Suburban Sports Group (SSG) has acquired Ice Sports East Lansing.  The 90,000
square-foot, two-sheet ice arena, located just east of the Michigan State University
campus, was built in 1998.  The facility is home to the Greater Lansing Amateur Hockey
Association, the Lansing Skating Club, Lady Silver Blades, and the East Lansing,
Okemos, Haslett/Williamston and Lansing Catholic Central high school programs.  Ice
Sports East Lansing becomes the fourth arena that is either owned or operated by SSG. 

Suburban Sports Group is headed by Tom Anastos and Lyle Phair, both former hockey
players who played at MSU from 1981-1985.  Anastos, who graduated from MSU with
a degree in Construction Management, is also the commissioner of the Central Collegiate
Hockey Association.

“We felt that this acquisition made sense from a lot of different perspectives,” said
Anastos, who also served as one of Ron Mason’s assistant coaches from 1990-1992,
before entering private business.  “It’s situated in an excellent location, GLAHA and
the Lansing Skating Club are solid organizations with a strong tradition, adult hockey
is extremely popular in the area, and there continues to be a growing interest in high
school hockey…and personally, it gives Lyle and I the chance to give back to the
community.”

Suburban Sports Group entered the recreational ice arena business in 1997 when it
built the Suburban Training Center, a two-sheet ice facility located in Farmington Hills,
Michigan.  Since that time the company has grown into one of the most respected in
the industry, and also operates the Onyx – Rochester Ice Arena, a $16 million,
three-sheet ice arena located in Rochester, Michigan and the two-sheet Novi Ice
Arena, a $9 million facility owned by the city of Novi (Michigan).  SSG is currently
building a new two-sheet, $7 million dollar facility in Macomb Township, Michigan,
which is expected to open in July 2005.

SSG plans to incorporate similar strategies at Ice Sports East Lansing as it has
successfully implemented at its other facilities in order to help the arena meet its full
potential.

“Our strategy will center around providing value and diverse programming opportunities
to our customers,” said Lyle Phair, who after his outstanding playing career at MSU
went on to play five professional seasons with the Los Angeles Kings and New Jersey
Devils organizations, and now heads up all of the company’s programming activities. 
“We focus on making the customers’ experience the best it can possibly be, and at the
same time, try to grow the activities to the fullest potential.”