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Eick started with the company when RF Video formed it in 2002 as a way to sell tapes and DVDs to replace their sagging business post-ECW bankruptcy. When Feinstein was forced to sell his minority ownership and Silkin took over the company, Eick went to work for Silkin and pretty much ran the ROH office day to day. He was heavily involved in business decisions, bookings buildings, paying talent, and other top administrative duties. While Silkin was the owner, Eick was in the trenches of the daily operations.
The reality was that once Sinclair took over the company, it was just a matter of time. They had their own structure and have brought in their own staffing - as someone who has lived through company takeovers, it's not unusual to see the old guard phased out. That's the way the world works.
The firing was not sudden and Eick was aware for several weeks he would be finishing up in Philly, according to sources. I was told he kept it to himself and didn't tell anyone until former ROH owner Cary Silkin brought Eick into the locker room last night before the show, announcing that it would be Eick's final night with the company.
When the locker room was told, the reaction as it was described to me by several of the wrestlers was pretty much shock and disappointment since Eick had been there forever. While there were suspicions Eick was on the way out from the day Silkin sold ROH, no one knew he was done before Silkin's announcement.
Eick gave a small speech saying that he had a good 13 year run working in the wrestling business and that the company was changing and was going more "big time." He said he was proud that he, Cary Silkin and Ross Abrams were able to get it to a point where Sinclair purchased it and said that he hoped to see the company grow forever. He thanked everyone for being there for ROH and helping it grow and said that he wished them and their families well.
A number of ROH personalities, including ROH champ Davey Richards, Prince Nana, Steve Corino and Bobby Cruise all gave speeches, talking about how much Eick did for the company. Richards told the locker room that you never truly appreciate what someone does for a company until they are gone. Several personalities were very emotional.
Within the company, Eick was a polarizing figure as he would play "bad cop" to Silkin's "good cop". There were a number of those who left the company that blamed (and still blame) Eick for their departures. TNA star Austin Aries, who butted heads with Eick while working for ROH, commented on Eick's departure via Twitter without naming him, writing, "Just heard some #GREAT news. About damn time someone got smart. #SeeYaPal #CutTheCancerOut." Eick was well known for saying, "How's it going, pal?" when greeting someone. During Aries' last ROH run, sources noted that Eick had pegged Aries as a "cancer" in the locker room at the time, so this was Aries' receipt on Eick for stating so.
I was told that the company made no public announcement at the show last night that Eick was leaving, nor should they have. It's a new world and ROH has to move forward, just as they did when other players who shaped the company in the past left. As I wrote earlier, that's life and the way the world works.
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