Buying the NHL?
Published 12:00 am Monday, March 14, 2005
On Monday, espn.com reported that a Wall Street business firm had approached Gary Bettman, President of the National Hockey League, with intent to purchase the League. The firm offered the NHL $3.5 billion for the rights to the league as well as ownership of all 32 NHL teams.
Think about it sports fans.
These guys waltzed in and put down a 35-minute presentation and then whipped the checkbook out. Must be nice to have that kind of money.
But, this goes to further show you how desperate people in the upper echelon of power in the NHL are. The thing that makes it so bad is that Bettman is actually entertaining the idea of selling the League. The NHL is already the first professional league to absolutely cancel a season due to a lockout by the owners. What are they going to do next, be the first professional league where the commissioner has to seek approval from a higher power?
This writer has said all along that allowing a guy that once played in the League to now run the League is never a good idea.
Think about it. A person's head can only be slammed off the plexi-glass and ice so many times. Would you want someone like that making financial decisions?
Me either.
It's that simple.
Griffin Pritchard is the sports editor for the Greenville Advocate. He can be reached by phone at 382-3111 or via email at griffin.pritchard@greenvilleadvocate.com.