A group led by former hockey player Anson Carter announced Tuesday that it has formally requested that NHL grant it an expansion franchise to play in the Atlanta area.
Carter played 10 seasons in the NHL with eight different teams. He was born and raised in Toronto but has lived in the Atlanta area since 2009 and is a co-owner of the Atlanta Gladiators of the ECHL. The prospective ownership group also includes Neil Leibman, the chief operating officer of the Texas Rangers; Peter Simon, the CEO of sports investment firm Simon Sports; and Aaron Zeigler, the president and CEO of Zeigler Automotive Group, which owns more than 80 car dealerships in the midwest.
The group, Alpharetta Sports & Entertainment Group, is seeking to build an arena near the North Point Mall in Alpharetta, Ga., about 25 miles north of downtown Atlanta.