Front Office

Barry Soskin

Governor, CEO, CFO, President, GM

Barry has been an owner of various teams in the past 25 years, including the two time champion Toledo Storm of the East Coast Hockey League, Nashville Nighthawks of the Central Hockey League, Waterloo Blackhawks of the United States Hockey League, Traverse City Enforcers of the Continental Junior Hockey League and the Pelham Prowlers of the Southeast Hockey League.

Barry is married to his wife, Fran for nearly 40 years and has three adult children, Heather, Brian and Rachel. Barry and his family reside in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

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Cary Ross

Director of Hockey Operations & Ownership Partner

Phone336-270-1029

Emailcross@carolinathunderbirds.com

Cary is a graduate of Western Illinois University and has been in the printing equipment business for almost 40 years. He has been an ownership partner with the Carolina Thunderbirds since the team's inception in 2017.

In May of 2022, Ross became the team's Director of Hockey Operations.

Cary grew up in the Chicago-land area and currently resides in Mt. Prospect, Illinois with his wife Lisa. He has a son, Michael, 2 daughters, Amanda and Carly, and five grandkids, Landon, Madeline, Ari, Spencer and Elliot.

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Rick Chaikin

Ownership Partner

Rick has been a retail and residential construction professional for the past 35 years and he is thrilled to be part of the Thunderbirds ownership group. Along with his passion for professional and amateur hockey, Rick enjoys model railroading and the music of “Chicago”.

Residing in Buffalo Grove, Illinois, Rick and his wife Denise have been married for nearly 40 years. Together they are devoted to their four children and nine grandchildren.

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Shannon Campbell

Assistant to the President, Accounting, Concessions and Merchandise

Phone336-774-8882

Emailscampbell@carolinathunderbirds.com

Shannon is in her 5^th season with the Thunderbirds, having worn numerous hats over the years. After being enlisted to work concessions during the team’s inaugural season, she quickly found herself running merchandise sales and keeping track of the team’s finances. In the summer of 2021, Shannon was named Assistant General Manager. She’s lived in Winston-Salem since she was 12, and graduated from Mt. Tabor High School in 1995. Shannon loves camping with her son Lucas, daughter Hannah, husband Tim, and their dogs, Willow and Daisy.

Kelly Curl

Director of Sales and Marketing

Phone336-774-4625

Emailkellyc@carolinathunderbirds.com

Kelly Curl played on the inaugural Thunderbirds team in 2017 and has played at least one game in every season for Carolina since. He was a member of the 2019 Commissioner's Cup Championship team.

Collegiately, Curl played NCAA Division III hockey at Lebanon Valley College (Penn.). Prior to his time with the Flying Dutchmen, Curl played prep school hockey at The Hill School in Pottstown, Penn.

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Brett Wiseman

Vice President of Media Relations/Communications/Play-By-Play Announcer

Phone336-748-3950

Emailbrettw@carolinathunderbirds.com

Born and raised right here in Winston-Salem, Brett rejoins the Thunderbirds full time after three seasons as an intern (2018-2021). He graduated from Appalachian State University in the Spring of 2020 with a Bachelor's degree in Electronic Media/Broadcasting and a minor in General Business.

While at App State, Wiseman called football, basketball, baseball, volleyball and soccer for ESPN+, WASU Radio and AppVision TV. While interning with the Thunderbirds, he called multiple ACCHL games at the Annex from 2019-2021 and filled in for Drew Blevins for three Thunderbirds home games in February of 2020.

Wiseman is a lifelong native of the Twin City, and a lifelong fan of the game of hockey.

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Hannah Russ

Manager of Group & Season Ticket Sales

Phone336-748-3949

EmailSend a message

Hannah joins the Thunderbirds front office for the 2021-2022 season. She has dedicated herself to creating immersive group ticket experiences and catering to the needs of Thunderbirds fans. A lifelong member of the Winston-Salem community, Hannah graduated from North Davidson High School in 2019. In her spare time, Hannah loves going to the gym and taking spontaneous trips to Virginia.

Joe Cangelosi

Director of Corporate Outreach/Business Development

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From Princeton, NJ, Cangelosi joins the Thunderbirds front office while continuing as an active player. Joe will form and maintain relationships with businesses across the Triad, act as a liaison between players and business staff, and grow brand recognition.

He currently sits at 3rd place on the Tunderbirds all-time games played list with 125, and 5th in team assists with 62. He graduated from Rider University with a B. S. in Business Administration.

His favorite part of his new position is engaging with the community. From his arrival in Carolina in 2017, getting to know the community has been one of the biggest contributors to making Winston-Salem feel like home.

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Olivia Ruffino

Director of Gameday Operations

Phone336-774-4625

EmailSend a message