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Winnipeg fans want it. Hockey Night In Canada's Al Strachan says it's possible. And there are the usual denials. But this article from Canwest News says there's a money man out there who can make it happen:
Thomson the key to talk of Winnipeg
Toronto billionaire focus of NHL franchise speculation
Paul Wiecek, Canwest News Service
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/business/Thomson+talk+Winnipeg/2070254/story.html
A report over the weekend that an unnamed Toronto group is working on purchasing the National Hockey League's Atlanta Thrashers and moving them to Winnipeg raises the curtain on the little-known -- and even less understood -- connection of one of the world's richest men to Winnipeg's MTS Centre and the team that resides in it.
While it was unclear who CBC commentator Al Strachan was referring to when he mentioned the Toronto group's Winnipeg interest during Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday, one thing that is certain is that such a group, if it really does exist, would have to include Toronto billionaire David Thomson.
That's because in addition to being the 24th richest man in the world, Thomson is also the very quiet part-owner of the MTS Centre, the Portage Avenue land upon which it sits and the team that plays in it, the American Hockey League's Manitoba Moose.
Officially, Thomson is described as a "minority owner" through Osmington Inc. -- Thomson's real-estate company -- of True North Sports and Entertainment. While True North is a privately run company and little is known about the company's finer details, it is known that Thomson and Mark Chipman, chairman of True North, have quietly bought out other True North owners over the years, to the point where they jointly own almost the entire company.
While officially a "minority owner," it's understood Thomson, through Osmington, does have a major say in True North decisions -- and maybe even a decisive say himself in some major aspects of the operation.
And that would presumably include any venture as bold as the purchase of a struggling NHL franchise in Atlanta and moving it to Winnipeg.
The Thrashers denied any potential move on Monday.
"There's two words that you can quote to our general manager Don Waddell," a team spokesman said Monday morning, "which is 'Completely false.' ... The whole thing, it's completely false....
"This isn't the first time. We tend to get lumped in, with Phoenix going through the stuff they're going through. ... Rumours start and we get mixed in there."
The Phoenix Coyotes went bankrupt this year and were the subject of lengthy litigation as Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie tried, ultimately unsuccessfully, to purchase the club, formerly the Winnipeg Jets, and move them to Hamilton.
The Thomson camp was quiet on the subject on Monday.
Chipman, meanwhile, declined over the weekend to comment on the Thrashers story, consistent with his past practice of keeping mum on the assorted 'NHL coming to Winnipeg' stories that seem to pop up every few months. That continued on Monday, when Chipman declined -- through a True North spokesman -- to speak specifically about his relationship to Thomson and Thomson's relationship to True North.
---
As Strachan pointed out, opening the door for a Jets' return to Winnipeg would quiet those who say Bettman is blocking the entry of Canadian teams to the NHL.
When real money is there, and the 'rules'--whatever those might be--are followed...who knows?
And as everyone has seen, there are teams who are credible candidates for relocation...Atlanta, Florida, Phoenix being the most obvious.
Stay tuned...
Thomson the key to talk of Winnipeg
Toronto billionaire focus of NHL franchise speculation
Paul Wiecek, Canwest News Service
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/business/Thomson+talk+Winnipeg/2070254/story.html
A report over the weekend that an unnamed Toronto group is working on purchasing the National Hockey League's Atlanta Thrashers and moving them to Winnipeg raises the curtain on the little-known -- and even less understood -- connection of one of the world's richest men to Winnipeg's MTS Centre and the team that resides in it.
While it was unclear who CBC commentator Al Strachan was referring to when he mentioned the Toronto group's Winnipeg interest during Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday, one thing that is certain is that such a group, if it really does exist, would have to include Toronto billionaire David Thomson.
That's because in addition to being the 24th richest man in the world, Thomson is also the very quiet part-owner of the MTS Centre, the Portage Avenue land upon which it sits and the team that plays in it, the American Hockey League's Manitoba Moose.
Officially, Thomson is described as a "minority owner" through Osmington Inc. -- Thomson's real-estate company -- of True North Sports and Entertainment. While True North is a privately run company and little is known about the company's finer details, it is known that Thomson and Mark Chipman, chairman of True North, have quietly bought out other True North owners over the years, to the point where they jointly own almost the entire company.
While officially a "minority owner," it's understood Thomson, through Osmington, does have a major say in True North decisions -- and maybe even a decisive say himself in some major aspects of the operation.
And that would presumably include any venture as bold as the purchase of a struggling NHL franchise in Atlanta and moving it to Winnipeg.
The Thrashers denied any potential move on Monday.
"There's two words that you can quote to our general manager Don Waddell," a team spokesman said Monday morning, "which is 'Completely false.' ... The whole thing, it's completely false....
"This isn't the first time. We tend to get lumped in, with Phoenix going through the stuff they're going through. ... Rumours start and we get mixed in there."
The Phoenix Coyotes went bankrupt this year and were the subject of lengthy litigation as Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie tried, ultimately unsuccessfully, to purchase the club, formerly the Winnipeg Jets, and move them to Hamilton.
The Thomson camp was quiet on the subject on Monday.
Chipman, meanwhile, declined over the weekend to comment on the Thrashers story, consistent with his past practice of keeping mum on the assorted 'NHL coming to Winnipeg' stories that seem to pop up every few months. That continued on Monday, when Chipman declined -- through a True North spokesman -- to speak specifically about his relationship to Thomson and Thomson's relationship to True North.
---
As Strachan pointed out, opening the door for a Jets' return to Winnipeg would quiet those who say Bettman is blocking the entry of Canadian teams to the NHL.
When real money is there, and the 'rules'--whatever those might be--are followed...who knows?
And as everyone has seen, there are teams who are credible candidates for relocation...Atlanta, Florida, Phoenix being the most obvious.
Stay tuned...
