NHL Conflict Over Possible Sale and Relocation

¶ … Phoenix Coyotes

I'm here today to discuss a topic many of you may be passionate about, and the rest of you probably have no interest in. That's the bad news. The good news is; I'm going to try to help you get a little excited about hockey, even if you don't know the difference between a stick and a puck. In May 2009, the Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League, claimed bankruptcy. As a result, two competitive offers to finance the team emerged. One was from a Canadian businessman, the other from the NHL itself. This month, a judge ruled against both parties, leaving the hockey team in limbo, and outrage in the hockey fan community. (Yes, there is such a thing, and not just in Canada.) Here's what happened.

The sources of the conflict were the inability of the Coyotes to maintain operating costs and continue playing with a small fan base. (Gee, what a surprise), between the league, the team, and the players. In retrospect, several teams across the United States had declared bankruptcy. (There's no audience for ice hockey in Los Angeles or Phoenix? How odd.) The other source of the conflict was between the team and its creditors, and who were considered creditors by the courts.

There were numerous parties involved, of course, from the NHL league itself, to the fans, creditors, and the courts. Officially, it was the National Hockey League vs. Jim Balsillie, who wanted to move the team to Hamilton, Ontario Canada. However, there were several other parties involved in the conflict that often don't come into mind. First were the fans. Yes, there are hockey fans just as passionate and devoted as any fanatic football or basketball fans, and with the judge's decision, they were robbed of their favorite sport. Another contingent that doesn't get much press are all the people that work either full-time or part-time for the hockey teams across the country. These people, the ones you don't think about when you attend any athletic event, are the backbone of the fan experience. Ticket takers, announcers, fan store clears, food vendors, and the maintenance crews, all depend on the sports season for their income or extra income. With no games comes no pay, and these low-paid, part-time people may have been the biggest victims of the judge's ruling, and received the least recognition. Also, the team owner and team coach were not considered creditors for some reason, and did not receive their pay, another interesting twist to the story.

But, I digress. The issues at hand here were all to do with money and budgeting. The main issue at play in the conflict was the bankruptcy of the team, the payments to creditors, and where the team would end up. The league wanted to take over the team, and probably leave it in Phoenix. The judge ruled that the league's offer did not go far enough, but left the door open for them to make another offer. On the other hand, he closed the door on the businessman, saying that the court would not hear another offer from him. So, the team my still stand a chance of surviving, if the NHL ups the ante and comes back with a stronger offer the judge approves.