James Giacin is a St. Louis executive with more than two decades of experience in areas such as M&A and structured finance. Having been drafted by the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings in 1989, James Giacin played professional hockey for several years and also coached the St. Louis Blues’ Junior B team in the Central States hockey league from 1994 to 1998.

Established in 1967, the St. Louis Blues were part of a major expansion effort, with the NHL doubling in size from six to 12 teams. With coach Scotty Bowman taking the helm of the franchise in the 1968–69 season, he led the team for nearly a decade and guided the Blues to four division titles. Two-way forward Doug Gilmour emerged as a capable leader during this era and scored a superlative 21 points in the 1986 playoffs.

Another pivotal team leader was Brett Hull, who stands as one of the league’s best ever pure scorers. Over the course of a decade in the blue and gold uniform, he scored 527 goals, including a remarkable 86-goal season in 1990-91. This stands to this day as the highest total goals in a season by a NHL player not named Wayne Gretzky, and Bernie Federko is the only Blues player to have more total assists and points across their career. In 2019, led by Coach Craig Berube, the Blues beat the Boston Bruins en route to earning the Stanley Cup, giving the city its first NHL championship.