Forbes: Atlanta Thrashers Will Likely Be Sold For $110 Million

[Freibahlen]

Thanks for the analysis, who do you think is right? Neither?

Considering that Atlanta has one of the busiest online fanbases in the league, it is easy to say the fans are there... the fans just don't think the owners are.

There was that game recently where the word was there was a potential buyer at the game.... nice turnout.

If that tells you ANYTHING....

Also, and I do give the Thrashers' organization credit for this, they have been VERY active in propping up the youth leagues.

Even though we had the Flames in the 70s, when they left, hockey left with it for the most part. The Thrashers have had the foresight to understand that the true future of hockey in Atlanta doesn't lie with the people that were already adults; it lies with the kids. Our youth leagues from peewee to the AA and AAA midgets and so on have been growing and getting more competative and we even drafted a Georgia born player who came up through our Thunder club.

Give this club another ten years and the kids that have been going to Thrashers games since they could walk and been playing hockey since elementary school will be adults and will have been raised in hockey. Their kids... will then be raised in hockey.

People have to remember we don't have the century plus time in this. The difference in hockey in Atlanta over the next 10 years will be huge if the Thrashers stay. I believe the NHL knows this. The Thrashers clearly know this due to their participation.

 

[borno87]

I didn't suggest it.

I read about it, and was checking with people more knowledgeable with the situation if it has any weight.

Because posting that question on anonymous internet message board would be a great way way to really dig into the facts surrounding the ASG divorce....

Bringing it up in this board, whether in the form of a rhetorical question or an honest query to other posters is indeed suggesting such a silly and misguided conspiracy theory.

As a day one season ticket holder, the widespread perception among the fanbase here is that that is not just a conspiracy theory, it's verifiable fact.

Listen, I am not doubting that ASG has done a horrible job of marketing the game in Atlanta, however you failed to address the issue I was questioning; that being the absolutely ridiculous notion that ASG intentional tanked the franchise to save money on the buyout from Belkin. That scenario does not make any sense, be it fiscal or logical in nature.

It's likely that when Belkin left, the ASG did not have the capital to fully invest in both the Hawks and the Thrashers. Its pretty clear that they decided to go all-in on the Hawks and let the Thrashers flounder which is unfortunate. However the suggestion that this was all part of some master plan to get the best deal possible out of Belkin really downgrades the discussion here and reeks of the type of tin-foil hat speculation that is a total waste of time.

This entire post should be stickied. Well said.

The missteps of the ASG have indeed been well chronicled. As have the missteps of poor ownership in other markets. These are factors that are beyond the fans' control and no one should be blaming the fans for the situation the team faces today.

Herein lies the problem with the NHL in non-traditional markets. The NHL never should have let things get this far with the ASG, however as has been the case in many other markets, local ownership for NHL franchises in these non-traditional markets is difficult to secure.

If ASG were the owners of the Bruins and Celtics, there would likely be many suitors who would want to purchase the Bruins because of the long, rich tradition of NHL hockey in that market. Several generations have the Bruins entrenched in their memory as being part of the fabric of that community, so it is an attractive proposition for the wealthy to swoop in and purchase a distressed hockey team and return it to stability.

It's clear that this same incentive does not exist in non-traditional markets and that really is a shame. Atlanta is a huge market, which is why there is an NBA, NFL and MLB team, along with the all the major colleges around the area. Maybe there just isn't enough $'s to go around. Maybe the team needs a strong, committed ownership to move the NHL up the Atlanta fans' priority list. At this given moment however, its a difficult proposition.

It's not any non-traditional fans' fault that this is the case. Just like it wasn't Winnipeg fans fault that there was no salary cap, or that the Canadian $ traded at $0.61 to the US $ back in the 90s thus making it impossible for an owner to sustain financial viability. It's just the reality of the situation. Who knows maybe if someone can save the Thrashers in Atlanta, 30 years from now the rich generations long history of NHL hockey will exist, and these types of issues will not plague non-traditional markets. However we may not get to that point, which again is unfortunate. Just please don't tell me its because a bunch of rich guys hate hockey and want to punish paying customers for liking it.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

Herein lies the problem with the NHL in non-traditional markets. The NHL never should have let things get this far with the ASG, however as has been the case in many other markets, local ownership for NHL franchises in these non-traditional markets is difficult to secure.

If ASG were the owners of the Bruins and Celtics, there would likely be many suitors who would want to purchase the Bruins because of the long, rich tradition of NHL hockey in that market. Several generations have the Bruins entrenched in their memory as being part of the fabric of that community, so it is an attractive proposition for the wealthy to swoop in and purchase a distressed hockey team and return it to stability.

It's clear that this same incentive does not exist in non-traditional markets and that really is a shame. Atlanta is a huge market, which is why there is an NBA, NFL and MLB team, along with the all the major colleges around the area. Maybe there just isn't enough $'s to go around. Maybe the team needs a strong, committed ownership to move the NHL up the Atlanta fans' priority list. At this given moment however, its a difficult proposition.

So far this may be true, but it's early in the game. Whether it's Chicago (bad ownership), Boston and Washington (success on the ice), or Pittsburgh (venue), major markets have had turn-around success. With Atlanta's population growing by roughly 100,000 a year over the last decade (slowing now though), there is no reason to abandon this market. I realize those listed are traditional markets, but who's to say it can't happen in Atlanta?

 

[dj4aces]

Maybe the team needs a strong, committed ownership to move the NHL up the Atlanta fans' priority list. At this given moment however, its a difficult proposition.

You're right, but not for the reason you might think.

Ever since the 2007-2008 season (when Levenson made the "smartass" comment at the STH town hall meeting), more and more of those folks have put their dollars into other means. Some bought HDTVs to watch games (rather than attend) (and before anyone says it, I know the TV viewership has been horrible as well). Others have spent their renewal dollars on other sports, like baseball or football. Others still have spent their money on homes or cars.

Note that, during the regular season, the Hawks didn't have many more fans than the Thrashers did in attendance. Folks who spent money on the Thrashers weren't going to pack it up from one of the Spirit's holdings and spend their money with another.

The fact is, ownership has burned bridges with long time fans in this town. A new owner, so long as he/they have a higher competency level than the idiots we have in here now, will go miles toward restoring faith of the fans in the community, and it may very likely bring some of the old STH'ers back to the arena. I don't think it will have an immediate effect, but within three seasons, I'm sure a lot of them will be back.

 

[cbcwpg]

Herein lies the problem with the NHL in non-traditional markets. The NHL never should have let things get this far with the ASG, however as has been the case in many other markets, local ownership for NHL franchises in these non-traditional markets is difficult to secure.

The problem as well is that in a lot of cases the NHL has no choice but to deal with questionable owners, if they ( the NHL ) insist on putting teams in certain markets.

This is NOT a knock on the fans of Atlanta or any southern market, but the reality is that when you are a 4th tier sport in whatever market, one of two things are going to happen.... 1) you are going to attract 4th tier ownership Or 2) you have good ownership, but all they see hockey as, is something to fill 40 dates in the arena they own.

The NHL has always had a issue with finding "good" owners because the truely good owners would rather own Baseball or Football teams, and like I said, if they end up owning hockey teams, its to fill dates, and they don't really care about the team.

 

[borno87]

So far this may be true, but it's early in the game. Whether it's Chicago (bad ownership), Boston and Washington (success on the ice), or Pittsburgh (venue), major markets have had turn-around success. With Atlanta's population growing by roughly 100,000 a year over the last decade (slowing now though), there is no reason to abandon this market. I realize those listed are traditional markets, but who's to say it can't happen in Atlanta?

That's exactly my point. I'm not saying it can't happen in Atlanta. The problem is for anyone with the wherewithal to attempt such a turn-around in Atlanta is they can't simply use what happened in those traditional markets as a case study as to how to 180 Atlanta.

Take a look at Phoenix, the only person they have been able to attract to purchase the team is a cheap shark like MH, who has demanded exorbitant subsidies from the local government in order to stay at the bargaining table. Even if MH closes the deal, what behavior has he demonstrated to date that would lead anyone to believe that he is willing to invest heavily into the team to make it a success in that market?

It seems that the non-traditional markets can only attract that type of individual to invest in NHL franchises (in Atlanta's case, the ASG was clearly after the Hawks and cared little for the Thrashers). The traditional markets have an easier time of attracting deeper pocketed, better intentioned owners (Lemieux in Pit, Leonsis in Was, etc) because they know the history and tradition of hockey in that market is a good indicator of the potential for future financial stability. Again, not Atlanta fans' fault, just the reality of the marketplace and the challenges it faces.

 

[Benny27]

So far this may be true, but it's early in the game. Whether it's Chicago (bad ownership), Boston and Washington (success on the ice), or Pittsburgh (venue), major markets have had turn-around success. With Atlanta's population growing by roughly 100,000 a year over the last decade (slowing now though), there is no reason to abandon this market. I realize those listed are traditional markets, but who's to say it can't happen in Atlanta?

While the current owners may want out i am sure the league would want to keep the team in Atlanta if other owners stepped up.....

and Pittsburgh got saved cause they played ****** for yrs and ended up with some great draft picks....without Crosby they probably would still be hurting.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

and Pittsburgh got saved cause they played ****** for yrs and ended up with some great draft picks....without Crosby they probably would still be hurting.

There is a regular poster in the BoH who is a Pitt fan and supports relocating the Thrashers. When I asked why he would say that having almost lost his team already, he insists that they were never close and that Lemieux knew all along he was just using KC for a new arena and was never moving. I go with what I said to avoid confrontation.

 

[nhlfan79]

Listen, I am not doubting that ASG has done a horrible job of marketing the game in Atlanta, however you failed to address the issue I was questioning; that being the absolutely ridiculous notion that ASG intentional tanked the franchise to save money on the buyout from Belkin. That scenario does not make any sense, be it fiscal or logical in nature.

Exactly, but you're thinking rationally about the irrational. Belkin and the non-Belkins unnecessarily prolonged their litigation simply to drive up costs (out of spite), and even the Maryland courts noted that fact in their rulings throughout the litigation. Look it up, it's public record.

And if you think I'm BS'ing, this picture tells you everything you need to know about Atlanta Spirit:

EDIT: That's former Hawks GM Billy Knight (who abruptly resigned his position) refusing to shake Steve Belkin's hand before a court hearing.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

That's exactly my point. I'm not saying it can't happen in Atlanta. The problem is for anyone with the wherewithal to attempt such a turn-around in Atlanta is they can't simply use what happened in those traditional markets as a case study as to how to 180 Atlanta.

All true, but just remember that it's only been a few months since Gearon screamed from the top of the hills about new ownership. They were unable to sell during the 5 years they were suing eachother, so it really hasn't been that long. Didn't Buffalo take about a year or so to finally close (though they got an ideal owner)? I may be wrong...

 

[borno87]

All true, but just remember that it's only been a few months since Gearon screamed from the top of the hills about new ownership. They were unable to sell during the 5 years they were suing eachother, so it really hasn't been that long. Didn't Buffalo take about a year or so to finally close (though they got an ideal owner)? I may be wrong...

You're not wrong, however what troubles me is Gearon's use of the words and phrases that should never be discussed in a sports franchise sale. He makes reference to the possibility of relocation, saying I would "hate it to get to that" and continually pounds on the word "urgency."

Another thing that worries me is the comments by Bettman and the local Atlanta media saying things won't get going in Atlanta until Phoenix is sorted out. What does Phoenix have to do with Atlanta? I believe you have argued several times that the NHL is not selling the Thrashers, ASG is. The NHL does not need to be around to move the process forward, look at how Buffalo closed with Phoenix in flux, and now Dallas has moved on to a state of exclusivity with a potential buyer. Both situations have been in the works longer than Atlanta, however I'm not certain ASG is operating with the same time horizon as Buffalo or Dallas given Gearon's comments. Waiting for the NHL to get involved is not a positive indicator for the team's future in Atlanta IMO.

 

[edog37]

There is a regular poster in the BoH who is a Pitt fan and supports relocating the Thrashers. When I asked why he would say that having almost lost his team already, he insists that they were never close and that Lemieux knew all along he was just using KC for a new arena and was never moving. I go with what I said to avoid confrontation.

I'm guessing you are referring to me, but the fact remains Lemieux did use KC to get a new building here. He said as much during the groundbreaking for Consol

http://*******************/articles...vegas-thanks-for-dinner-see-you-in-pittsburgh

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_583018.html

The fact is though, we have a two time failure in the Atlanta market for hockey. Once again, these are facts. You can cite bad ownership, lack of winning tradition, etc. but the facts are the team is losing money & fans are apathetic. People on here put up a lot of maybes & could happen here theories, but that's just whistling past the graveyard. John Ziegler received a ton of heat back in the day for being a rather boring & non-visionary NHL President, but one thing he understood was franchise stability. Coming out of the NHL-WHA war, he wanted to stabilize the league as whole. You didn't see risky moves into non-traditional areas or really expansion of any type. Atlanta failed again, let's just accept the reality, move on & pick up the pieces.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

I'm guessing you are referring to me, but the fact remains Lemieux did use KC to get a new building here. He said as much during the groundbreaking for Consol

http://*******************/articles...vegas-thanks-for-dinner-see-you-in-pittsburgh

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_583018.html

The fact is though, we have a two time failure in the Atlanta market for hockey. Once again, these are facts. You can cite bad ownership, lack of winning tradition, etc. but the facts are the team is losing money & fans are apathetic. People on here put up a lot of maybes & could happen here theories, but that's just whistling past the graveyard. John Ziegler received a ton of heat back in the day for being a rather boring & non-visionary NHL President, but one thing he understood was franchise stability. Coming out of the NHL-WHA war, he wanted to stabilize the league as whole. You didn't see risky moves into non-traditional areas or really expansion of any type. Atlanta failed again, let's just accept the reality, move on & pick up the pieces.

You also give excuses, but Pittsburgh had attendance sub-15k and had a year sub-12k in the early 2000's. That's a fact.

 

[Mungman]

Another thing that worries me is the comments by Bettman and the local Atlanta media saying things won't get going in Atlanta until Phoenix is sorted out. What does Phoenix have to do with Atlanta? I believe you have argued several times that the NHL is not selling the Thrashers, ASG is. The NHL does not need to be around to move the process forward, look at how Buffalo closed with Phoenix in flux, and now Dallas has moved on to a state of exclusivity with a potential buyer. Both situations have been in the works longer than Atlanta, however I'm not certain ASG is operating with the same time horizon as Buffalo or Dallas given Gearon's comments. Waiting for the NHL to get involved is not a positive indicator for the team's future in Atlanta IMO.

This to me is telling IMO, you are 100% correct on this. The thing that springs to mind when I hear this is they don't want to complete the deal they have in their back pocket with TNSE in ATL and lose their leverege in PHX. Now with the current goings on there may be a clause in this theoretical deal that no one has seen that allows the owners to still seek local owners and allows the purchase of PHX rather than ATL.

Really in all looking at the big picture of this information (NHL saying ATL to wait on PHX) it emerges that the NHL may have a deal with TNSE to reward their assistance as a stalking horse with PHX for the last 2 years (and playing by the rules long before that) with ATL if no local ownership shows up by the time PHX gets wrapped up.

 

[dj4aces]

Really in all looking at the big picture of this information (NHL saying ATL to wait on PHX) it emerges that the NHL may have a deal with TNSE to reward their assistance as a stalking horse with PHX for the last 2 years (and playing by the rules long before that) with ATL if no local ownership shows up by the time PHX gets wrapped up.

The NHL never said for Atlanta to wait on Phoenix. It is speculated that the Atlanta Spirit folks are waiting on Phoenix. That's it.

 

[Benny27]

I'm guessing you are referring to me, but the fact remains Lemieux did use KC to get a new building here. He said as much during the groundbreaking for Consol

http://*******************/articles...vegas-thanks-for-dinner-see-you-in-pittsburgh

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_583018.html

The fact is though, we have a two time failure in the Atlanta market for hockey. Once again, these are facts. You can cite bad ownership, lack of winning tradition, etc. but the facts are the team is losing money & fans are apathetic. People on here put up a lot of maybes & could happen here theories, but that's just whistling past the graveyard. John Ziegler received a ton of heat back in the day for being a rather boring & non-visionary NHL President, but one thing he understood was franchise stability. Coming out of the NHL-WHA war, he wanted to stabilize the league as whole. You didn't see risky moves into non-traditional areas or really expansion of any type. Atlanta failed again, let's just accept the reality, move on & pick up the pieces.

He probably did use KC after but i still think things would have been pretty bleak if they didn't tank for yrs and get a bunch of number 1 picks that turned out to be great players.....As AtlantaWhaler said your attendance was pretty low in those crappy yrs, if you still had that same team in a new arena would attendance have gotten better? Doubt it....

 

[Elyoric]

Bringing it up in this board, whether in the form of a rhetorical question or an honest query to other posters is indeed suggesting such a silly and misguided conspiracy theory.



Listen, I am not doubting that ASG has done a horrible job of marketing the game in Atlanta, however you failed to address the issue I was questioning; that being the absolutely ridiculous notion that ASG intentional tanked the franchise to save money on the buyout from Belkin. That scenario does not make any sense, be it fiscal or logical in nature.

It's likely that when Belkin left, the ASG did not have the capital to fully invest in both the Hawks and the Thrashers. Its pretty clear that they decided to go all-in on the Hawks and let the Thrashers flounder which is unfortunate. However the suggestion that this was all part of some master plan to get the best deal possible out of Belkin really downgrades the discussion here and reeks of the type of tin-foil hat speculation that is a total waste of time.

Come now, you're suggesting that someone's speculation in a thread that's 95% speculation degrades the discussion here?

I find the notion entirely plausible both fiscally and logically. Unless of course you'd like to provide some inside information towards multi-million dollar business deals, which I'm sure most of us on internet message boards are privy to.

 

[Magnus Fulgur]

I'm guessing you are referring to me, but the fact remains Lemieux did use KC to get a new building here. He said as much during the groundbreaking for Consol

http://*******************/articles...vegas-thanks-for-dinner-see-you-in-pittsburgh

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_583018.html

The fact is though, we have a two time failure in the Atlanta market for hockey. Once again, these are facts. You can cite bad ownership, lack of winning tradition, etc. but the facts are the team is losing money & fans are apathetic. People on here put up a lot of maybes & could happen here theories, but that's just whistling past the graveyard. John Ziegler received a ton of heat back in the day for being a rather boring & non-visionary NHL President, but one thing he understood was franchise stability. Coming out of the NHL-WHA war, he wanted to stabilize the league as whole. You didn't see risky moves into non-traditional areas or really expansion of any type. Atlanta failed again, let's just accept the reality, move on & pick up the pieces.

ARRRRGH. The Flames were around for less than a decade and their owner was broke and forced to sell. That team wasn't a failure. If Cousins didn't have to sell, The Flames would have been a good team in Atlanta, and they would have thrived under the city's growth in the 80s and 90s.
The fans aren't apathetic. They passionately DESPISE the franchise. Over 40% of the STH told the team to go to hell after the 2007-8 season. That's not because Atlanta's a bad hockey market, it's because we're not going to take this crappy franchise anymore.

How can you attract new fans over the past five years, when the established fans hate the management and want the owners to go broke? Nobody is spreading the word. The media here HATES the owners. The fans HATE the owners. The business community HATES the owners.
Hockey didn't fail in Atlanta: not even once. The ownership failed, twice.

 

[Melrose Munch]

I'm guessing you are referring to me, but the fact remains Lemieux did use KC to get a new building here. He said as much during the groundbreaking for Consol

http://*******************/articles...vegas-thanks-for-dinner-see-you-in-pittsburgh

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_583018.html

The fact is though, we have a two time failure in the Atlanta market for hockey. Once again, these are facts. You can cite bad ownership, lack of winning tradition, etc. but the facts are the team is losing money & fans are apathetic. People on here put up a lot of maybes & could happen here theories, but that's just whistling past the graveyard. John Ziegler received a ton of heat back in the day for being a rather boring & non-visionary NHL President, but one thing he understood was franchise stability. Coming out of the NHL-WHA war, he wanted to stabilize the league as whole. You didn't see risky moves into non-traditional areas or really expansion of any type. Atlanta failed again, let's just accept the reality, move on & pick up the pieces.

What is Pittsburgh's tradition. Tanking for high picks. That's called being lame.

 

[borno87]

The NHL never said for Atlanta to wait on Phoenix. It is speculated that the Atlanta Spirit folks are waiting on Phoenix. That's it.

Semantics, whether the NHL told ASG to wait or the ASG is waiting for the NHL's attention to become available, the implication are the same.

Bettman via Yahoo Sports:

“I’m not sure why these stories are starting, but I’m not going to weigh in on something that is purely speculative and made up,†Bettman said. “The fact of the matter is, we’re focused on making Phoenix work, and that’s where we’re directing our attention right now.â€

Kincade and other AJC writers following the story have also reported this.

 

[Grudy0]

I'm guessing you are referring to me, but the fact remains Lemieux did use KC to get a new building here. He said as much during the groundbreaking for Consol

http://*******************/articles...vegas-thanks-for-dinner-see-you-in-pittsburgh

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_583018.html

The fact is though, we have a two time failure in the Atlanta market for hockey. Once again, these are facts. You can cite bad ownership, lack of winning tradition, etc. but the facts are the team is losing money & fans are apathetic. People on here put up a lot of maybes & could happen here theories, but that's just whistling past the graveyard. John Ziegler received a ton of heat back in the day for being a rather boring & non-visionary NHL President, but one thing he understood was franchise stability. Coming out of the NHL-WHA war, he wanted to stabilize the league as whole. You didn't see risky moves into non-traditional areas or really expansion of any type. Atlanta failed again, let's just accept the reality, move on & pick up the pieces.

Lemieux may have used KC, but let's talk about the reality that is the Pittsburgh Penguins:

They've been in bankruptcy protection twice. A bid was cobbled together to buy the team five years ago by Jim Balsillie. Another rumored bid happened just over ten years ago from Paul Allen of Microsoft and the NBA's Portland TrailBlazers. If it weren't for guys named Lemieux and Crosby, it appears that same "failed again" and "accept the reality" would apply to the Pittsburgh Penguins franchise.

At least let there be about twelve different owners of the franchise over 40+ years (as opposed to two over the past 12 years in Atlanta) before snapping a judgment about how much of a hockey market Atlanta isn't.

 

[Mungman]

The NHL never said for Atlanta to wait on Phoenix. It is speculated that the Atlanta Spirit folks are waiting on Phoenix. That's it.

Fine, I was basing my comments on Borno's and some vague recollection of hearing something along those lines.

If we're speculating that ASG is waiting on PHX it wouldn't be a huge leap to speculate that the NHL has told ASG to wait on PHX before they would entertain sale for relocation. This would fit in with your post as well as mine and Borno's.

 

[dj4aces]

Semantics, whether the NHL told ASG to wait or the ASG is waiting for the NHL's attention to become available, the implication are the same.

Not really. One is the decision of the league, the other is a decision of the ownership. The notion the league told the owners to wait their turn, so to speak, is preposterous.

The NHL is focused on Phoenix because the NHL owns that team. It is not any slight against Atlanta, it's purely a business interest of the NHL to resolve the situation in Phoenix.

It is speculated that the owners have a vested interest in seeing what happens to Phoenix. That's it, just speculation. The problem here, is people are taking this speculation, running with it as fact, and speculating on top of it.

 

[borno87]

Come now, you're suggesting that someone's speculation in a thread that's 95% speculation degrades the discussion here?

I find the notion entirely plausible both fiscally and logically. Unless of course you'd like to provide some inside information towards multi-million dollar business deals, which I'm sure most of us on internet message boards are privy to.

Please explain how it is plausible. Please, take your best shot.

Lets see, ASG's master plan was to devalue the franchise in their buy-out negotiations with Belkin, incurring in multi-million $ losses in the process, to save themselves some money? Please read that sentence again. Now read it again. Where is the logic in doing so?

Oh and throw in the fact that they have planned to sell the Thrashers for years before the lawsuit, so by devaluing the franchise in order to buy-out Belkin for less, they also devalued the franchise so its selling price to an outside interest would be lower as well.

To sum up:
1. Plan to buyout majority capital partner in ownership group to settle lawsuit so they can complete long term plans of spinning off hockey franchise
2. Devalue hockey franchise and incur 10's of millions of losses in the process
3. Succeed in devaluing hockey franchise, buy out majority shareholders share at a discount
4. Spin-off hockey franchise to outside interest at discounted price due to desperation and uncertainty surrounding franchise
5. PROFIT????????

 

[dj4aces]

If we're speculating that ASG is waiting on PHX it wouldn't be a huge leap to speculate that the NHL has told ASG to wait on PHX before they would entertain sale for relocation. This would fit in with your post as well as mine and Borno's.

The huge leap comes when the "sale for relocation" remark is added.

If we're speculating that the ASG is waiting on Phoenix, it wouldn't be a huge leap that the NHL told ASG to wait. To say this purpose is for the potential relocation of the franchise is more hopes and dreams than speculation.