Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal announced Wednesday that the Boston Bruins have been selected as Professional Sports Team of the Year. The Dayton Dragons were one of five finalists for the award and the first minor league team ever selected as a finalist.
“The Dragons extend our congratulations to the Boston Bruins and all of the other finalists,” said Dragons President Robert Murphy. “To receive the honor of being even selected as a finalist is a huge accomplishment not only for the Dragons, but also is a tremendous accolade to our fans and entire community who have helped create this sell-out streak that now stands at 869 games. Our fans, our entire staff, our ownership group at Mandalay Baseball, and our corporate partners that make Dragons baseball possible all share in this honor.”
The Dragons were joined as finalists by the Texas Rangers (MLB), Boston Bruins (NHL), Stewart-Haas Racing (NASCAR), and Sporting Kansas City (MLS). The award honors one sports franchise based on an evaluation of "excellence, growth, creativity, innovation, sound planning, implementation and outcomes." Entries are judged by a panel of editors, writers and researchers from the SportsBusiness Journal and SportsBusiness Daily for the period from March 1, 2011 through February 29, 2012.