Fans won double this past weekend with the Everblades winning their home opener against Norfolk Admirals in the newly renovated Hertz Arena. With a sold-out crowd of fans and cheers echoing off the walls of the arena, the night could not have gone better for the Blades. Scoring 4-2 against Norfolk, the Everblade’s season is continuing to stay strong with a 3-0-0 streak (all against Norfolk).
Hertz Arena owner, David Hoffmann and his wife, Jerri, spoke to the packed crowd prior to the start of the game. The Hoffmanns were presented with a game puck by Bill MacKay, vice president of merchandising, and were handed the symbolic key to Hertz Arena by president, Craig Brush.
“It was great to hear the fans react positively to what we’re doing. We’re really kind of doing it for them. We want them to be proud of it. We want them to feel like it’s their arena.”
– David Hoffmann
The 8,284-capacity, multi-purpose arena is almost done with it’s multi-million dollar renovation. Since the acquisition in August, Hoffmann has already renovated the luxury suites, first-floor bathrooms, the West End bar, the Hertz #1 Club and the entire main concourse floor has been resurfaced. More improvements are coming for the interior, food services, arena seats, and state-of-the-art scoreboard. Preliminary discussions are also underway to host nationally televised basketball tournaments and more headlining musicians and events to the area.
(Photos by: Kevin Bires)
The next Blades home game will be Saturday, October 26th, against the Solar Bears.
About Hertz Arena:
Hertz Arena, originally called Everblades Arena which opened in 1998, hosts a variety of sports and events including concerts, Cirque du Solei, Disney on Ice, boxing, trade shows, and many others. The venue offers 25 suites, two additional ice rinks, a private club, and a pub. The arena is also home to the FGCU Eagles club hockey team of the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA).
