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The Last Word: Dallas Billionaire Tom Dundon on Why He Bought and 'Fixed' an NHL Team
Tom Dundon is chairman and managing partner of Dallas’ Dundon Capital Partners and owner of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes. He’s also one of the owners of the PPA Pickleball Tour, which recently merged with MLP by Margaritaville. [Photo: Carolina Hurricanes]
Tom Dundon
Owner of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes
.…The Hurricanes fit both of Dundon’s criteria, says Sports Business Journal.
Dundon, the chairman and managing partner of Dallas-based Dundon Capital, became the majority owner of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes in 2017, three years after he took Dallas-based auto loan giant Santander Consumer USA public with an IPO that raised $1.8 billion. He’s also a co-owner of the PPA Pickleball Tour—which merged in March with Austin-based MLP by Margaritaville—and an investor in Pickleball.com.
So you’d think he loves to watch his players in action. But that’s not the case, he told Sports Business Journal’s Ben McKeown, for one big reason: “The chance you might lose.”
Losing has become less of a factor for the Hurricanes since he bought them, though (they’re currently leading the New York Islanders 3-1 in the Stanley Cup playoffs). The SBJ’s profile of Dundon credits a lot of that success to the billionaire’s “calculating nature” as a “super competitive” owner who does “whatever it takes to win.”
Now Dundon is stepping up to the plate for something else, the SBJ reports: potentially being a lead investor for a group that wants to bring a Major League Baseball team to North Carolina.
You can read the SBJ story on Dundon here.
For more of who said what about all things North Texas, check out Every Last Word.
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The Dallas Public Library’s J. Erik Jonsson Central Library in downtown Dallas—one of America’s largest—was built in 1982 across from Dallas City Hall, and many agree it could use an overhaul. That especially includes library officials and consultants they brought in for a report on the building’s future, among other needed investments in the city’s library system.
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Dallas Innovates, the Dallas Regional Chamber, and Dallas AI are teaming up to launch the new AI 75 program at Capital Factory’s Future of AI Salon today. The first-ever list will recognize Dallas-Fort Worth innovators in artificial intelligence. Nominations are open through March 20.
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When Dak Prescott is in a pickle, usually it’s because an Eagles defensive lineman is chasing him around the backfield. But now the Dallas Cowboys QB has found a new pickle-related pursuit: He’s become one of the owners of the Frisco Pandas, a Major League Pickleball franchise. The move comes just months after Frisco-based Dude Perfect became investors in the franchise, valuing the team at $5 million.
Morton started 15 games in 1972 for an injured Staubach, who eventually returned in the playoffs. The Cowboys decided to trade Morton in 1974 to the Giants, who sent back a first-round pick, which turned out to be the No. 2 overall pick in 1975. The Cowboys used that selection to take Randy White, a 10-time Pro Bowler and future Hall of Famer.
Ironically enough, White’s best game was likely Super Bowl XII, when he was named Co-MVP with Harvey Martin. The Cowboys’ Doomsday defense dominated the Broncos, who were quarterbacked by Morton.
Overall, Morton played for the Cowboys, Giants and Broncos before officially retiring at the end of the 1982 season.
His career ended with 27,908 passing yards, ranking him 71st in NFL history, just ahead of Hall of Famer Joe Namath (27,663).
With the official NFL schedule coming this week, the Dallas Cowboys have revealed when, where and against who their Week 1 contest will be.
The Cowboys announced that they will square off against the New York Giants on the road in Week 1, with the game set for Sunday, Sept. 13, at 7:20 p.m. CT. So, it’s prime time for the Cowboys to start the season.
This is the second game we know about for the Cowboys this year. Of course, we know they will be playing on Thanksgiving, also.
The official schedule will drop on May 14, the NFL announced last week. Schedules for all 32 teams will be revealed on ESPN and the NFL Network, but each team will unveil its own schedule on social media, also.
The Cowboys were always likely to play a road game in Week 1 because of an Usher and Chris Brown concert taking place at AT&T Stadium that week.
Dallas will also be impacted by an Ed Sheeran concert in Week 7, so that’s another potential road game. They could also play on Monday or Thursday that week, or have a bye.
Cowboys’ strength of schedule
According to Warren Sharp of Sharp Football Analysis, the Cowboys are not going to have an easy road to make the postseason.
The Cowboys have the fourth-toughest schedule in the NFL going into the 2026 season, with only the Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins and Carolina Panthers having tougher slates.
Dallas’ schedule is also the third-toughest in the NFC, and the most difficult in the NFC East.
Sharp does his strength of schedule rankings based on win totals from Vegas oddsmakers rather than utilizing the previous season’s records because that metric doesn’t factor in offseason changes.
The Cowboys will play home games against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, Tennessee Titans, Baltimore Ravens, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders.
On the road, Dallas will square off against the Giants, Eagles, Commanders, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers.
Of those opponents, seven of them made the postseason in 2025, a list that includes the Jaguars, 49ers, Eagles, Texans, Rams, Seahawks and Packers.
All of those teams should be as good in 2026, and teams like the Colts, Titans, Ravens, Bucs, Giants and Commanders have a very real chance to be improved as well.
It won’t be an easy road for Dallas to get back to the playoffs in 2026, but there’s at least hope following a defensive overhaul.
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