and Montreal Canadiens on his resume.

Now, you may be asking... "How does a 37 year old fringe NHLer get the kind of cash needed to buy into an NHL team?"

Great question...

The answer is that Farnham didn't earn his fortune playing hockey. The Harvard Business graduate is the founder of Fourth Line Capital, a private investment platform focused on real estate and direct investments. He's also a member of the family ownership group of Market Basket, a New England-based supermarket chain.

To my knowledge, Farnham is just the second player turned owner currently in the NHL with Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux still retaining a 2.5% stake in the Pittsburgh Penguins.