Bulls and White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf
has dropped out of the bidding for the
Phoenix Coyotes |
Earlier in the evening on Tuesday, the National Hockey League released a statement saying they had entered the bidding process for the Phoenix Coyotes in an effort to keep the club in Phoenix, and thwart the efforts of Research in Motion co-CEO, Jim Ballsilie from forcably relocating the club to Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Now word comes that one of the key bidders for the Coyotes has dropped out of the effort.
Jerry Reinsdorf, who owns the NBA Chicago Bulls, and MLB Chicago White Sox has dropped out of the process. Reinsdorf's group issued the following statement late Tuesday:
Glendale Sports and Entertainment, whose principals are John Kaites, Jerry Reinsdorf and Tony Tavares, regrets to inform all interested parties that despite expending a great deal of time, money, and effort, it is unable to comply with the court mandated deadline of August 25, 2009, for having a firm offer to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes and keep them in Glendale.
Despite the fact that we always thought that we were operating on an extremely aggressive timeline, we were able to accomplish a great deal in a very short time period. Our capital structure is negotiated, and we have negotiated acceptable deals with the secured creditors as well as a number of unsecured creditors. We have developed a solid business plan that would result in keeping the Coyotes in Glendale and in a relatively short period of time turning the team into a successful and viable NHL franchise.
All of this was accomplished while the unwilling seller created an expensive litigious environment and pressed a public relations strategy that has had the effect of chilling the negotiations with the City. It is unfortunate that this conduct continues. We have faced an organized publicity effort designed to provide negative and misleading information to interested parties. Not only has this stymied negotiations, but is has eroded local market demand for Coyotes tickets, luxury boxes, and sponsorships.
Despite arduous efforts by the City of Glendale’s administration and ourselves, we have been unable to reach an acceptable lease deal for the operation of the team at the Jobing.Com Arena. Since we have not finalized this critical agreement within the mandated timeline we cannot submit a firm and binding offer to the Court.
It is unclear whether the NHL's entry into the bidding occurred before or after the league was notified of the Reinsdorf group's intent to drop out of the bidding process.
A hearing has been set for Sept. 2 to determine if the NHL's 26-0 rejection of Jim Balsillie bid by the league's Board of Governors is to be upheld, with the Coyotes scheduled to be auctioned off on Sept. 10th. Balsillie, the co-CEO of Research in Motion, has made a $212.5 million bid with the intent of relocating the club to Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The NHL wishes to keep the club in Glendale at all costs.
The move by the NHL seems to point to a "fail safe" move to thwart any and all attempts at Balsillie relocating the Coyotes.
If the league were to obtain ownership of the club, it would not be a first. Major League Baseball purchased the Montreal Expos from Jeffery Loria in 2002 for $120 million. The clubs was then sold under league control to the Lerner family and relocated to Washington, DC where they were rechristened the Washington Nationals in 2006.
Soiurce: National Hockey League
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