Balsillie and Bettman Go To War

For sure. But if this goes to the BOG, then this will be a real test for the group.

Bettman is basically a 'caretaker' is what I'm saying.

He is mandated to further the interests of the owners.

So if you want to get mad at somebody, try getting mad at the Board of Governors.

Bettman's just an easy target, is all.

It makes sense to move the Yotes, even more sense to fold them, doesnt matter what way you spin it. Basille is trying to make an Donkey out of Bettman because he basically did the same to him, and so far its working.

Either way I dont think this will end well for the NHL.

davetherave wrote:Bettman's just an easy target, is all.

He sure is, especially being a lawyer, everyone loves lawyers.





Heh heh.

Neely4Life wrote:Either way I dont think this will end well for the NHL.

Sadly, I'm starting to think this way too.

shabbs wrote:

Neely4Life wrote:Either way I dont think this will end well for the NHL.

Sadly, I'm starting to think this way too.

I agree with both of you.

Everyone should agree with me Dave, you should know this.

Neely4Life wrote:Everyone should agree with me Dave, you should know this.

HA HA HA HA!

shabbs wrote:

Neely4Life wrote:Everyone should agree with me Dave, you should know this.

HA HA HA HA!

'Neely 4 NHL Commissioner'...start the website!

Bettman is such a queer ....

Where's the makeup and pink tie princess?

This now appears to be taking on the characteristics of a landmark case. From today's Wall Street Journal:

NHL, Team in Bankruptcy Showdown

By MATTHEW FUTTERMAN The Wall Street Journal, May 7 2009

The National Hockey League is heading for a showdown in U.S. bankruptcy court that may ultimately determine how much control professional sports leagues have over who owns their franchises. Associated Press

Jim Balsillie, founder of Research In Motion, has a deal to buy the Phoenix Coyotes and move the team to southern Ontario. The issue of deciding team ownership is crucial to the NHL, which wants to keep the final say on who gets into its club.

On Thursday, lawyers for the NHL and one of its 30 teams, the Phoenix Coyotes, will face off in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Phoenix two days after the franchise's parent company, Coyotes Holdings LLC, filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

The filing came after months of speculation that the team's owner, trucking magnate Jerry Moyes, was running out of cash to cover ongoing losses that, according to court documents, totaled nearly $30 million last year.

Mr. Moyes owns Swift Transportation Co. and is coping with a severe downturn in the U.S. shipping industry a year and a half after taking on $2.5 billion in debt to take the company he founded private.

With the U.S. financial system on life support and numerous sports franchises struggling to make ends meet, every sports league will be keeping a close eye on the Coyotes bankruptcy.

The issue of deciding team ownership and movement of franchises is crucial to the NHL, which wants to keep the final say on who gets into its club and has other teams aside from the Coyotes that could be up for grabs due to financial troubles.

Mr. Moyes recently reached a deal to sell the Coyotes for $212.5 million to Research In Motion founder James Balsillie. Mr. Balsillie is a Canadian hockey fanatic who has tried for years to acquire an NHL franchise and relocate it to southern Ontario, a move the NHL currently opposes.

But as Mr. Moyes was negotiating with Mr. Balsillie, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has been searching for a new owner for the Coyotes who would keep the team at the taxpayer-financed Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Ariz., which opened in 2003.

The Coyotes, in action in Arizona, will test NHL control while in Chapter 11.

The Coyotes have a 30-year lease at the arena that calls for a $700 million termination fee. Given that, the only way for Mr. Balsillie to take over the team and move it was for Coyotes Holdings to file for bankruptcy, which nullifies all ongoing contracts, including leases.

According to three people involved with the dispute, the NHL's Mr. Bettman is nearing a deal with Jerry Reinsdorf, owner of the National Basketball Association's Chicago Bulls and Major League Baseball's Chicago White Sox, who hold spring training in Glendale.

Mr. Bettman said he believed Mr. Balsillie's offer would have difficulty gaining approval from the NHL's Board of Governors. William Walker, a spokesman for Mr. Balsillie, said, "We think our economic argument with our fan base here makes our offer very strong."

Thomas Salerno, a lawyer for Mr. Moyes, said Mr. Bettman has discussed a deal with Mr. Reinsdorf but has not laid out the terms. He said he expects the bankruptcy judge to determine the Coyotes' fate by getting the most money for the asset.

"That is the fiduciary duty of anyone who is in control," Mr. Salerno said. "The commissioner wants to take the position that he is in control, but he doesn't appear to want to get the most money for the team."

Through a spokesman, Mr. Bettman declined to comment Wednesday.

Asked Wednesday about any discussions to take over the Coyotes, Mr. Reinsdorf said, "I have nothing to say about that."

The NHL, like other sports leagues, has done all it could to keep its franchises out of bankruptcy to avoid ceding control of teams to the courts.

The NHL's Mr. Bettman said he was blindsided by Mr. Moyes's move. Mr. Bettman was in Phoenix Tuesday and on his way to a meeting with Mr. Moyes when lawyers for Mr. Moyes informed him the team had filed for bankruptcy.

"I was surprised, and I had some questions," Mr. Bettman said.

In 2007, Mr. Balsillie offered more than $200 million to buy the Nashville Predators, but the NHL helped arrange an alternative deal for about $20 million less when it learned Mr. Balsillie had sold 12,000 season tickets for the team at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario.

Mr. Balsillie also tried to buy the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2006.

With the Coyotes now in Chapter 11, the question becomes whether the courts will continue to defer to the rights of leagues to control their franchises, or follow the bankruptcy court tenet of producing the most money for creditors. Stephen Selbst, a bankruptcy lawyer and partner with Herrick Feinstein LLP in New York, said NHL bylaws that could restrict a team from maximizing the value of its assets -- such as provisions preventing a team from moving -- might not hold sway in bankruptcy.

"In bankruptcy court the world is different," Mr. Selbst said. "It's about getting the highest bid."

According to the filings, the NHL, with $37 million in secured debt, is the lead creditor. A private-equity fund controlled by Michael Dell, owed $80 million, is next in line. Mr. Moyes is the leading unsecured creditor of Coyotes LLC, at $104 million.

Mr. Balsillie said he has offered to provide $17 million to keep the team operating through bankruptcy.

Mr. Walker, the spokesman for Mr. Balsillie, said the bid shows the strength of the economy in southern Ontario and the thirst for a second franchise to compete with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

"This is a good business decision by a good businessman," Mr. Walker said. "He's a hockey nut who plays every week in a recreational league."

Write to Matthew Futterman at matthew.futterman@wsj.com

Interesting... I guess Balsillie is pulling the war into his world... the world of business were the almighty buck is king.

shabbs wrote:Interesting... I guess Balsillie is pulling the war into his world... the world of business were the almighty buck is king.

why wouldnt he he has a better idea of how that world works instead of fighting on bettman and the leagues terms

Hockeyhero22000 wrote:

shabbs wrote:Interesting... I guess Balsillie is pulling the war into his world... the world of business were the almighty buck is king.

why wouldnt he he has a better idea of how that world works instead of fighting on bettman and the leagues terms

Indeed. He tried two times in their world... now he's trying in his world...

shabbs wrote:

Hockeyhero22000 wrote:

shabbs wrote:Interesting... I guess Balsillie is pulling the war into his world... the world of business were the almighty buck is king.

why wouldnt he he has a better idea of how that world works instead of fighting on bettman and the leagues terms

Indeed. He tried two times in their world... now he's trying in his world...

From reading the MacLeans article dave posted, I'd say that's about right.

SeawaySensFan wrote:

shabbs wrote:

Hockeyhero22000 wrote:

shabbs wrote:Interesting... I guess Balsillie is pulling the war into his world... the world of business were the almighty buck is king.

why wouldnt he he has a better idea of how that world works instead of fighting on bettman and the leagues terms

Indeed. He tried two times in their world... now he's trying in his world...

From reading the MacLeans article dave posted, I'd say that's about right.

SSF...GREAT avatar!!!

davetherave wrote:

SeawaySensFan wrote:

shabbs wrote:

Hockeyhero22000 wrote:

shabbs wrote:Interesting... I guess Balsillie is pulling the war into his world... the world of business were the almighty buck is king.

why wouldnt he he has a better idea of how that world works instead of fighting on bettman and the leagues terms

Indeed. He tried two times in their world... now he's trying in his world...

From reading the MacLeans article dave posted, I'd say that's about right.

SSF...GREAT avatar!!!

Yes. You do have a great avatar.

SeawaySensFan wrote:

davetherave wrote:SSF...GREAT avatar!!!

Yes. You do have a great avatar.

But yours is much more cerebral...