Over a span of 17 months from February 2022 to June 2023, Mr. Kroenke's NFL franchise, the Los Angeles Rams, won Super Bowl LVI on their home grounds of SoFi Stadium, the Avalanche won the 2022 Stanley Cup, the Colorado Mammoth, Mr. Kroenke's National League Lacrosse team, won the 2022 NLL championship and the Denver Nuggets won the 2023 NBA championship.

 

The Avalanche secured their third Stanley Cup championship in 2022, defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning to cap off a 16-4 postseason run. Colorado has made the playoffs in each of the last six seasons, tied for the third-longest active streak in the NHL, and has won three consecutive division titles, tied with Carolina for the NHL's longest active streak of division crowns.

 

During his first five years of ownership, the Avalanche sold out every home game and went on to post an NHL-record 487 consecutive game sellout streak. The Avalanche were chosen by the NHL to host two outdoor games in a span of four years-the 2016 Stadium Series at Coors Field and the 2020 Stadium Series at the U.S. Air Force Academy-and have competed in two NHL Global Series in Europe (2017-18 in Stockholm, Sweden and 2022-23 in Tampere, Finland).

 

The Nuggets won the 2022-23 Northwest Division championship, their sixth division title under Mr. Kroenke. The Nuggets have made the playoffs in each of the last five years, which included a run to the NBA Western Conference Finals in 2019-20. The Nuggets were one of only two NBA teams to make the playoffs in all 10 seasons from 2003 through 2013 and made an appearance in the Western Conference Finals in 2008-09.

 

In the summer of 2010, Mr. Kroenke elevated Josh Kroenke to team President and Governor of the Nuggets and three years later named Josh team President of the Avalanche.

 

Off the ice and court, one of Mr. Kroenke's priorities has been the Colorado community. More than $17 million in contributions have been made to Colorado charities through Kroenke Sports Charities and the Colorado Avalanche and Denver Nuggets Community Funds. The Avalanche and Nuggets continue to be strong supporters of youth hockey and basketball in the state of Colorado, sponsoring the Avalanche International Pee-Wee Qualifier Tournament and offering numerous youth basketball camps to help teach the game to local children. Additionally, the Kroenke family donated $1 million to the Red Cross organization following the hurricanes that devastated the coastal regions of the country in August 2017.

 

Denver-based Kroenke Sports & Entertainment owns Major League Soccer's Colorado Rapids and the National Lacrosse League's Colorado Mammoth. The Rapids hosted the MLS All-Star Game in 2007 and 2015 and won the MLS Cup championship in 2010. The Colorado Mammoth won the National Lacrosse League Cup in 2021-22, their second NLL title (also 2006) and has been a playoff participant in all but two of its seasons. The Mammoth also hosted the NLL All-Star Game in 2004 and 2009.

 

In April 2011, Kroenke became the majority shareholder of Arsenal FC, the storied English Premier League football club. Arsenal won the 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2020 FA Cup and qualified for the Champions League in 19 consecutive seasons from 1998-99 to 2016-17, the second longest run ever.

 

The St. Louis Rams (now Los Angeles Rams) won the Super Bowl in 2000 while Mr. Kroenke was a co-owner; he became the team's principal owner in August 2010. The Rams won their second Super Bowl (LVI) in 2021. Three years earlier, Los Angeles captured the 2018 NFC championship and played in Super Bowl LIII.

 

In addition to his success as a team owner, Kroenke has been a pioneer in television programming. In September 2004, Kroenke launched Altitude Sports & Entertainment, a 24-hour regional television network that is the broadcast home for the Avalanche, Nuggets, Mammoth and Rapids. Altitude also airs professional, collegiate and high school sporting events throughout the Rocky Mountain region. KSE expanded its media position in 2013 with the acquisition of Outdoor Channel and in 2014 with the acquisition of Sportsman Channel. KSE also owns World Fishing Network.

 

KSE Radio owns three Denver FM radio stations, KIMN-FM (Mix 100.3), KXKL-FM (Kool 105) and KKSE-FM (Altitude Sports Radio 92.5), the radio broadcast home of the Avalanche, Nuggets, Mammoth and Rapids. KSE Radio also owns one Denver AM station, KKSE (Altitude Sports Radio 950 AM).

 

Ball Arena, a KSE-operated facility and the largest indoor arena, event center and concert venue in Colorado, is the home arena for the Avalanche, Nuggets and Mammoth.

 

In 2020, Mr. Kroenke celebrated the opening of SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park in Los Angeles, a 298-acre development with a 70,240-seat stadium as its crown jewel. SoFi Stadium, home to the Rams and Los Angeles Chargers, has transformed the Hollywood Park area into a year-round sports and entertainment destination that hosted Super Bowl LVI in 2022 and has been awarded the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2028 Olympics and the College Football Playoff National Championship in 2023. Additionally, the multi-purpose project serves as a West Coast campus for the National Football League, houses NFL Media's headquarters, features hosting capabilities for future Super Bowls, NFL Drafts, and Pro Bowls.

 

On April 7, 2007, KSE opened Dick's Sporting Goods Park, one of the largest soccer-specific complexes in the world. The state-of-the-art sports facility sits on more than 160 acres in Commerce City, Colorado, and holds 18,000 fans for field sports and up to 27,000 for concerts. KSE also owns the Paramount Theatre, a historic landmark in downtown Denver, and through Peak Entertainment, LLC, a joint venture between KSE and AEG Live Rocky Mountains, co-manages 1STBANK Center in Broomfield, a multi-use arena accommodating up to 6,500 people for a variety of events. Ball Arena, Dick's Sporting Goods Park, the Paramount Theatre and 1STBANK Center are home to more than 300 events annually.

 

Kroenke's enthusiasm and vision ensure that Denver will continue to be the top entertainment destination in the Rocky Mountain region for generations to come. Local media outlets have consistently named Kroenke one of the most significant people in the Denver arts and entertainment community, saying "no other person entertains more people more often."

 

Kroenke is the chairman and owner of The Kroenke Group, a private real estate investment and development company with properties located throughout the United States and Canada. Over the past four decades, he has built a reputation as one of the nation's leading real estate developers.

 

A member of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame, Kroenke holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Missouri. In addition to their son Josh, who is President and Governor of the Avalanche and Nuggets and Vice Chairman of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, Stan and his wife, Ann, have a daughter, Whitney, an award-winning documentary film producer.

Since Kroenke assumed the role of Avalanche President, the club has won four division championships (2013-14, 2020-23), the 2021 Presidents' Trophy and 2022 Stanley Cup. The Avs have made the playoffs in each of their last six seasons, tied for the third-longest current streak in the NHL. Colorado's run of three straight division titles is tied with Carolina for the league's longest active streak.

 

The 2021-22 Avalanche enjoyed their most successful regular season in franchise history (56-19-7, 119 points) and continued that into the postseason with a 16-4 playoff mark en route to capturing the 2022 Stanley Cup. Colorado's 72 combined wins matched the NHL record set by the 1976-77 Canadiens, 1983-84 Oilers and 1995-96 Red Wings.

 

Colorado's Stanley Cup championship came five years after a last-place finish in 2016-17. The Avs became the fifth team in the expansion era (1967-68) to win a title within five years of a last place finish and the first since the 2009 Penguins. The 2020-21 club was the first NHL team to go from worst in the regular season to first in four seasons or less since the Bruins in 1970-71.

 

In addition to winning the NBA title, the 2022-23 Nuggets won the Northwest Division championship, their sixth title under Kroenke. The Nuggets have made the playoffs in each of the last five years, which included a run to the NBA Western Conference Finals in 2019-20. The Nuggets were one of only two NBA teams to make the playoffs in all 10 seasons from 2003 through 2013 and made an appearance in the Western Conference Finals in 2008-09.

 

Kroenke, in conjunction with the National Hockey League, was instrumental in bringing the 2016 Coors Light NHL Stadium Series game to Denver. The event, which featured the Avalanche and the Red Wings playing at Coors Field on Feb. 27, 2016, was the first ever NHL outdoor game in the state of Colorado. The 2019-20 season saw the Avalanche host its second outdoor game in four years, this time at the U.S. Air Force Academy on Feb. 15, 2020, against the Los Angeles Kings. The Avalanche were also chosen to play in an outdoor game in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, against the Vegas Golden Knights in 2021. The Avs were chosen to compete in both the 2017-18 and 2022-23 NHL Global Series in Sweden and Finland, respectively.

 

In addition to his responsibilities with the Nuggets and Avalanche, Kroenke serves as Alternate Governor for the Colorado Rapids (Major League Soccer) and is on the Board of Directors for Arsenal Football Club (English Premier League) in London. In his role as Vice Chairman of Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, he works closely with KSE executives on multiple business operation.

 

In 2014, Kroenke was named to the SportsBusiness Daily's prestigious "Forty Under 40" list. The annual list honors the most promising young executives in sports business under the age of 40.

 

Additionally, Kroenke has spearheaded numerous business initiatives throughout Ball Arena and the Nuggets and Avalanche organizations. In 2013 he oversaw the installation of a 4,400 square foot HD center-hung scoreboard, one of the largest and most technologically advanced scoreboards in a professional sports arena. In just the past two years he has unveiled new home, road and alternate jerseys for the Nuggets, overseen the complete redesign of the Nuggets' locker room, training room and players' lounge, and introduced Club Lexus, offering exclusive amenities and services to Nuggets and Avalanche ticket-holders.

 

Kroenke is also leading KSE into the fast-growing area of eSports. Instrumental in the decision to create KSE eSports, Kroenke acquired the inaugural franchise in Activision/Blizzard's Overwatch league, now known as the Los Angeles Gladiators. As co-founder of KSE eSports with his father Stan, Josh has helped guide all elements of the operation including branding and launch of the team in January 2018.

 

Athletic competition has always been a passion for Kroenke, who attended the University of Missouri on a full basketball scholarship. He was a contributor during Missouri's trip to the Elite Eight as a sophomore in 2002, and he earned Academic All-Big XII First Team honors while serving as team captain during his junior and senior seasons. After graduating with a degree in financial management, Kroenke completed a six-month internship with the NBA's League Office working in its Player Development Department. Upon finishing his internship, Kroenke worked on Wall Street where he assisted with the debt underwriting and securitization of numerous commercial real estate transactions.

 

Away from the Nuggets and Avalanche, Kroenke serves on the Board of Strategic Development for the Trulaske College of Business at the University of Missouri. Kroenke is an active supporter of Kroenke Sports Charities and the Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche Community Funds. He is involved in several other charitable endeavors, including the Todd Peglow Memorial Scholarship Fund at the University of Missouri. He is also a major supporter of the Playing For Change Foundation, which was co-founded by his sister, Whitney, and benefits children worldwide by building schools that specialize in teaching music and arts.

Sakic, who captained the Avalanche to a pair of Stanley Cup championships as a player (1996, 2001) and was the architect of Colorado’s 2022 Stanley Cup title as General Manager, is the only individual in NHL history to win a Stanley Cup as a captain and GM with the same organization. The Avalanche enters the 2023-24 season having won three straight division titles, tied for the longest active streak in the league, and made six consecutive playoff appearances, tied for the third-longest active streak.

 

Colorado has a 188-76-26 (.693) regular-season record since 2019-20, second best in the NHL behind only Boston (.716, 193-68-29). Since 2018-19, only Tampa Bay (50) has more playoff wins than the Avalanche’s 41 (Vegas also has 41). Sakic was the 2021-22 recipient of the Jim Gregory General Manager of the Year Award, the first executive in club history to receive the honor.

 

Under Sakic’s direction, the Avalanche had their most successful regular season in franchise history (56-19-7, 119 points) and continued that into the postseason with a 16-4 playoff mark en route to capturing the 2022 Stanley Cup. Colorado’s 72 combined wins matched the NHL record set by the 1976-77 Canadiens, 1983-84 Oilers, and 1995-96 Red Wings.

 

Colorado’s Stanley Cup championship came five years after a last-place finish in 2016-17. The Avs became the fifth team in the expansion era (1967-68) to win a title within five years of a last-place finish and the first since the 2009 Penguins. Colorado won the Presidents’ Trophy the previous year in 2020-21, becoming the first NHL team to go from worst in the regular season to first in four seasons or less since the Bruins in 1970-71.

 

Under Sakic and current GM Chris MacFarland, the Avalanche have signed Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Gabriel Landeskog, and Mikko Rantanen to long-term deals, locking up the core of the franchise. All four players were first-round picks since Sakic joined the front office, and three of the four (Makar 2020, MacKinnon 2014, and Landeskog 2012) won the Calder Trophy. No team has had as many rookie-of-the-year winners during that span. Makar has gone on to win the Conn Smythe and Norris Trophy, MacKinnon has been a three-time finalist for the Hart Trophy, and Rantanen was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team in 2020-21.

 

The Avalanche signed MacKinnon to an eight-year contract in September 2022, and MacKinnon rewarded the front office with a career-high 111 points last season, the most by an Avalanche player since Sakic (118) in 2000-01.

 

MacKinnon’s deal capped off a busy summer in which the club traded for Alexandar Georgiev and agreed to terms with Valeri Nichushkin (eight-year deal), Artturi Lehkonen (five years), and Josh Manson (four years). That followed a productive 2021 offseason in which Sakic and company locked up captain Landeskog to an eight-year contract and Makar to a six-year deal. Soon after, the club acquired Darcy Kuemper in a trade on July 28, 2021, and signed free agent Darren Helm the following day. The Avs strengthened the team further as the trade deadline approached, adding Manson on March 14 and Lehkonen and Andrew Cogliano on March 21. All were key contributors to Colorado’s championship run.

 

Key off-season and in-season acquisitions have been a staple for the franchise under Sakic. Over the past several years, Sakic and his staff have brought in Nazem Kadri and Andre Burakovsky via trade while signing Nichushkin. Kadri was selected to his first NHL All-Star Game in 2021-22, Nichushkin led the team in goals during the 2022 Stanley Cup Final and assisted on Burakovsky’s overtime winner in Game 1. In addition to the improvements up front, the Avalanche have also upgraded their blue line. Samuel Girard was acquired as part of a three-team trade in November 2017, a deal that also yielded the fourth overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, defenseman Bowen Byram. During the 2020 offseason, the club acquired Devon Toews and signed him to a four-year deal. Byram led all rookies with nine points during the 2022 postseason while Toews is a league-best +120 since joining the Avs.

 

The Avalanche organization was tabbed as having the NHL’s best farm system by The Hockey News in their 2020 Future Watch issue. Colorado boasted the NHL’s No. 1 prospect, Byram. Head coach Jared Bednar, hired by Sakic in August 2016, is the winningest in franchise history (240-168-46, .579) and the first Avalanche bench boss to lead his teams to six consecutive playoff berths. After guiding Colorado to the 2022 Stanley Cup, Bednar became the first individual to win a championship in the NHL, AHL, and ECHL as a head coach. Bednar, a finalist for the Jack Adams Award in 2018, owns the fourth-highest postseason winning percentage (.614, 43-26-1) in Stanley Cup Playoff history.

 

In Sakic’s first season of overseeing all hockey-related decisions, the Avalanche won the 2013-14 Central Division championship and tied a then-franchise record with 52 wins. Colorado took home three trophies at the 2014 NHL Awards, tying Boston for the most of any team. The 2017-18 Avalanche, the league’s youngest team, enjoyed one of the greatest turnaround seasons in NHL history, as Colorado’s 47-point increase from 2016-17 equaled the fourth-highest, year-to-year improvement ever. A month into that 2017-18 campaign, the Avalanche orchestrated the three-team trade that added Girard, Vladislav Kamenev, and a second-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft from the Nashville Predators, as well as Shane Bowers, Andrew Hammond, a first-round selection in the 2019 NHL Draft (Byram), and a third-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft from the Ottawa Senators.

 

All-in-all, that trade landed the Avs a first, second, and third-round draft pick, a former first rounder (Bowers), and two former second rounders (Girard, Kamenev). Sakic announced his retirement from the game of hockey on July 9, 2009, following a career that spanned 20 seasons and 1,378 games with the same organization. He wore the ‘C’ as team captain for 16 consecutive seasons (17 seasons overall), making him the second-longest serving captain in NHL history.

 

Sakic led the Avalanche to two Stanley Cup titles (1996, 2001), which included the city of Denver’s first major professional sports championship in 1996. The Burnaby, B.C., native captured the franchise’s first Hart Trophy as league MVP in 2001, won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 1996, earned the Lester B. Pearson Award (NHLPA MVP), and Lady Byng Trophy (sportsmanship) in 2001 and was named to the NHL’s First All-Star Team on three occasions (2001, 2002, and 2004). Sakic was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012, his first year of eligibility.

 

The only player who spent his entire career with the Avalanche organization to achieve that honor, Sakic was officially inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Nov. 12, 2012. He was named one of “The 100 Greatest NHL Players” honoring 100 years of NHL hockey in 2017. Sakic retired as the eighth-highest scorer in NHL history with 1,641 career points. He ranked seventh all-time in both playoff goals (84) and playoff points (188-tied), and still holds the NHL record with eight postseason overtime goals. Selected by the Quebec Nordiques in the first round (15th overall) of the 1987 Entry Draft, Sakic is the franchise’s all-time leader in nearly every statistical category..

 

With Sakic as team captain, the Avalanche/Nordiques captured an NHL-record nine consecutive division championships from 1995 to 2003. In addition to its two Stanley Cup titles, the Avalanche also won two Presidents’ Trophies and made six appearances in the Western Conference Finals during that time span. Sakic’s No. 19 jersey was retired by the Avalanche during a pre-game ceremony on Oct. 1, 2009. Joe and his wife, Debbie, have three children: Mitchell and twins Chase and Kamryn. The Sakics are active with the Food Bank of the Rockies charity, and Joe previously hosted his own charity golf tournament to benefit the Food Bank every summer in Denver. Sakic was awarded the 2007 NHL Foundation Player Award in recognition of his commitment and service to charities in his community.

The Avalanche have qualified for the postseason in each of the last six years, tied for the third-longest active streak in the league. Colorado enters the 2023-24 season having won three straight division titles, tied with Carolina for the longest active streak in the NHL. The Avalanche are coming off back-to-back 50-win seasons for the first time in franchise history, winning 51 games in 2022-23 after notching a club-record 56 victories the year before in 2021-22. Colorado has a 188-76-26 (.693) regular-season record since 2019-20, second best in the NHL behind only Boston (.716, 193-68-29).

 

One of Colorado’s top priorities heading into this upcoming season was addressing the team’s depth. MacFarland and his staff acquired Ryan Johansen from Nashville, acquired and signed Ross Colton from Tampa Bay, inked Miles Wood to a six-year contract, and signed Jonathan Drouin and Tomas Tatar to one-year deals. The club also picked up an extra selection in the first round of the 2023 NHL Draft. Prior to the start of the 2022-23 training camp, the Avalanche signed Nathan MacKinnon to an eight-year contract. MacKinnon’s signing wrapped up a busy summer in which the Avs agreed to terms with Valeri Nichushkin on an eight-year deal, Artturi Lehkonen on a five-year agreement, and Josh Manson on a four-year contract. This followed up the previous summer (2021) that saw the Avs lock up Gabriel Landeskog to an eight-year contract, while also signing Cale Makar to a six-year deal. Landeskog captained the team to the Stanley Cup with Makar taking home the Norris Trophy and Conn Smythe Trophy.

 

Among the other moves made during MacFarland’s tenure with the Avalanche was the signing of Mikko Rantanen to a six-year deal, trades for Samuel Girard and Devon Toews, and key deadline acquisitions in Manson, Lehkonen, and Andrew Cogliano to propel them to the 2022 Stanley Cup.

 

Prior to joining the Avalanche, MacFarland was a member of the Columbus Blue Jackets’ hockey operations department for 16 years. He worked in nearly every facet of the organization, including scouting at the professional and amateur level, player contract negotiations, salary cap management and arbitration, collective bargaining agreement administration, budgeting, and team scheduling issues. He also oversaw the hockey operations efforts of the Blue Jackets’ minor-league affiliates. MacFarland joined Columbus before the 1999-00 NHL campaign and served as the club’s manager of hockey operations from 2001-07 before being promoted to assistant to the general manager in July 2007. He moved to the position of assistant general manager a year later in July 2008.

 

Born on March 28, 1970, in the Bronx, New York, he played college hockey at Pace University where he received a bachelor’s degree in business in 1992 and later graduated from the university’s law school in 1998. He began his career on the business side of the sport as an intern in the NHL’s New York office from 1993-94 and worked in the NHL Productions office while attending law school.

 

Chris and his wife, Chandra, have three sons, Jake, Gavin, Sawyer, and a daughter, Cara.

Prior to joining the Avalanche, McDonald worked for the St. Louis Blues organization for 21 seasons, which included working as the assistant GM for the 2019 Stanley Cup championship team. McDonald served as General Manager of the Blues’ American Hockey League affiliate since Aug. 28, 2018, and in that role, was also a pro scout for St. Louis. He was the recipient of the 2022 Thomas Ebright Memorial Award, which is annually presented for outstanding career contributions to the American Hockey League.

 

McDonald originally joined the Blues organization prior to the 2001-02 season as a professional scout. He scouted professional talent for the Blues for two years before the organization promoted him to director of professional scouting in 2003. In June 2005, he was given the added responsibilities of being the general manager of the Blues’ former AHL affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen. In May 2009, McDonald was named assistant general manager for the Blues and worked closely with Blues president of hockey operations and General Manager Doug Armstrong in coordinating the transfer of players and in acquiring professional hockey players.

 

McDonald began his career in professional hockey in 1988 as a member of the communications department of the New York Rangers. Following the 1993-94 season, when the Rangers won the Stanley Cup, he moved into the Rangers’ hockey operations department and worked as an assistant to Rangers General Manager Neil Smith during the lockout-shortened 1994-95 season.

 

A native of Lawrence, Massachusetts, McDonald is married (Lauren), has two children (Sean and Kayleigh), and three step-children (Joseph, Jenna, and Daniel).

In addition to overseeing the organization's communications and media relations efforts, McNicholas' role includes coordinating individual player appearances and team events, handling tickets for the players and their families and working as a liaison with the team charter, bus companies and hotels. His previous duties have also included overseeing the team's official website and social media efforts.

 

McNicholas' career has included working in the front office for an MLB, NHL and NFL team, as well as two NCAA Division I athletic departments. He has staffed All-Star Games in three of the four major sports, as well as a Stanley Cup Final, three AFC Championship games, the NLCS and NLDS, as well as numerous NCAA championships, bowl games and conference championships.

 

Prior to joining the Avalanche, McNicholas, 45, spent five seasons with the Colorado Rockies Public Relations Department as a coordinator and manager. He worked as one of the team's primary media contacts while also serving as the writer, editor and designer of the team's annual media guide, postseason media guide and draft prospectus.

 

A graduate of the University of Colorado, the Denver native worked all four years as a student in the school's sports information office, which included a promotion to Graduate Assistant SID during his junior year in 1999. He mainly worked with the nationally-ranked football team during his years in Boulder but also served as the SID for the 1998 and 1999 NCAA championship ski team.

 

While a student at CU, McNicholas interned for the Denver Broncos Media Relations Department in 1999 and has continued to work for the Broncos as a statistician or spotter for network television and radio broadcasts.

 

Throughout his college career, McNicholas also did internships with the University of Denver Athletic Media Relations Office, the 2000 INTERNATIONAL PGA Tour event and worked as a freelance writer for The Associated Press and The Colorado Daily.

 

McNicholas is a graduate of Regis Jesuit High School in Aurora. Brendan and his wife, Eimear, have a son, Caoimhin (8), and daughter, Fiadh (4).