Richard Adler, David Berkman and Charles Felix were awarded an IHL expansion franchise in 1992. Their team, the Atlanta Knights, proved to be successful, winning the Turner Cup in 1994, but it had to be relocated as its arena, the Omni Coliseum, was scheduled to be replaced by a new arena. The trio moved the franchise to Québec, but franchise, now known as the Québec Rafales, was unable to renew its success and folded only after two seasons.

The trio also acquired the Nashville Knights in 1994. The ECHL franchise did not meet their expectations and it was moved to Pensacola, Florida, in 1996. The relocated team, the Pensacola Ice Pilots, did not enjoy great success either and they sold it to Tim Kerr and Frank Milne in 2003. They also acquired the Jacksonville Lizard Kings from Horn Chen in 1998, only to cease operations after two seasons.