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The hammer officially dropped Thursday on Stirling Wright and his Tropical Elite Hockey League when the Amateur
Athletic Union's National Director for ice hockey sent this notice;
To Whom This May Concern,
It
has been brought to my attention that the TEHL is a registered non-profit
organization. However, it has also been brought to my attention the
organizations within the league yesterday ordered an independent audit of the
TEHL books/bank account. There are reported claims that significant
league funds may have been used in unauthorized ways. There is also the issue
that the league did not meet the requirements I requested for this independent
league to have their sanctioning done by 9/6/12 as I requested last
month. I am recommending that the AAU Florida District/AAU National
Office does not grant a sanction to the TEHL for the 2012-13 AAU Sports year.
This
will not have a bearing on each organization becoming an AAU Club and setting
up independent schedules of games. There will be NO RECOGNITION by
the UHU of these games.
Feel free to contact me with the
results of the independent audit.
Any questions feel free to contact
me.
Keith Noll, AAU National Hockey Chair
Now about that audit.
Wright was supposed to produce bank records and account information on Thursday
and it was unclear if that transfer took place. As of Wednesday, there was supposed
to be a little over $2,000 in the TEHL account. That is a staggering number
considering that the league brought in an excess of $28,000 according to
sources within the team ownership group.
Meanwhile, the Daytona
Beach Blaze are moving forward on their own by making contact with AAU teams
from other leagues. Mike Chighisola is likely to bring in his father Dennis as
the team's head coach and I believe that to be a very smart decision. Coach
Chic is well respected in the hockey community and was originally slated as the
coach of the St Cloud Thunder before differences (he wanted to be paid) with
ownership resulted in his departure.
This is a very positive
step for the Blaze.
What about the rest of
the teams? As of today, we just don't know. Will they join the growing list of 2012-2013
failed franchises or evolve into successful programs? I have to say that is a mixed bag.
The hockey community has
a way of welcoming those that do things the right way. With Wright out of the
way, I've been able to reach out to my AAU contacts for assistance and have received
a very favorable response. The mention of a mid-winter trip to Florida, in the
name of hockey, was very appealing to all that was contacted.
What about Wright?
Stirling and his wife
could be in some serious trouble. Another source is telling JuniorHockey.com
that Kent Wade Rorem, the Wright's partner on the league's 501c3 filing
documents, was surprised to learn that is name has been attached to this fiasco.
Rorem told the source that he never agreed to be a part of the group and did
not sign any documents to obtain the non-profit status. Well, somebody had to
sign the papers.
As the potential number
of felony charges continue to rise, we can be sure of one thing, Mr. Wright has
put the skids on what could be called one of the most unsuccessful careers in
hockey history.
GoPenasco.com
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Stephen Heisler resides
in Puerto Penasco with his wife, Maria, and their two children, Sonia and
Tomas. Friend him on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/#!/stephen.heisler for more information and pictures from Mexico.
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