Balsillie makes play for Coyotes

BluesGM · Guru

Balsillie makes play for Coyotes

Ianintheam · Senior Member

BluesGM wrote:

However, methinks bettman will attempt to stop the sale, the NHL owners will see this as a stupid move as 200+ million is more than a fair offer for the coyotes and will force bettman out of office heralding the golden age for the NHL....

Is this the kind of blind Canadian hockey optimisim that sells out every Maple Leaf game since........1967?

BluesGM · Guru

More like the Utopia that can only exist in theory than reality...

To be fair, I despise Toronto and instead of another team in Ontario, I would rather see the Coyotes go back to Winnipeg or even putting a team back in Quebec City...

Bettman did his job getting a salary cap, he needs to step aside from his stupid plans to promote the weak American market so the NHL can expand...

PhoenixGM · Guru

You heard it here first - this Balsilsie/Bettman/Coyotes thing will spell the end of Bettman as the NHL Commish...

BluesGM · Guru

PhoenixGM wrote:

You heard it here first - this Balsilsie/Bettman/Coyotes thing will spell the end of Bettman as the NHL Commish...

As long as they replace him with a commish that cares about the league more than hitting american markets I will be happy...

PhoenixGM · Guru

Man, I figured it out

They should replace him with Balsillie!!

BluesGM · Guru

http://tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=278999

One of the funniest articles I've read...

Apparently there's 500 people who want to "save the coyotes"....

Now if Hamilton does a rally of who wants a NHL team, they could probably get 5000 people easy to come out...

philly · Guru

to me the most important part of that article was the last paragraph:

On Saturday, court documents surfaced that stated NHL commissioner Gary Bettman would prefer the Coyotes moved to Winnipeg instead of Hamilton. In 1996, the Winnipeg Jets moved to Phoenix and became the Coyotes.

To me that makes sense. Team stays in the west, so no teams have to be put in the west. Hockey-mad market with a new stadium already in place. (2004)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTS_Centre

The problem with Winnipeg was and always will be corporate sponsorship, but I cant imagine there was any at all in Phoenix, so even Winnipeg would be an upgrade there.

Colorado or Minnesota gets to join Phoenix's spot in the Pacific (makes sense Colorado)

And minnesota is the real team that gets jobbed by travel, not detroit no matter what you hear from the experts on TV..

anyways, I like the idea of a move back to Winnipeg, but who steps up ownership-wise there??

anyone have any idea?

philly · Guru

Also some other things I thought about here:

1. Bettman is willing to admit his mistake and "prefers" the team move back to winnipeg?? the whole reason I never considered Winnipeg a legit option for relocation is because if Bettman was still there he would never swallow his pride and admit that moving them out of there was a mistake...

although in 1996 the Winnipeg stadium was over 40 years old and a major issue and now they have a pretty new stadium.... Not to mention calgary, vancouver, edmonton were struggling bad to make any money because of the lousy exchange rate and weak canadian dollar at that time.

2. What nobody is talking about as much as needs to be is the fact that a relocation to Hamilton hurts the Sabres HUGE... I bet any money that buffalo management and ownership is on the pphone with NHL reps all the time threatening to move, showing their books and hjow slim their profits are as it is before the economic troubles... man if I were a fan of the sabres id be seriously worried right now.

BluesGM · Guru

I really don't think that Bettman wants the Coyotes in Winnipeg anymore than he wants them in Hamilton. If Basaille insists that if he buys the Coyotes, they should go to Hamilton, then Bettman could hope that Western Canadians will stop supporting Basaille's campaign. It's a pretty pointless statement to make, as it would please western Canadians to see the fan base of the Leafs shrink.

Sens · Guru

No matter what Bettman says I still have a hard time seeing another team in Canada with him in charge, you know he would much rather have a team in Vegas or Kansas City before he puts one back in Winnipeg!