Bettman, NHL find quagmire in Valley of Sun
If there was any upside for NHL commissioner Gary Bettman in the latest controversy about player safety this week, it was in keeping people from asking him questions about the Phoenix Coyotes for a few days.
That had to be a welcome temporary respite for the embattled commissioner, who traveled to Phoenix earlier this week to support an effort to keep the team there only to be forced to concede that the odds are growing longer. The deal the league thought was in place to sell the team has been stalled by the Goldwater Institute, a local watchdog group that threatened legal action that could scuttle it entirely.
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| 'At some point, we're (NHL) going to have to start exploring our alternatives,' says Bettman about the situation. (Getty Images) |
"It fascinates me that whoever is running the Goldwater Institute can actually substitute their judgment for that of the City of Glendale," Bettman said at a press conference, before warning, "We're hanging in there, our commitment is as strong as ever, but we are getting close to the end.
"At some point, we're going to have to start exploring our alternatives."
Likely sooner than later. Bettman has been bending over backwards for nearly two years trying to prove a money-pit franchise can work in a place where most people don't care about it, and that has cost his owner bosses millions at the same time. But those efforts will have been for naught if the sale of the team doesn't close by the time the playoffs roll around next month, an outcome that is looking less likely with each passing day.
"Time is running out," Bettman said.
The league bought the team out of bankruptcy court in 2009 and has been operating it at a loss since then while waiting for someone to take the team off its hands. Matthew Hulsizer, a wealthy Chicago businessman who played varsity hockey at Amherst College, became the white knight when he made a purchase offer in December, but it was contingent on him reworking the team's lease with the city of Glendale.
Hulsizer did manage to negotiate a concession-filled sweetheart deal that would be financed by a bond offering and help him pay the price the league needed to recoup its investment. But Hulsizer has been unable to close the deal with the threat of the Goldwater Institute's lawsuit making it impossible for the city to sell the bonds without driving up the interest rate too high to make the process work.
The Goldwater Institute is opposed to public subsidies for pro sports teams. In this case it has argued the bond issue is illegal under state law because it uses projected parking revenues as a basis for repayment. The group has said it will sue the city if it proceeds with the deal, which has been enough to scare off investors who have a glut of municipalities looking to raise money to choose from.
Bettman blamed the "chilled" market on Goldwater, and in effect told the group to back off. That's not going to happen, of course. In fact, Goldwater and its chief executive Darcy Olsen seem to have been emboldened this week by Bettman's chiding and the threat of a counter-suit by the city for lost revenues if the deal falls though and the team moves.
Olsen offered to meet with city officials, Bettman and Hulsizer in a public forum, but only Hulsizer agreed to participate. There have been reports that the parties might seek to renegotiate the deal to have the league lower its selling prize, Hulsizer kick in a little more and the city reduce the bond offering to perhaps satisfy Goldwater, but that has been a non-starter so far. And Hulsizer indicated that he is running out of patience.
In the meantime, the city of Winnipeg waits in the wings. The franchise spent 17 NHL seasons there as the Jets before moving to the desert in 1996, and the locals there are clamoring for its return. Winnipeg couldn't support an NHL team back then, but now has a new arena owned and operated by a wealthy group that has made a standing offer to purchase the Coyotes. And the environment is better with a salary cap in place and the Canadian dollar now worth more than the American one.
In other words, everything is in place for a smooth transfer. But there are logistics to think about such as scheduling, staffing and marketing operations, lending a sense of urgency if the team is to play in Winnipeg next season.
Still Bettman, with few cards to play, said he does not want to set a deadline.
"That would just be an invitation to Goldwater to tough it out," Bettman said.
Looks like they already have.
