Getting In on the Game

Strange as it may seem given his current activities, Brian Schoenborn has never played hockey. Until fairly recently, the Minnesota native didn’t even follow it.

“I’m a huge fan now,” he says. An attorney who works mostly in St. Cloud, Schoenborn co-owns the Sioux Falls Stampede and the Des Moines Buccaneers, two teams in the United States Hockey League (USHL), a so-called Tier I amateur league for developing players. During the season, he makes a monthly loop between the two cities and his office so he can better track his teams’ fortunes. Every December 31, he and his family head out to Sioux Falls and welcome in the new year at a Stampede game.

"If you love hockey and you want to be involved in a solid hockey business, you have two choices, the NHL or the USHL," team owner Brian Schoenborn says.

Schoenborn’s relationship with the USHL is a complex one. Being the owner of two teams became an especially complicated issue last year, when one of his teams (Des Moines) defeated the other (Sioux Falls) in the league championship. (Hey, which side are you on, Mr. Owner?) In addition, he represents the league as an attorney with Minneapolis-headquartered law firm Leonard Street & Deinard. But despite the intricacies, Schoenborn sees the USHL as a superb entrepreneurial opportunity. His league operates mostly in small urban markets that the big-time sports world tends to ignore, and it provides a level of competition and entertainment a step above local collegiate teams.

And for entrepreneurial types like Schoenborn, USHL teams provide an appealing investment.