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25-522: In 1973, Peter Karmanos Jr. , Thomas Thewes , and Allen B. Cutting established Compuware Corporation to provide clients with professional technical services. By 1978, Compuware opened its first remote office to service the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore area. In 1992, the company completed its initial public offering (IPO) and traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol CPWR. At the end of 1998, Compuware surpassed

50-528: A comedy movie's protagonist team, and the chance of the novelty wearing off after a while, the name did not make the list of finalist choices. The nine finalist nicknames were Firebirds, Force, Fury, Nationals, Pride, Spark Plugs, Sparks, United, and Vikings. The Firebirds garnered international attention in November 2015 when, following an overtime victory over the Oshawa Generals , owner Rolf Nilsen fired

75-551: A consultant role within the company. Compuware terminated his post-retirement consulting agreement, effective October 1, 2013. He has since opened a new computer firm, Mad Dog Technology. Karmanos co-founded the Detroit Compuware Hockey organization in the late 1970s with Thewes. The organization has included all levels of hockey from recreational to youth AAA and junior A . The Ontario Hockey League awarded an expansion franchise on December 11, 1989, to be known as

100-805: A major junior ice hockey team based in Flint, Michigan . The team plays home games at the Dort Financial Center , and operates as a member of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). The team began play for the 2015–16 season . In September 2022, the Firebirds announced the Leamington Flyers as an affiliate. The Firebirds trace their roots back to the 1990–91 season, when the Detroit Compuware Ambassadors were added as an expansion team in

125-487: A new franchise record. It was their 37th win of the season, another club record. On March 10, 2022, the OHL expelled team president Terry Christensen after an investigation found that he violated OHL policy for harassment, abuse, and diversity. List of coaches with multiple seasons in parentheses. List of general managers with multiple seasons in parentheses. List of team captains: List of Firebirds alumni who played in

150-736: Is an American businessman who was most recently the minority owner and alternate governor of the Carolina Hurricanes franchise until June 30, 2021. He served as their principal owner from 1994 (when the Hurricanes were the Hartford Whalers ) to 2018. He also owned the Plymouth Whalers junior ice hockey club from its establishment in 1990 until 2015, and was the majority owner of the Florida Everblades from 1998 to 2019. Karmanos Jr.

175-634: The Detroit Compuware Ambassadors . The team later became the Detroit Junior Red Wings , Detroit Whalers and then Plymouth Whalers following a relocation to nearby Plymouth . In 2015, Karmanos sold the Whalers to the owners of Flint's Perani Arena and Event Center , and the franchise was renamed Flint Firebirds . He also sold the Plymouth arena to USA Hockey . Karmanos, his Compuware partner Thewes, and former player Jim Rutherford purchased

200-537: The Hartford Whalers in 1994, for $ 47.5 million. At the time, they had committed to keeping the team in Hartford for at least four years. Connecticut's then-governor Lowell P. Weicker announced that Karmanos would be critical for the team to stay in Hartford. Weicker later became a member of the Compuware Board of Directors. Hartford sold less than 11,000 season tickets for the 1995–96 NHL season and Karmanos announced

225-677: The Ontario Hockey League , and was inducted to the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2013. He was inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame in the Builder Category in 2015. Karmanos also sponsors youth hockey programs in Michigan. On January 11, 2018, it was announced that he had sold controlling interest in the Hurricanes to Thomas Dundon , while retaining a minority interest. On June 30, 2021, Karmanos sold his remaining shares in

250-608: The Stanley Cup in 2006 , with Karmanos eagerly donning his skates, hoisting the Cup, and skating around with it briefly after the game seven win. For his day with the Cup, he brought it to Compuware headquarters in Detroit and allowed employees to get their photo taken individually with the Cup. Karmanos' Gale Force Holdings has a subsidiary dedicated to the NHL, Hurricanes Holdings, LLC, which includes

275-464: The $ 1 billion revenue mark. In 2003, Compuware moved their headquarters from Farmington Hills, Michigan to a new headquarters building in downtown Detroit . In November 2014, the company's headquarters building was sold to a joint venture of Dan Gilbert 's real estate group Bedrock Real Estate and Meridian Health for $ 142 million and renamed One Campus Martius. Later in the year in December, Compuware

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300-852: The Carolina Hurricanes to Dundon, making him the sole owner of the Carolina Hurricanes. He sold the Florida Everblades in August 2019. Karmanos donated money to the Michigan Cancer Foundation, which was renamed the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute in 1995 in memory of his first wife, Barbara Ann Karmanos, who died of breast cancer in 1989. In addition to three children with Barbara, Karmanos has four others with current wife Danialle , and nine grandchildren. Flint Firebirds The Flint Firebirds are

325-524: The Hurricanes and their stadium, PNC Arena . The holdings also included the Hurricanes's former ECHL affiliate Florida Everblades , along with stadium Hertz Arena until 2019 when they both were sold to Naples businessman David Hoffmann. ,. Karmanos received the Lester Patrick Trophy for outstanding service to hockey after the 1997–98 season , the Bill Long Award in 2010 for services to

350-489: The OHL named George Burnett , former head coach and general manager of the Belleville Bulls , as the new general manager. The OHL then appointed Ryan Oulahen as head coach and Eric Wellwood as an assistant. On October 12, 2018, Ryan Oulahen stepped down as head coach. On October 18, former associate coach Eric Wellwood was named head coach. On February 21, 2020, the Firebirds won their 15th consecutive game, setting

375-522: The OHL. Since then, the franchise has been the Detroit Junior Red Wings , the Detroit Whalers and the Plymouth Whalers . On January 14, 2015, it was announced that longtime Whalers owner Peter Karmanos had sold the team to IMS USA, Inc., with the intention to move the franchise to Flint and the Perani Arena. The purchase and relocation was approved by the OHL on February 2, 2015. Although there

400-400: The management and coaching staff, from hockey operations until further notice. The league also ordered counseling be provided to players, at Nilsen's cost. Nilsen and his staff were then ordered to cooperate with a league investigation and comply with its findings. On April 6, 2016, the OHL suspended Nilsen for five years, with no requests for reinstatement to be entertained for three years. He

425-410: The subsequent game. However, head coach John Gruden has denied that this was the reason for his dismissal. In response to the firings, the entire team, including Håkon Nilsen, stormed into the team's front office, threw their jerseys on the floor, and quit the team in a show of solidarity with the coaching staff. The player revolt proved to be successful, as less than 24 hours later the coaching staff

450-644: The team would leave Hartford if the Whalers were unable to sell 11,000 season tickets for the 1996–97 season. Even though they surpassed 11,000 season tickets, the team was moved to Raleigh, North Carolina , and renamed the Carolina Hurricanes following the 1996–97 season. As a result, Karmanos is still reviled by many people in Connecticut . The Hurricanes reached the Stanley Cup Finals in 2002 , but lost to fellow Detroit businessman Mike Ilitch ’s Detroit Red Wings in five games. The Hurricanes went on to win

475-496: The team's entire coaching staff for failing to adequately increase the playing time of his son, Håkon Nilsen, a Firebirds' defenseman described by one NHL player agent as "a borderline OHL player". Prior to the game against Oshawa, the entire team with the exception of Hakon Nilsen met with head coach John Gruden and his staff and were informed that the owner had insisted that his son receive more playing time, and indeed Nilsen ultimately played 17 minutes, including power-play time, in

500-460: Was acquired by private equity firm Thoma Bravo for approximately $ 2.5 billion, becoming a privately held company. In the years after that the company experienced a period of growth and reinvention of mainframe software. In March 2020, Compuware was acquired by BMC Software for $ 2 billion. Compuware ceased to exist as a company, but all of its products remain available under the name BMC Automated Mainframe Intelligence (BMC AMI). In October 2022, it

525-486: Was also fined $ 250,000. The league also stripped the Firebirds of their 2016 first-round draft pick. Had Nilsen attempted to get involved in hockey operations while suspended, the OHL could have forced him to sell the Firebirds. The OHL placed the Firebirds under league stewardship and appointed Joe Birch as director of operations. After the five-year suspension passed, the OHL reinstated Rolf Nilsen in April 2021. In May 2016,

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550-541: Was announced that BMC's Detroit office will return to the northwest suburbs of Detroit, moving from One Campus Martius downtown to the Southfield Town Center in nearby Southfield . Since 2014, Compuware (later BMC Compuware) has established multiple integrations and partnerships. Compuware made the following acquisitions after going private in 2014, through its acquisition by BMC in 2020: Peter Karmanos, Jr. Peter Karmanos Jr. (born March 11, 1943)

575-550: Was born in Detroit , the oldest of three children of a Greek immigrant family who owned a small restaurant in Detroit. Karmanos attended Henry Ford High School and graduated from Wayne State University in 1973. Soon after leaving college he founded software company Compuware with two partners, Thomas Thewes and Allen Cutting. Karmanos served as Compuware's CEO until June 20, 2011, when he became executive chairman. Karmanos retired from Compuware on March 31, 2013, but maintained

600-440: Was not only rehired, but given three-year contract extensions. Following a meeting with OHL commissioner David Branch , Firebirds' owner Rolf Nilsen stated publicly that he had made an "irresponsible mistake" and apologized to the players. On February 17, 2016, Rolf Nilsen again fired head coach John Gruden and assistant coach Dave Karpa . The next day, OHL Commissioner David Branch suspended Nilsen, as well as his appointees on

625-565: Was sentiment towards resurrecting the Flint Generals nickname that had been used by two past teams in the city, the OHL quickly nixed that idea because of the Oshawa Generals using that name. Likewise, a popular suggestion was the Flint Tropics , after the fictional American Basketball Association team of that name in the 2008 movie Semi-Pro . However, after various others voiced their displeasure at their team possibly being named after

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