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Evening Line
by Paul on 05/05/09 at 08:31 PM ET
Comments (5)
Just to up the ante, Balsillie should offer to give 10% of the Coyotes to Gretzky (who coaches the team), locate the team in Brantford—driving distance from Hamilton, Kitchener, Waterloo and west-end Toronto—and name the arena after Walter. Then watch Bettman squirm.
-Kelly McParland of the National Post when writing about the Phoenix situation. More from Kelly….
added 9:57pm, from Scott Bordow of the East Valley Tribune,
...the Coyotes might have stood some chance of survival had they put a competitive team on the ice. Fans will brave rush hour traffic to see a winner. But it’s been seven years since the Coyotes were in the playoffs, and they never won a postseason series. By the end, only die-hard hockey fans were venturing to the arena, and there aren’t enough of those in the Valley to support a team.
For that, Wayne Gretzky has to take responsibility. He was supposed to bring a Stanley Cup to Phoenix, but he surrounded himself with cronies and yes men and turned out to be a mediocre coach. His reputation will survive — he’s still the greatest player ever — but when the eulogy is given, he won’t be spoken highly of.
added 10:52pm, from Scott Morrison of CBC,
According to NHL governors, the league is still very much of the opinion that you cannot join the league or move a franchise without league approval. So that smells like a major court battle ahead if everything unfolds as such.
Will the league want to welcome Balsillie? Presumably they will watch to see if any other bidders step up and with a lease in place in Glendale, a judge might opt for less of a bid if it means keeping the team. Or not.
The judge’s ultimate goal is to try to get as much money for the secured and unsecured creditors as possible. So far Balsillie is offering the best deal amongst proposals discussed.
added 10:54pm Balsillie met with the media tonight. Read a transcript at the Globe and Mail.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Phoenix Coyotes | KK Hockey | Permalink
Comments
Regarding the first quote, is that what passes for journalism in Canada? That sounds like something that would be posted on a fan message board not by someone who is supposed to a writer for a newspaper.
What happened to trying to look at thing objectively?
Posted by jkrdevil on 05/05/09 at 11:36 PM ET
I’ll answer that one!
Kelly McParland is a columnist for the National Post, and as such, his job is not to report on things objectively, and frankly, he does that very well. His politics are probably 180 degrees different from mine, but regardless, McParland is very good at stirring the pot. In this case, he’s offering an opinion, so yeah, it does come off like something that might be posted on a fan message board.
And that’s alright. That’s his role, despite what any of us may think of his opinions.
Keep in mind that sports is not his usual beat. Nonetheless, any chance of an NHL team relocating to Canada plays big up here. That’s just how much the game of hockey has a hold on a good number of folks in this country.
Gotta go to bed now. Lousy call by the ref at the end of the Ducks-Wings game, but that’s how it goes.
Posted by Mick Kern from Toronto on 05/06/09 at 12:37 AM ET
The NHL should just give in. At this point it’s inevitable.
Posted by Performance Parts on 05/06/09 at 07:36 AM ET
Give that man a team. He’s willing to spend the money. He’s going to put it in a better market.
Something must have happened between him and Bettman’s wife, because Gary acts like a huge pie whenever Jim’s name comes up.
Posted by DrW from Royal Oak, MI on 05/06/09 at 07:41 AM ET
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Just admit defeat and move the team somewhere that people will care, for god’s sake (and I don’t mean Vegas or KC).
Posted by dip from philly on 05/05/09 at 11:22 PM ET