Prominent family buys area minor league hockey team, arena

The Hoffmann Family of Companies, one of the largest commercial property owners in Southwest Florida, has added a unique asset to its portfolio: a minor league hockey team.

The family, in a deal announced Aug. 5, acquired the Florida Everblades, a minor league team based in Estero that’s affiliated with the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League. The purchase also includes the home of the Everblades, Hertz Arena. (Hertz Arena was formerly Germain Arena, until the car-rental giant signed a naming rights deal in September 2018.)