Nashville Predators moving to Canada? NOPE! Sorry, Canucks (and KC!)...

Re: Nashville Predators moving to Canada? Sure seems like it...

Well, Stephen Brunt puts the Nashville/Hamilton/KC thing into perspective.

http://www.globesports.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070628.wsptbrunt28/GSStory/GlobeSportsHockey/home

The issue today, as has been the issue all along, is his desire to purchase the Nashville Predators for an outrageous sum and move the franchise to Southern Ontario.

That shift would represent a legal nightmare for the league, given its own contradictory constitution and bylaws. Those include a territorial veto that in itself may be illegal, as well as an added clause written to fend off U.S. antitrust lawsuits that would make it nearly impossible at this stage for Balsillie to lose a straight majority vote.

 

Re: Nashville Predators moving to Canada? Sure seems like it...

Sorry, Canucks....Preds will be staying in Music City! My sources in the Mayor's office tell me that Leipold has told the mayor (who controls the Arena) that he is expecting to except this offer and keep the Preds in Nashville, with Leipold keeping a minor stake in the team. Now if Preds can only sign some FAs now!


Sources: Local group makes bid on Preds

By Richard Lawson and Ken Whitehouse

07-03-2007 12:26 PM —

It finally happened. NashvillePost.com has learned that after weeks of circling the Nashville Predators, a local investor group landed on Craig Leipold's doorstep yesterday morning and made him a formal offer for the team. Multiple sources have confirmed this news on the condition of anonymity.

There are no details yet on the size of the offer, as no one publicly associated directly with the deal is talking. David Freeman, former chief executive officer of Commodore Medical Services and now CEO of 36 Venture Capital, is putting the group together. Herb Fritch, CEO of insurer HealthSpring, is also among the group.

Chase Cole, an attorney with Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis who has been working with the group, declined comment. Freeman offered a "no comment." But he reissued the following statement via e-mail:

"A group of Nashvillians continues to pursue a purchase of the Predators on behalf of the Nashville community. While we recognize the intense interest of the local community in the future of the team, we ask for your patience and understanding as we go through this confidential negotiation process. In deference to the club's request, we will be unable to offer any further public information or comment regarding our bid until a binding agreement is in place."

Confidentiality agreements are likely in place, and nobody wants to make the same mistake as Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie in having a lot of information made public before a binding agreement is in place.

Predators fans have been rooting for the local ownership group to step forward, and NashvillePost.com has reported that Leipold wanted to see the local group step up, even being open to offer something of a Nashville discount. That may mean the price the group would pay is somewhere below the $220 million or more Balsillie offered.

Meanwhile, William "Boots" Del Biaggio, who has a minority investment in the San Jose Sharks, may still be in the picture as a potential bidder.

 

Re: Nashville Predators moving to Canada? Sure seems like it...

Wow, this story has more lives than a cat.

 

Re: Nashville Predators moving to Canada? Sure seems like it...

And from today's Mirtle Blog

http://mirtle.blogspot.com/2007/07/balsillie-prepared-for-fight.html

Richard Rodier, Balsillie's lawyer was on the FAN590 for a full twenty minutes yesterday.

Rodier said Balsillie wasn't going anywhere in his bid to put an NHL team in Hamilton and that they were prepared to fight NHL commissioner Gary Bettman tooth and nail for the chance to do just that. It seems clear Balsillie knew he would meet with considerable opposition from the league in the beginning, which seems to be why he approached and negotiated with Nashville Predators owner Craig Leipold without Bettman's knowledge.

Stock up on the popcorn. This is gonna be good.

 

Re: Nashville Predators moving to Canada? Sure seems like it...

JR, that pit bull in a china room analogy seems perfect for Balsillie more and more every time I read about him.

 

Re: Nashville Predators moving to Canada? Sure seems like it...

Oz,
I agree. The guy sounds like one big giant prick--but a rich one.

And the lawyer he hired is a pit bull--his speciality used to be hostile takeovers.

"Cheney" Bettman may have just met his match.

 

Re: Nashville Predators moving to Canada? Sure seems like it...

I wouldn't put Steelback in that group. Under Attention Whore in the dictionary you'll find Frank D'Angelo. He's sponsoring the Champ Car race in Toronto this weekend because nobody else wanted to after Molson pulled out.

Spinning did bring up a good point re: the deposits. Yeah, I know $500 is no small chunk of change but wait until those people get a load of the prices for season tickets. Knowing the demand is there means they won't be cheap(er) like they are in Buffalo. We'll see how many cough up for them.

Somebody - might have been SSM - brought up TV. The whole TSN-Sportsnet thing is an area that I haven't seen explored in all this talk. Maybe they could go to CHCH and put the immortal Norm Marshall behind the mike like he was for the Hamilton Fincup games of my youth.

I would think that another team could work in Ontario but it won't be Hamilton. Copps is a dump...

 

Nashville Predators moving to Canada? NOPE! Sorry Canucks (and KC!)

Nashvillians are buying the team, apparently

http://www.nashvillecitypaper.com/news.php?viewStory=57144

Too bad the Preds can't get some of their pre-fire sale roster back!

 

Methinks the NHL will never let Jim Balsillie own a team.

 

Unless he stops ruffling the NHL's feathers by wanting to take 10 steps at once, you're right.

 

Dude made his own bed. I can't feel sorry for him. It was pretty easy, even for someone like me, to see that brazenly taking steps to move the team to Hamilton would lead directly to his bid imploding.

 

And it's the league's loss.