Western New England hosted the symposium on Wednesday
Courtesy of Curt Hamakawa, Director of the Center for International Sport Business
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1/31/2013 10:33:00 AM
SPRINGFIELD, Mass.–On Wednesday, the Center for International Sport Business of Western New England University welcomed National Hockey League agent Jay Grossman. His appearance was underwritten by a grant from the Western New England Alumni Association, as the event was the 14th in the CISB’s “For the Love of the Games” program series.
Grossman told a packed audience in Sleith Hall about his somewhat accidental career, owing to a referral from legendary hockey coach Herb Brooks and a suggestion that he do the “agent thing.” While still in college and working for Brooks and the New York Rangers as a video analyst, the low-key-but-high-impact Grossman was nudged into the sports representation business, claiming the Olympic “Miracle on Ice” coach as his first client.
In a 1-hour presentation moderated by Sport Management Department Chair Dr. Sharianne Walker, Grossman covered a wide range of topics including the evolution of the sports agency business in the NHL, advent of social media, infusion of foreign talent into the league, and economic impact of the 2012-13 lockout, among other topics.
Grossman’s firm, Puck Agency LLC, represents some of the top names in the league, including the New Jersey Devils’ Ilya Kovalchuk, Nashville Predators’ Pekka Rinne and Edmonton Oilers’ Nikolai Khabibulin.