Quick Five questions with Missouri Mavericks assistant general manager Joe Greene
Joe Greene, the Missouri Mavericks assistant general manager, comes to Independence after serving as the assistant general manager of the Wichita Thunder for the past four years. Greene oversees the day-to-day operations of the Mavericks ticketing and corporate departments. He has also worked as corporate marketing manager for the Topeka Tarantulas and as an assistant sports director for Western Kansas Broadcast Center. The native of Clay Center, Kan., currently resides in Lee’s Summit with his wife, Sarah, and their sons, Justin and Drake. Like players, coaches and fans, Greene is counting down the minutes until tonight’s home opener.
1. Do you feel like a proud father who is about to witness the birth of a new hockey team and arena? That’s a great way of putting it. Friday night is going to be like a father waiting for the birth of a child. I wish I could tell you how excited all of us are, but it’s hard to put into words. We have told every member of our staff to take 60 seconds Friday night, take a deep breath, and just take it all in. There will never be another home opener in a new facility and we want everyone to savor it and enjoy it.
2. What does it mean to the Mavericks that the home game will be played before a sold-out crowd? It means everything. We had several individuals who applied as a sales director for the team, and one of the first questions we asked was about an opening night sell-out. If they didn’t say it would be a sell-out, well, they didn’t last very long in the interview process. I know I’m prejudiced, but I think we have the best (front office) staff in the Central Hockey League. The hours they have put in – long before this moment arrived – are just unbelievable. They worked so hard and now, we have a sell-out Friday night and less than 1,000 tickets for Saturday night. It’s just going to be a great weekend.
3. Did you ever think this moment would arrive? When we came here six months ago, we didn’t have a desk. We didn’t have a computer. We didn’t have an office. But we had a dream, and that dream is going to become a reality Friday night. Just watching the team practice for the first time on the Event Center ice gives me chills. I can’t imagine what Friday night is going to be like.
4. How important is it that the team comes back home with a win? The first win (over Wichita) was huge. HUGE! We got off to a rough start, but I was there the night we won our first game and I talked to a lot of people I used to work with in Wichita, and they were impressed by the team. One of them said, “You guys are going to be just fine.” Our guys play with a lot of emotion and the fans are going to see that emotion Friday night – hopefully, they will see the emotion along with our third win of the season. And then, they are going to want to come back for more.
5. What is your impression of the Events Center? Incredible. There aren’t many arenas in this league that are this spectacular. It has everything the fans could ask for, and the players love it. It’s going to be the talk of the Central Hockey League. And when sponsors come here to talk about a partnership with the team, it’s easy to close the deal once they see the Events Center. It’s just spectacular. Here we are, watching a practice with no one in the stands and you can feel the electricity and experience that new-building smell. Can you imagine what it’s going to be like when we have all the seats full on Friday night? I can hardly wait to find out.
