CRESTWOOD, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Black Bear Sports Group, Inc. (“BBSG” or the “Company”) has acquired substantially all of the assets of the Southwest Ice Arena in Crestwood, IL (the “Arena”). The Arena houses one NHL-size ice sheet, one smaller practice rink and the Pal’s Corner Cafe. BBSG is also pleased to announce the addition of the seller, Mr. Frank DiCristina, to its operations team. Mr. DiCristina has joined BBSG as Vice President of Operations and will oversee all four BBSG ice rinks in the Chicago area.

“We’re thrilled to be investing in the strong hockey and skating community of southwest Chicago,” said Murry Gunty, CEO of BBSG. “The addition of Mr. DiCristina to our team is extremely valuable. He brings tremendous experience and knowledge backed by his family’s 43-year ownership of the Arena.”

“I am excited to be a part of the BBSG team and will use my 30+ years of ice rink management experience to oversee the Chicago arenas,” said Mr. DiCristina. “BBSG has recently made significant investments in improving their Chicago ice rinks and I am confident that bringing Southwest Ice Arena into the BBSG network was the best decision for the long-term viability of the Arena.”

The Arena is the ninth ice rink purchased by BBSG. Other ice rink holdings include Seven Bridges Ice Arena in Woodridge, IL; American Heartland Ice Arena in Lincolnwood, IL; Center Ice of DuPage in Glen Ellyn, IL; Piney Orchard Ice Arena in Odenton, MD; Ice World in Abingdon, MD; Ice Land Skating Center in Hamilton Township, NJ; Jersey Shore Ice Arena in Wall Township, NJ; and Printscape Arena at Southpointe in Canonsburg, PA.

About Black Bear Sports Group, Inc.

Black Bear Sports Group, Inc. (“BBSG”) is a privately held company formed by Murry Gunty in 2015 that seeks investments in sports and entertainment facilities and youth sports events. Our arenas are clean and professionally managed, and offer world class recreational offerings. We focus on ice arenas in metropolitan areas with compelling demographics, markets with a National Hockey League club presence and arenas with an existing Tier I or Tier II youth hockey presence . We have the ability to acquire healthy and stable arenas, but also to turn around under-managed or under-performing facilities. BBSG currently owns and operates nine arenas across the United States with a total of 17 sheets of indoor ice and two indoor turf fields.