Part II. Potential owners of NHL's Phoenix Coyotes

[RR]

Sorry...change "starting to get built" with "starting to plan to be built".

They should have never left.....but that's for another discussion I think.

Kidding, right?

 

[Jeffrey93]

Kidding, right?

About what part? Not leaving? No, not really. From what I understand there were renovations that could be done and were going to be done if the Coyotes stayed to make it suitable for hockey (no/less obstructed view seats).

 

[Doug Smail]

Kidding, right?

RR...whats your take on the campbell article?

 

[kdb209]

About what part? Not leaving? No, not really. From what I understand there were renovations that could be done and were going to be done if the Coyotes stayed to make it suitable for hockey (no/less obstructed view seats).

I never heard of any renovation plans to make the then-America West Arena suitable for Hockey.

To fit an ice rink in w/o obstructed view seats would have required tearing down one whole end of the arena and extending the structure by ~60-80 feet. And I doubt that the Suns who were the primary tenants would have agreed to those renovations, since they would have made the arena less basketball friendly.

 

[RR]

RR...whats your take on the campbell article?

The article? Full of holes and nothing new confirmed, on the record. The idea the league would ever go back to JB after the hell he put them through, preposterous.

The radio interview that was posted, interesting. Specifically, the idea of a damages payout to COG by Thomson.

About what part? Not leaving? No, not really. From what I understand there were renovations that could be done and were going to be done if the Coyotes stayed to make it suitable for hockey (no/less obstructed view seats).

Obviously, you never attended a game there. Had you, you'd be embarrassed by making such a claim as you do.

Obstructed seating aside, think of a BB court and constructing an arena with ideal sight-lines for the patrons. Now, take out the BB court and drop a rink (wider and longer) into the middle, and reconsider those sight-lines.

It is exactly why USAC is a great BB venue, and horrible hockey venue. While Jobing is great for hockey and horrible for BB. Even Judge Baum, a Suns STH, commented on that fact during court last summer.

USAC had more than five years to consider renovations for hockey, and never even hinted at it. Whomever you're getting your information from is sadly mistaken, or intentionally misleading you.

I never heard of any renovation plans to make the then-America West Arena suitable for Hockey.

To fit an ice rink in w/o obstructed view seats would have required tearing down one whole end of the arena and extending the structure by ~60-80 feet. And I doubt that the Suns who were the primary tenants would have agreed to those renovations, since they would have made the arena less basketball friendly.

Correct. You never heard it because it never happened. In fact, the opposite was true. The Suns and Diamondbacks were owned by Jerry Colangelo at the time, and he was instrumental in the building of then America West and Bank One Ballpark (now Chase Field). There was nothing in it for him to modify AWA for the Coyotes. Exactly why Scottsdale was choice #1, followed by Glendale when Scottsdale dropped the ball.

 

[Jeffrey93]

I never heard of any renovation plans to make the then-America West Arena suitable for Hockey.

To fit an ice rink in w/o obstructed view seats would have required tearing down one whole end of the arena and extending the structure by ~60-80 feet. And I doubt that the Suns who were the primary tenants would have agreed to those renovations, since they would have made the arena less basketball friendly.

I'm going based on what people on the Coyotes boards told me. The claim was made that a renovation was proposed to make the sightlines more hockey friendly and keep the Coyotes. Apparently there was some pissing match going on between the owners at the time and that led to Jobing.com Arena being built.

AWA (or whatever it is called now...USAC or whatever), according to Coyotes fans offered to undergo renovations to keep the Coyotes...but it wasn't with terms the then owners of the Coyotes liked (some dispute around this....) and it wasn't something the Suns' owners were too thrilled about either.

I know it would be tough to turn a basketball only facility into a hockey friendly facility.....I imagine it would be easier than convincing people to throw up a brand new facility just down the road though. But then again.....Glendale seems like they were eager to toss a pile of money at an unproven business....the benefits of that are still waiting to be seen.

I've debated this before...and am not interested in doing it again...but it is funny that a market that was supposed to take the Winnipeg Jets from a faltering franchise and make it a stable one had hockey so low on the radar that they built a venue unsuitable for hockey and only 4 years later they have an NHL franchise. Had this been a market....ummm...I don't want to say "deserving".....how about "worthy" of NHL hockey, I'd think they would have made sure the new arena they built for $90M (bargain!!!) would also be able to host hockey. Really....I don't know why anyone allows their tax dollars to go to facilities that limit their potential.

Anyhoo....like I said...I was told by Coyotes fans that AWA at the time was willing to renovate to keep the Coyotes...but the ownership groups of the Suns & Coyotes couldn't get along...so it didn't happen.

 

[Brodie]

It's really unfortunate that the Coyotes and Suns weren't part of the same family and that efforts weren't made to accommodate the Yotes at the USAC. The Suns, I believe, are the most beloved of the Phoenix based teams... they could have marketed the hell out of the Coyotes.

 

[Jeffrey93]

Obviously, you never attended a game there. Had you, you'd be embarrassed by making such a claim as you do.

Obstructed seating aside, think of a BB court and constructing an arena with ideal sight-lines for the patrons. Now, take out the BB court and drop a rink (wider and longer) into the middle, and reconsider those sight-lines.

It is exactly why USAC is a great BB venue, and horrible hockey venue. While Jobing is great for hockey and horrible for BB. Even Judge Baum, a Suns STH, commented on that fact during court last summer.

USAC had more than five years to consider renovations for hockey, and never even hinted at it. Whomever you're getting your information from is sadly mistaken, or intentionally misleading you.

As I said...I am basing this on what Coyotes fans have told me on the Coyotes message boards.
No...I have never attended a game there (basketball isn't my cup of tea!).
It is ludicrous that a publicly funded facility (even if partially) would be built to only suit one sport....then a brief 4 years passes and you now have another sport in your market. Poor planning...or the planners never considered hockey would land in that region...which makes it even funnier that 4 years later it did.

I based my comments about USAC on what Phoenix Coyotes fans told me. I questioned why AWA, at the time, wasn't built to suit hockey.....and questioned if it couldn't be renovated to avoid a new facility being built that would obviously compete with it. I was told it was an issue between Coyotes ownership and Suns ownership....that the renovations were planned but the Coyotes ownership balked at them and decided to head to Glendale.

I get that it would be quite the undertaking....I just find it hilarious that it had to be done at all. Again...there are 2 options here.....
1) Phoenix is a strong hockey market that somehow agreed to their taxpayer money being spent to build a basketball exclusive facility
2) Phoenix as a market never even had hockey on its radar when AWA was built and therefore saw it as a waste of money to build a venue that would facilitate hockey

It's so funny to me that a market was so oblivious to hockey they built a basketball only venue....and a mere 4 years later they had an NHL team, and people were left scratching their heads thinking "Darn...where are they going to play?!?!"

 

[Jeffrey93]

It's really unfortunate that the Coyotes and Suns weren't part of the same family and that efforts weren't made to accommodate the Yotes at the USAC. The Suns, I believe, are the most beloved of the Phoenix based teams... they could have marketed the hell out of the Coyotes.

This just goes to show you, in my opinion, how low an NHL team ranked on the radar in Phoenix. Buildings like this aren't thrown up with little thought. You would think somebody at some time would have said "What about hockey?"....apparently that never happened. Then they were given an NHL team abruptly after....it went from not being on their radar to being there. So funny. It actually makes me laugh at the entire thing. If they lose the Coyotes and Jobing.com Arena has no tenant...it could have all been avoided if they just built the first venue with hockey in mind.
A weird form of justice really...
I feel bad for the taxpayers of Glendale.....but I don't feel bad for the market as a whole.

 

[RR]

As I said...I am basing this on what Coyotes fans have told me on the Coyotes message boards.
No...I have never attended a game there (basketball isn't my cup of tea!).
It is ludicrous that a publicly funded facility (even if partially) would be built to only suit one sport....then a brief 4 years passes and you now have another sport in your market. Poor planning...or the planners never considered hockey would land in that region...which makes it even funnier that 4 years later it did.

I based my comments about USAC on what Phoenix Coyotes fans told me. I questioned why AWA, at the time, wasn't built to suit hockey.....and questioned if it couldn't be renovated to avoid a new facility being built that would obviously compete with it. I was told it was an issue between Coyotes ownership and Suns ownership....that the renovations were planned but the Coyotes ownership balked at them and decided to head to Glendale.

I get that it would be quite the undertaking....I just find it hilarious that it had to be done at all. Again...there are 2 options here.....
1) Phoenix is a strong hockey market that somehow agreed to their taxpayer money being spent to build a basketball exclusive facility
2) Phoenix as a market never even had hockey on its radar when AWA was built and therefore saw it as a waste of money to build a venue that would facilitate hockey

It's so funny to me that a market was so oblivious to hockey they built a basketball only venue....and a mere 4 years later they had an NHL team, and people were left scratching their heads thinking "Darn...where are they going to play?!?!"

Did you foresee the Jets or Nordiques failing in Canada? How about expansion in 1991 to San Jose? Or in 1992 to Tampa Bay and Ottawa? To Anaheim and Florida in 1993? Or the Minnesota move to Dallas the same year?

That's eight events that occurred before the Coyotes moved to Phoenix, and AFTER construction was under way on what is now USAC. Yet you suggest it is "ludicrous" that hockey wasn't taken into consideration.

Too bad you weren't around then to share your insights. Had you instead of being here, with us, you'd be enjoying retirement in the location of your choice, richly rewarded for your brilliant business foresight.

 

[RR]

It's really unfortunate that the Coyotes and Suns weren't part of the same family and that efforts weren't made to accommodate the Yotes at the USAC. The Suns, I believe, are the most beloved of the Phoenix based teams... they could have marketed the hell out of the Coyotes.

Very true. The Suns were the first professional franchise here and they had a 20-year head start on the Cardinals who arrived from St. Louis in 1988; 28 years on the Coyotes; and 30 years on the Diamondbacks.

 

[Jeffrey93]

Did you foresee the Jets or Nordiques failing in Canada? How about expansion in 1991 to San Jose? Or in 1992 to Tampa Bay and Ottawa? To Anaheim and Florida in 1993? Or the Minnesota move to Dallas the same year?

That's eight events that occurred before the Coyotes moved to Phoenix, and AFTER construction was under way on what is now USAC. Yet you suggest it is "ludicrous" that hockey wasn't taken into consideration.

Too bad you weren't around then to share your insights. Had you instead of being here, with us, you'd be enjoying retirement in the location of your choice, richly rewarded for your brilliant business foresight.

So....how many of those markets that you mentioned had just built a brand new venue that wasn't suitable for hockey?
Did I forsee NHL expansion? Well...it wasn't exactly abrupt....had it been on the Phoenix radar they probably would never have built a basketball only facility. It would have been a foolish waste of taxpayers dollars, no?

The fact this was relocation makes it even worse.....but it just goes to show you....if a team is in trouble...and you have some money....AND the league likes you...you get it, no matter how dumb it is.

 

[TheLegend]

So....how many of those markets that you mentioned had just built a brand new venue that wasn't suitable for hockey?
Did I forsee NHL expansion? Well...it wasn't exactly abrupt....had it been on the Phoenix radar they probably would never have built a basketball only facility. It would have been a foolish waste of taxpayers dollars, no?

Your memory of posts from "other Coyotes boards" is close, but not complete.

My memory also may be a bit foggy, but from an article I had read several months ago......

Long before the Jets ended up in Phoenix.... and after the America West Arena (nee US Airways Center) had opened, Jerry Colangelo was approached by the NHL regarding a future expansion team (5-6 years down the road). The NHL had been eyeing Phoenix for expansion for quite some time and had gone as far as scheduling a couple of regular season games at the AWA (which both ended up as sellouts). Colangelo was interested, but was more concerned developing his Suns franchise at the time.

Whether or not he would have ever bought into an NHL expansion team isn't really known.... it was a year or two later when the relocation of the Jets happened. Now the Jets were originally supposed to move to Minnesota. When that deal fell through, the NHL came back to Colangelo and was able to get him to take in the Jets (renamed the Coyotes by their new owners).

Now IIRC.... Colangelo was completely put off by the new Coyotes owners almost immediately. So the possibility of Colangelo rennovating the AWA for them was non-existent.

I moved to Phoenix in '01, so there are probably some locals who could fill in (or correct) the details above better than I could. But the point is that IF the order of events had been different, the Coyotes (or an NHL expansion team) may have remained playing in downtown in an arena remodeled for basketball and hockey.

However it didn't turn out that way.

 

[ps241]

So....how many of those markets that you mentioned had just built a brand new venue that wasn't suitable for hockey?
Did I forsee NHL expansion? Well...it wasn't exactly abrupt....had it been on the Phoenix radar they probably would never have built a basketball only facility. It would have been a foolish waste of taxpayers dollars, no?

The fact this was relocation makes it even worse.....but it just goes to show you....if a team is in trouble...and you have some money....AND the league likes you...you get it, no matter how dumb it is.

i am not sure it was a completely agree......i have been to Raps game at the ACC and i think the layout sucks for basketball.....i have been to about 8 basketball games in Phoenix and sat in the best and the worst seats and i can tell you the sight lines are great. when i have been in basketball only facilities they provide a much better experience for Basketball than when i have been in blended facilities

I think if Phoenix would have built their hockey rink in Scottsdale and the ownership would have been better and they would have fielded a very good team (like this year) at some point along the way that hockey would have been just as successful in Phoenix as it has been in the top sun belt markets.

as a matter of fact i think the Coyotes even in Glendale could still be a solid hockey market over time with the proper ownership and a solid product on the ice......the problem is they have had neither up to this year

In my opinion where very large cities run into trouble is when you have 2 facilities competing for the concerts and other events.....i think it compresses the total facility business model......to my point whether you are a city of 4 million or a city of 1.5 million U2 is going to come to your town once on their tour......so two facilities compete to land the concert or split the market.....there are examples of profitable facilities with one pro team in them its just usually they are the only game in town for concerts and other major events

 

[htpwn]

i am not sure it was a completely agree......i have been to Raps game at the ACC and i think the layout sucks for basketball.....i have been to about 8 basketball games in Phoenix and sat in the best and the worst seats and i can tell you the sight lines are great. when i have been in basketball only facilities they provide a much better experience for Basketball than when i have been in blended facilities

I think if Phoenix would have built their hockey rink in Scottsdale and the ownership would have been better and they would have fielded a very good team (like this year) at some point along the way that hockey would have been just as successful in Phoenix as it has been in the top sun belt markets.

as a matter of fact i think the Coyotes even in Glendale could still be a solid hockey market over time with the proper ownership and a solid product on the ice......the problem is they have had neither up to this year

In my opinion where very large cities run into trouble is when you have 2 facilities competing for the concerts and other events.....i think it compresses the total facility business model......to my point whether you are a city of 4 million or a city of 1.5 million U2 is going to come to your town once on their tour......so two facilities compete to land the concert or split the market.....there are examples of profitable facilities with one pro team in them its just usually they are the only game in town for concerts and other major events

Your welcome to your opinion but I feel I should inform you that the Air Canada Centre was originally designed as a basketball arena.

 

[ps241]

Your welcome to your opinion but I feel I should inform you that the Air Canada Centre was originally designed as a basketball arena.

i don't doubt you but as a viewer the end result didn't work out that way IMHO.....we bought a block of 50 tickets and and were in the less than perfect area in ACC and i found the seats too far away from the court. i sat in a similar area once at Phoenix and the seats were much better and closer to the court.

i really enjoy the ACC for hockey but not for basketball compared to a basketball only facility like where the suns play.....with the suns all the angles seemed to be designed off the court footprint and go up from there.....problem with the raps design is it is off the hockey ice foot print and from my experience it doesn't work as well

one guys opinion

 

[MaskedSonja]

A lot of what Campbell is saying does ring true though, and in regards to Barrie being involved, that point was brought up some time ago by others so it's not like this is some new information that Campbell is pulling out of nowhere. I have always thought that IEH was a dog and pony show that would never be able to pull the deal off to begin with, and a lot of what has been said in the past few weeks is seeming to prove my thoughts on their capability of being able to buy the team, let alone run it once they owned it.

I can't understand why it is that every single writer that works for the Arizona papers or a paper that suggests that the Coyotes are staying are the most credible people in the world, while anyone that suggests anything to the contrary are people to be questioned and mocked, even when they're one of the head writers for the most respected hockey publication in the world...[/QUOTE]

I don't judge people by post count, so you may have lurked a while, which is fine, I do it alot too The answer (which has been debated, not just on this subject, vehemently on these boards) is partly this: (Note MASSIVE stereotyping alert!)

"The Canadian Media can't be trusted because all they want to is to see more Canadian teams in Canada. "(Insert columnist here) is Anti-NHL/Anti-Bettman/Anti-Phoenix". "Phoenix fans go golfing, they dont' care about the Coyotes".

BTW, I'm not Pro or Anti-the above was just used as a simplified example-nothing more should be taken from it


Trust me, go back in the threads, and there gets to be some heated debate on this subject,sometimes leading to personal attacks on the boards, which isn't necessary.
I think the biggest issue here is that, whoever the sources are, they often are repeating stuff that is older and isn't really news. That, plus remarkable debate on how objective various media outlets are on both sides of the border and what agenda they have. Keeping that in mind, also remember that any newspaper is trying to sell newspapers(my personal opinion is that most papers and media outlets lost "objectivity" a long time ago), so it could be argued that Canadian papers may indeed sell more papers with stories about returning to Winnipeg/Quebec City or wherever. It is interesting (from what I can see) is Canadian papers commenting on the Coyotes going to Vegas or KC. Canadians aren't as interested in that.

Bottom line- I think everything needs to be scrutinized, and until we hear the NHL say "The Coyotes are staying/leaving"-all other outlets have to be scrutinized with "we hear that" or 'It's rumoured" or even "I have it on good authority"

Media in the 21st century-question everything, accept nothing until "official" word is given.

EDIT: Just wanted to add, I think I've been able to get more information through the speculation and the simple breaking down of information by the informed posters on these boards than I have gotten in the media

 

[Jesus Christ Horburn]

Generally speaking, I think it's partly a defense mechanism as well.

It's easier to argue against the source of the information than it is the actual information, ie. Ad Hominem.

 

[Doug Smail]

A lot of what Campbell is saying does ring true though, and in regards to Barrie being involved, that point was brought up some time ago by others so it's not like this is some new information that Campbell is pulling out of nowhere. I have always thought that IEH was a dog and pony show that would never be able to pull the deal off to begin with, and a lot of what has been said in the past few weeks is seeming to prove my thoughts on their capability of being able to buy the team, let alone run it once they owned it.

I can't understand why it is that every single writer that works for the Arizona papers or a paper that suggests that the Coyotes are staying are the most credible people in the world, while anyone that suggests anything to the contrary are people to be questioned and mocked, even when they're one of the head writers for the most respected hockey publication in the world...[/QUOTE]

I don't judge people by post count, so you may have lurked a while, which is fine, I do it alot too The answer (which has been debated, not just on this subject, vehemently on these boards) is partly this: (Note MASSIVE stereotyping alert!)

"The Canadian Media can't be trusted because all they want to is to see more Canadian teams in Canada. "(Insert columnist here) is Anti-NHL/Anti-Bettman/Anti-Phoenix". "Phoenix fans go golfing, they dont' care about the Coyotes".

BTW, I'm not Pro or Anti-the above was just used as a simplified example-nothing more should be taken from it


Trust me, go back in the threads, and there gets to be some heated debate on this subject,sometimes leading to personal attacks on the boards, which isn't necessary.
I think the biggest issue here is that, whoever the sources are, they often are repeating stuff that is older and isn't really news. That, plus remarkable debate on how objective various media outlets are on both sides of the border and what agenda they have. Keeping that in mind, also remember that any newspaper is trying to sell newspapers(my personal opinion is that most papers and media outlets lost "objectivity" a long time ago), so it could be argued that Canadian papers may indeed sell more papers with stories about returning to Winnipeg/Quebec City or wherever. It is interesting (from what I can see) is Canadian papers commenting on the Coyotes going to Vegas or KC. Canadians aren't as interested in that.

Bottom line- I think everything needs to be scrutinized, and until we hear the NHL say "The Coyotes are staying/leaving"-all other outlets have to be scrutinized with "we hear that" or 'It's rumoured" or even "I have it on good authority"

Media in the 21st century-question everything, accept nothing until "official" word is given.

EDIT: Just wanted to add, I think I've been able to get more information through the speculation and the simple breaking down of information by the informed posters on these boards than I have gotten in the media

i highly doubt that a respected writer (campbell) from a respected publication (the hockey news) is just going to jump on the rumour bandwaggon weeks/months after theese rumours started. the media (canadian or not) have known of these happenings for a while, but for many reasons actual media people (not bloggers) who have relationships and reputibility at stake are not going to blurt out rumours without knowing that what they are writting is or isnt true. its funny that the big media outlets (tsn,ctv) havent said boo. could this be because thomson owns both organizations? im sure he has put a gag order on both of these media outlets...if not more. now that a few actual media oulets have "let the cat out of the bag", we,re going to start hearing more and more about this situation.

 

[MaskedSonja]

Generally speaking, I think it's partly a defense mechanism as well.

It's easier to argue against the source of the information than it is the actual information, ie. Ad Hominem.

I agree, but that then leads to an interesting problem.

We can argue(use the Globe for an example)about possible baises of the columnist and possible agendas. They can say "Coyotes losing 100 billion a year". Because the columnist is pledging his right to have an anon source, we have to question the legitimacy of the information, because of the questioned bais.

It's only (as I'm sure you well know) when multiple media outlets (on both sides of the border) start stating from multiple sources the same information, then we go further. The question I think is, how do we define the original information source, not the gatekeeper(in this case the Globe and Mail). Which is why I prefer to hear from multiple sources the same thing.
The fact that we have discussion boards like these to debate and analyze to death all the information certainly adds to the fun

Gads, it's Introduction to Media all over again!


Anyway, BACK to the thread(and tying in what I've been saying )does anyone have any recent info from the Phoenix media that could contribute to these rumblings?

 

[MaskedSonja]

i highly doubt that a respected writer (campbell) from a respected publication (the hockey news) is just going to jump on the rumour bandwaggon weeks/months after theese rumours started. the media (canadian or not) have known of these happenings for a while, but for many reasons actual media people (not bloggers) who have relationships and reputibility at stake are not going to blurt out rumours without knowing that what they are writting is or isnt true. its funny that the big media outlets (tsn,ctv) havent said boo. could this be because thomson owns both organizations? im sure he has put a gag order on both of these media outlets...if not more. now that a few actual media oulets have "let the cat out of the bag", we,re going to start hearing more and more about this situation.

Again, I'm not disputing what's been said. However, search "Dave Shoalts" and "Globe and Mail" (a respected writer from a respective publication)in the business (probably 2 or 3 thread parts ago)forums relating to this subject-there was a large debate which I will not go into here, other than to say it questioned things like personal agendas, selling newspapers vs giving quality information, ect.

The point I was making is this-in the 21st century, with Newspapers gasping for life, and 24/7 internet and related media, ALL media and information has to be questioned. I can go to FOX.com and read an article about the Healthcare vote. I can go to CNN and also read about it, and get two very different takes on the vote, simply because of agendas. For Canadian-watch CTV, CBC, and Global news about the any singular news story-you'll get 3 different takes(conservative, Liberal or otherwise)on the same issue.

Media's first job isn't to give information-it's to sell advertising and pay for itsself-"news" comes second IMO.


EDIT: I wonder if I'm surprising some people here-I usually keep pretty quiet about things. All I wanted to say is on these boards-1 person saying something(a reputable source) doesn't make it so. 10 sources saying it makes people here take a second look(maybe). 100 people saying it, plus an official statement from the NHL on the matter will make it so(although even there there will be skeptics until it actually happens).

Right now we are at 10 people-we're taking a second look at the information. It cetainly looks like smoke, and there's reason to believe something is going on here. But if this was even 1 year ago, and Campbell said what he said(and was the only one saying it), it would put aside as a rumor and nothing more until more info was found.

 

[Jesus Christ Horburn]

Again, I'm not disputing what's been said. However, search "Dave Shoalts" and "Globe and Mail" (a respected writer from a respective publication)in the business (probably 2 or 3 thread parts ago)forums relating to this subject-there was a large debate which I will not go into here, other than to say it questioned things like personal agendas, selling newspapers vs giving quality information, ect.

The point I was making is this-in the 21st century, with Newspapers gasping for life, and 24/7 internet and related media, ALL media and information has to be questioned. I can go to FOX.com and read an article about the Healthcare vote. I can go to CNN and also read about it, and get two very different takes on the vote, simply because of agendas. For Canadian-watch CTV, CBC, and Global news about the any singular news story-you'll get 3 different takes(conservative, Liberal or otherwise)on the same issue.

Media's first job isn't to give information-it's to sell advertising and pay for itsself-"news" comes second IMO.

I agree in essence with what you're saying, but one issue that compounds this situation is that the person apparently interested in buying this team already owns several media outlets like CTV, TSN and the Globe & Mail. Its possible that he has made sure his own media outlets do not comment or speculate about a possible sale.

I myself have found it strange that TSN, the network that almost always talks about hockey, hasn't even touched on this topic (aside from Damien Cox's open speculation on The Reporters that the team "should go back to Winnipeg or Quebec City", and one small tweet by Darren Dreger saying "There have been no discussions with the NHL about relocating Atl to Wpg. That doesn't mean Wpg isn't a target for relocation."). They haven't even speculated about where the Coyotes could relocate, when it seems like that was all they could talk about back in the summer. Most of the information has been coming from sources not owned Thomson-Reuters, like CBC and The Hockey News.

 

[Doug Smail]

Again, I'm not disputing what's been said. However, search "Dave Shoalts" and "Globe and Mail" (a respected writer from a respective publication)in the business (probably 2 or 3 thread parts ago)forums relating to this subject-there was a large debate which I will not go into here, other than to say it questioned things like personal agendas, selling newspapers vs giving quality information, ect.

The point I was making is this-in the 21st century, with Newspapers gasping for life, and 24/7 internet and related media, ALL media and information has to be questioned. I can go to FOX.com and read an article about the Healthcare vote. I can go to CNN and also read about it, and get two very different takes on the vote, simply because of agendas. For Canadian-watch CTV, CBC, and Global news about the any singular news story-you'll get 3 different takes(conservative, Liberal or otherwise)on the same issue.

Media's first job isn't to give information-it's to sell advertising and pay for itsself-"news" comes second IMO.


EDIT: I wonder if I'm surprising some people here-I usually keep pretty quiet about things. All I wanted to say is on these boards-1 person saying something(a reputable source) doesn't make it so. 10 sources saying it makes people here take a second look(maybe). 100 people saying it, plus an official statement from the NHL on the matter will make it so(although even there there will be skeptics until it actually happens).

Right now we are at 10 people-we're taking a second look at the information. It cetainly looks like smoke, and there's reason to believe something is going on here. But if this was even 1 year ago, and Campbell said what he said(and was the only one saying it), it would put aside as a rumor and nothing more until more info was found.

good points. funny thing is there are some people who completely refuse to see the logic and common sense of the situation. if the coyotes are playing in wpg, or another canadian city next year, those same people will probably still be arguing that it wont happen. the globe and mail article got more into just the ice edge deal, or lack there of. on the other hand the hockey news actually got into specifics. first publication to do so.

 

[htpwn]

I agree in essence with what you're saying, but one issue that compounds this situation is that the person apparently interested in buying this team already owns several media outlets like CTV, TSN and the Globe & Mail. Its possible that he has made sure his own media outlets do not comment or speculate about a possible sale.

I myself have found it strange that TSN, the network that almost always talks about hockey, hasn't even touched on this topic (aside from Damien Cox's open speculation on The Reporters that the team "should go back to Winnipeg or Quebec City", and one small tweet by Darren Dreger saying "There have been no discussions with the NHL about relocating Atl to Wpg. That doesn't mean Wpg isn't a target for relocation."). They haven't even speculated about where the Coyotes could relocate, when it seems like that was all they could talk about back in the summer. Most of the information has been coming from sources not owned Thomson-Reuters, like CBC and The Hockey News.

I think you guys might be on to something there. It is indeed strange that TSN, the network that is on the top of the hockey world in terms of insider information, has been silent with the exception of one tweet by Dreger. How easy would it be for Tompson to put a gag order on TSN?

 

[Doug Smail]

I think you guys might be on to something there. It is indeed strange that TSN, the network that is on the top of the hockey world in terms of insider information, has been silent with the exception of one tweet by Dreger. How easy would it be for Tompson to put a gag order on TSN?

i watch tsn everyday and 2 things ive noticed 1.zero talk about this rumour...zero. 2.although it could be just because of the season theyre having, but tsn sure is focusing a lot on the coyotes...they talk about everything but relocation of the team. theyve mentioned relocation poss. in the past but deff. not in the last few months.