William O. DeWitt

Chairman of the Board

President

Executive Vice-President

and League Trustee

Secretary

Treasurer

William O. DeWitt Jr.

George E. Heekin

Brian E. Heekin and Bill DeWitt Jr. are the men who brought Major League Hockey to Cincinnati and accomplished the building of the 20 million Riverfront Coliseum. They are both young, intelligent, energetic, and hold mutual respect and friendship for each other. They have had a feeling that Major League Hockey would go over big in Cincinnati since 1971, when they put a group together to obtain a Major League franchise for the Queen City.

During the last four years Heekin and DeWitt have spent long, intense hours engineering the construction of perhaps the most modern arena of its time, and forming a team to compete in Major League Hockey.

Although Heekin and DeWitt have worked very closely together from the beginning on the dual project (Stingers and Coliseum), Heekin has headed up all Coliseum projects while DeWitt has concentrated on building the management team and player personnel for the Stingers.

Heekin, 32 years old, comes from a family that has been very prominent in Cincinnati for four generations. His family has for two generations been associated with the Heekin Can Company, based in Cincinnati. Brian chose to pursue a career in law, graduating from the University of Cincinnati, after having obtained his undergraduate degree at Georgetown University. Besides heading the Major operation of building the Coliseum, Heekin is also a partner in the law firm of Kythe, Conlan, Wulsin and Vogeler.

On the other hand, DeWitt, 34, comes from a family that has been in sports since he was born. Although he has lived in Cincinnati since 1960, Bill was born and raised in St Louis. After coming to the Queen City, DeWitt worked in the front office of the Cincinnati Reds, which at the time was owned and operated by his father, Bill DeWitt Sr. Even though his father sold the Reds in 1966, Bill stayed on in an administrative position with the ball team until1968. He then left baseball behind to become a stockbroker until he and Heekin decided to bring Major League Hockey to Cincinnati. DeWitt's schooling includes and undergraduate degree from Yale University and a Masters degree from Harvard in Business Administration.

Not that the Coliseum is complete, and events of all kinds have been staged in the building, it has become very evident that this is the type entertainment center that the people in the tri state area have needed for quite some time. And the Stingers, who have waited three years to step on the ice, most definitely show signs of an exciting, competitive hockey team. The personnel that Heekin and DeWitt have secured have helped greatly to make this dream a reality, but the final analysis, it is these two men who have made this all possible.

Head Coach Terry Slater has been with the Stingers for over a year and a half, scouting for top caliber players to wear the Stingers colors this season. In molding and aggressive team, Slater has raised eye-brows throughout the entire WHA. His constant desire to achieve perfection from all his players was very evident in the pre-season training camp. Putting his squad through two a day workouts, Terry was finally able to physically see what he had been mentally imagining for 18 months.

Expansion teams are generally looked upon as doormats of their respective leagues for the first year. The Phoenix Roadrunners were an exception last year, and around the hockey circles, many experts are predicting that the Cincinnati team will follow in their footsteps this season. Slater isn't commenting on these projections, although does feel that the Stingers have the nucleus to be a serious competitor for many years to come.

His colorful personality is complimented by his knowledge of the game and his college education. During the heat of a game, Slater has been known to literally chase a referee around the ice, trying to get his point across. Terry hates to see a team that lacks guts so to speak, and players that now belong to the Stingers who are very aggressive minded came as no mistake.

Terry has been involved in hockey since growing up in Renfrew, Ontario. After playing Minor League hockey there, he first moved on to the Junior Ranks and then to College Hockey at St Lawrence before signing a professional contract with the Montreal Canadiens in 1961.

In 1963, Slater left the playing of hockey to coordinate the University of Toledo Hockey Program. Following two successful years at the U of T, Slater assumed the dual role of General Manager and Coach with the Toledo Blades of the International League. Prior to joining the Los Angeles Sharks of the WHA in the 1971-72 season as Coach, he was also Coach and General Manager of the Des Moines Oak Leafs, also of the IHL.

In over twelve years of coaching, Slater has always finished with a winning season, and he is aiming to retain share of games this year. That you can be sure of, but you can also look for very exciting, high scoring, explosive brand of hockey, just the way Slater likes it. After all, he's the boss.

Thirty-two year old Jerry Rafter is the Director of Player Personnel for the Stingers. In joining the Cincinnati Hockey Club Corporation in 1973, Jerry was one of the first members to join the Stingers front office.

I was shortly after Rafter began scouting that the Stingers signed their first player ever. Dennis Sobchuk, who at the time was playing for the Regina Pats of the Western Canadian Hockey League. Although Sobchuk still had a year of junior eligibility left, Jerry saw the potential of this young man from Lang, Saskatchewan.

Since, the signing of Dennis, Rafter has scouted and recommended many other members of the team, who have subsequently signed Stingers contracts, included other top flight juniors, such as Jaques Locas, Claude Larose, Normande LaPointe and John Hughes and also helped consummate player trades that have already proven to be very fruitful. Prime example are the acquisition of Ron Plumb from Vancouver who had a great season last year and Bryan Campbell, recently acquired from Calgary.

Prior to joining the Stingers, Rafter was with the Philadelphia Flyers of the NHL in a management capacity and at the time he also helped the General Manager Bud Poile on scouting assignments. After four years (67-71) with the Flyers, Jerry then joined the Philadelphia Blazers as Assistant General Manager and Director of Player Personnel. When the WHA Blazers relocated on the west coast, Rafter then joined the Stingers in their search for players to form Cincinnati's first Major League Hockey Team.

Florent Potvin is the Head Scout for the Cincinnati Stingers, having joined the organization in the early part of April. Potvin a cousin of Dennis and Jean Potvin who currently play for the New York Islanders, brings a wealth of hockey experience with him to the Queen City. Before being the Head Scout for the Chicago Cougars for the last two and a half years, Flo scouted for four years in the Montreal Canadiens organization. Prior to that he spent six years with the Verdun Maple Leafs in Junior "A" hockey, serving as Coach, General Manager and Head Scout, after a promising playing career was terminated prematurely by knee injuries.

Living in Montreal, Potvin spent the summer months scouting the "Summer Leagues", which consisted of players from the WHA, NHL various minor league teams, and top flight juniors who are beginning their professional careers this season. He also found time to come to Cincinnati to help instruct a Hockey School that the Stingers put on during the first three weeks in August

During the regular season, Flo will be looking at hockey talent in universities, Junior Leagues, and the professional ranks throughout both Canada and the United States.

Rudie Schaffer is the Business Manager for the Stingers. In coming to Cincinnati last December, Rudie brought with him a wealth of knowledge from 35 years of professional baseball. Being a lifetime associate of Bill Veeck, (as in wreck) is very evident in the promotional department of Cincinnati's first Major League Hockey team, simply because Schaffer calls the shots. Such a traditional baseball promotions as Ladies Night, Family Night, individual players recognition nights, and Special Benefits Nights are some of the more common events that are schedules to take place during the Stingers premiere season.

Lottery Night (when everyone entering the Coliseum has an equal chance to win up to 300,0000 dollars), T-Shirt Night, St Patrick's Day, and a very special Christmas Party are also on the agenda. On top of all the time spent dreaming up all of these attractions, Schaffer still finds time to control the finances of the Stingers.

Rudie's past is high-lighted with many and varies success, not least of all is the now popular style of wearing names on the back of the uniforms. He has the distinction of working in the front office of the first baseball team that ever drew 2,000,000 fans in one season, and it was Veeck and Schaffer who sent a midget to bat, over twenty years ago. Looks like Stingers fans are in for a 'honey of a year'.

The Publicity Director for the Stingers is 27 year old John Hewig, a native of Battlecreek, Michigan.He joined the hockey club in early March of this year in the area of publicity and promotion, and in late May, he was named to his current position.

Although John is a native of Michigan, he has spent the last two years in Canada, completing his education at the University of Western Ontario, graduating with a degree in Economics and then moving on to post graduate work in Psychology.

In coming to Cincinnati, Hewig brings with him approximately 18 years of amateur and junior playing experience in hockey, football and baseball. Prior to joining the Stingers, John served as the Public Relations Assistant for the Vancouver Blazers, also of the WHA.

The 50,000 watt, clear channel station WLW Radio airs all Stingers games, home and away, throughout the season and into the play-offs and championship series, brought to you by Schlitz, Southern Ohio Bank, Buick and Kahn's. The voice of the Stingers, Andy MacWilliams, calls all the shots for you, simply, clearly, and precisely. His expertise of hockey and knowledge of the players make you fell as if you are right behind the players bench, sharing all the excitement that Stingers hockey brings you throughout the winter months.

Not only does Andy give you a complete account of all the happenings down on the ice, but he also takes you directly into the locker room for an exclusive interview with the star of the game, right after the post game wrap up.

No matter where you are, be sure to hear all the action and the inside scoops on WLW Radio, with the voice of the Stingers, Andy MacWilliams.

Bill Brown, sportscaster at WLWT-TV, will provide the play by play for all Stinger games that will be on TV this season, not only here in Cincinnati, but also in Dayton and Columbus.

In coming to the Stingers, Bill brings with him fine credentials in the field of play by play. After graduating from the University of Missouri in 1969, Brown joined the WLWT staff upon completion of a two year stint in the US Marine Corp. During his time at WLWT, Bill has done play by play for both the Reds (during the regular season) and the Bengals (pre-season). When the Cincinnati Swords (the minor league team that left the Queen City a year ago) aired some games over TV again Brown was on the scene doing the color commentary.

In addition to sportscasting, Bill has also found time to host numerous half-hour specials, both with the Reds and the Bengals, as well as doing the two one-half special feature shows, on the Stingers and hockey in general, prior to the Stingers' home opener. When the Stingers are on the road be sure to check your local listings for the games to be aired over WLWT-TV with Bill Brown..