ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, April 24, 1996 TAG: 9604240029
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: Jack Bogaczyk
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK
Who said the Roanoke Express wouldn't make noise during the later rounds of the East Coast Hockey League playoffs?
One issue in the Express' corporate battle was settled Tuesday, with only a few minutes to spare before a news conference at which the props promised to be dripping with Mississippi mud. Pierre Paiement is still the club's general manager, and he's certainly stronger for what happened.
It's also obvious this ECHL shootout is far from over. If you're wondering about the Express' hopes for a peaceful off-season, I'd say it's now a 50-50 proposition.
John Gagnon, the Express' most visible owner, may have been in Biloxi on Tuesday, but he surely isn't out of Roanoke's hockey picture. He hasn't become known as ``Big Daddy Gags'' by staying in the background. Ousted as Express' president in a stunning board vote Friday, Gagnon still owns 50 percent of the Express, but lost a board ally Tuesday.
Paiement just hopes he hasn't lost a good friend.
``I hope John understands this my livelihood,'' Paiement said.
The five other Express board members came to an agreement with the general manager, a 10-percent investor, and Paiement admitted he was involved in start-up operations with the Gagnon-owned Mississippi Sea Wolves, an ECHL expansion franchise.
Paiement didn't just look weary. He was, and he wasn't the only one emotional. And as he spoke in the Roanoke Civic Center exhibit hall, at the back of the room, some Express staffers wept.
From all indications, the board had physical evidence of Paiement's work for the Biloxi team and was prepared to reveal it Tuesday. Paiement was involved with the start-up operations of that team, and he was still doing legwork for Gagnon's new club after he and the Express announced - at the board's insistence - that Paiement back away from any Biloxi involvement.
``The good thing about having partners, is they're there to remind you when you're stepping out of line,'' said Paiement, who admittedly struggled to separate personal and professional relationships in the matter.
Joe Steffen, a Blacksburg lawyer and spokesman for the board, said there was no indication Paiement was involved financially with the Biloxi club. Paiement didn't help his situation when he interviewed Bruce Boudreau, a candidate for the Biloxi coaching job, in the pressbox at an Express' game - and, surprise, Boudreau is expected to be named the team's coach this week.
Basically, in the past four days, the board was ready to oust Paiement because his fellow owners thought he was lying to them. They said they could prove it. Then, they gave him his job back when he admitted he had been lying to them. Paiement also lied to the public, including Express fans.
``It is a concern,`` Steffen said. ``We just have to hope the public is forgiving.''
``I think the people recognize the many good things Pierre has done for this organization the past three years,'' said restaurateur Richard Macher, the Express' new president. ``Pierre has had a huge part in the success we've had.''
Yes, he has, which is why his and the club's credibility were at stake. His stand-up routine was very sincere and impressive. Paiement walked to the podium, swallowed like he was trying to digest a puck, and began by saying his fellow board members ``made me understand'' why what he was doing, although it didn't damage the Express' operations, was a conflict of interest.
``I apologize for that,'' Paiement said. ``I was caught because of my friendship with John, between what was good and what was wrong.''
For Paiement, this was about more than an investment. He saved his job, but it's one that's not going to get any easier. A former Roanoke Valley Rebels' player, Paiement's roots in the stunning hockey success of recent vintage can be traced to his friendship with Gagnon. It isn't going to be easy staying out of the middle, as he learned in this recent escapade.
Steffen, who as corporate spokesman shared the podium with Paiement, made it clear that the Express no longer is Gagnon's show, as has most often been the case. ``This is about hockey,'' Steffen said. ``It's not about ego.''
Long before the questions of Paiement's involvement with his pal's franchise came up, some board members chafed about Gagnon's public persona with the club he half owns. Well, there is little question that anyone who knows Gagnon knows he will be steaming back into town in more ways than one.
Steffen also said he thought it's ``very clear that six of our seven owners are more committed than ever to the franchise, and we trust that the public understands that what we did was with that in mind. Unfortunately, one of our family remains unrepentant. This board of directors runs this organization.
``Mr. Gagnon is now a shareholder of this organization. He's not the president, will not be the president, will not run this organization. We find it important to say that, because it's clear that Mr. Gagnon's attention is still in Mississippi, and we wish him well there. We will continue to look after his investment here.''
Gagnon probably is and isn't glad to hear that.
LENGTH: Medium: 89 linesby CNB