Hockey? In Reliant Stadium? In September?

So Andrew posted the story on the "preseason" game to be played at Reliant Stadium. And while I like the idea of a preseason game in Houston, the idea of playing it at that lifeless hanger known as Reliant Stadium, in September, just strikes me as a monumentally bad idea.

I've got some thoughts on this, and I posted them over at the mothership today. Let's just say that I'm troubled at the lack of involvement from the Aeros, the venue, the lack of an agreement with Reliant, and the lack of involvement on the part of the Toyota Center and Les Alexander.

In the comments I was shocked to discover that Phoenix does actually have a fan, and that somebody thought it was my job to write positive PR for hockey so that the sport will grow. I think if you ask my editor at the Press he would probably say that I write too many positive things about hockey when he would much prefer to see me bitching about the Texans, Astros, or Rockets.

But just in case you, dear readers, don't know it: I like hockey. I want hockey to grow in Houston. I want the NHL here on a full-time basis because it bugs me that Dallas has a team and we don't. I just wish that this Coyotes/Stars game at Reliant Stadium made more sense to me because, right now, it just has "failure" written all over it which, in turn, will shine this gigantic negative light on the city of Houston.

But what do I know, right?

Camp Schedule and other stuffs (with a p.m. update)

Dudes! It's HOCKEY SEASON! YAYYYYYY!!!!!!

Just wanted to post a few nuggets for ya to keep your mouth watering:

First, the Aeros put out their training camp schedule yesterday. Don't be shy about going out and checking the guys out. It's free, it's nice and cold in the rink, and Darryl Sydor will be there!

Here's the schedule.

Do keep in mind that times may vary and what the guys are doing on the ice might not be real interesting all the time. For the last two years, I've gone the morning of the home pre-season game. First year, it was a good pre-game practice for the guys playing and then a real practice for the guys not playing. Second year, they were just screwing around, shooting on the goalies, not much structure, not much fun to watch.

Looking back, that's kinda how the seasons went, too, eh?


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NHL pre-season starts tonight and if you are fortunate enough to have the NHL Network on your television, they're showing 35 or so pre-season games for the first time ever.

I love the NHL pre-season. The games are kinda weird, but it's cool to see the AHL-bound guys try to become somewhat less AHL-bound, if'n you know what I mean.

So, here's THAT schedule.

And the Wild are apparently going to start making cuts either after the first pre-season game tonight or tomorrowWednesday or Thursday, so guys will be trickling into town shortly.

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Was picking up some breakfast this morning and listening to the NHL channel on XM and heard part of the Hockey Diaries. It follows Caps veteran Mike Knuble and up-and-comer Tyler Sloane through all of last season with audio diaries and other reporting and tons of interviews.

It's an NPR-style thing, so an unusual "tone" from how you normally hear hockey reporting, but it's really lovely, interesting, and a must-listen for any hockey fan. A real inside look at the course of a season for two players at very different points in their careers.

Check that out right here.

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OH! I remember now what I meant to add this morning:

Talked to a friend in Denmark who keeps me posted on former Aero Morten Madsen who was rather unceremoniously shown the door at the start of last season. Things are going great for him. He was named an alternate captain for his team in the Swedish Elite League, Modo Hockey and just recently scored in the season opener.

Nice to hear that a not so great ending to his time in the Wild system has turned into a really good situation for him in Sweden.

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Won't be long until we're all back at the Toyota Center. I'm pretty excited for the season, eager to see what Coach Yeo and this bevy of prospects (for the first time in a while), will be able to do against what is going to remain a very tough division.

The Wild Trade Benoit Pouliot To The Canadians

Just a note for those of you who are interested. Earlier today, the Wild traded former Aero Benoit Pouliot to the Montreal Canadians in exchange for Guilliame Latendresse. Hopefully Heather and Andrew can provide more info on Latendresse if you're interested.

And my apologies. I can remote twitter from my iPhone, so I twittered this earlier today when the trade was announced. I cannot remote blog from my iPhone, and I'm working a temp job where they frown on any computer use that is not related to reviewing legal documents. So to any of you who don't get our twitter feed, I apologize for not getting this to you sooner.

The Twits and the Phoenix Coyotes

I don't know how many of you are still following the Phoenix Coyotes saga, but just when things appear to be settled or calmed down, something really stupid happens and things are once again thrown into turmoil. Like Phoenix's white night, Jerry Reinsdorf, pulling his bid off of the table and dropping his quest to save the Coyotes for Phoenix.

But don't worry. The NHL has found a new owner. The NHL. That's right. The NHL is making a bid to purchase the team from bankruptcy, and get this, its offer is for even less money than what Reinsdorf was offering up. And from I've read, the NHL's plan is to purchase the team and then sell it to whoever will offer up cash for it -- and the team doesn't even have to stay in Phoenix.

And coming up next week, the Judge is supposed to decide if he will allow Jim Balsillie to bid on the team, or whether the NHL's vote finding him "not qualified" to be an owner will keep him from bidding on the team.

I no longer have any idea of what is going to happen here. But I'm pretty sure, after everything that's happened, that the NHL is being run by this group of twits.

So, Just How Financially Stable Are The Dallas Stars?

So while researching some info for a mothership post for tomorrow, I came across something rather interesting, and something which I thought I might bring out over here for discussion purposes, if you guys don't mind.

Now I've written in the past that Tom Hicks and Hicks Sports Group are having some financial problems and that Hicks has decided to deliberately default on his debt. He has placed a majority interest in the Texas Rangers up for sale, and he has placed a minority interest in the Dallas Stars up for sale. Now we're being told that everything is a-ok with the Stars, and that the team has no financial problems and will make it through the season fine.

And that could be so, but...

It is now being reported in Dallas that Major League Baseball is effectively running the Texas Rangers, going so far as to step into negotiations between the team and a draft pick and withdrawing an offer that the team had made and substituting a substantially lower offer at the signing deadline because other MLB owners thought the offer was too high.

I'm not sure of what exactly this means for the Stars, but I've really got to question just how stable the Stars really are.

Coyote Creditors Now Support Reinsdorf Bid

Last week, after the largest creditor of the Phoenix Coyotes backed Jim Balsillie's bid for the team as the only one that they would accept, I thought for sure the Coyotes would be no longer for Phoenix after this season. But today, that same creditor announced that it has reached a deal with Jerry Reinsdorf, so they are now willing to accept Reinsdorf should his bid be chosen by the judge -- I still don't understand this in that it still does not appear that Reinsdorf is parting with any cash, but if the creditor's happy, then the judge should be happy. (There's no word on how all of the creditors feel about this, but the Court cares more about the big guys than it does the little guys.)

Frankly, I now think this dooms Balsillie's bid. Sorry Canadians, but it's looking like a city that doesn't really seem to want the team is going to continue to have a team while a country that loves hockey continues to have an under-served market.

It still appears, however, that Reinsdorf has to work out a deal with Glendale over the use of the arena. And the auction for September 10 is open to any and all bidders, so it's still possible that another bidder could swoop in and making an even better bid which the judge would accept. I still think, from what I've read of Reinsdorf's bid, that the Coyotes are doomed to failure to Phoenix, but instead of ending it, the NHL is just going to stretch things out because of Bettman's hatred of Balsillie, and I'm surprised that Reinsdorf is willing to go along with this -- oh, wait, no I'm not as there appears to be a rather crooked political deal going on involving Reinsdorf.

Uh, Mr. Bettman, About That Whole Southern Strategy Thing

Here's a little something that I'm sure has Jim Balsillie all excited this morning. Because, just in case that whole Phoenix Coyotes thing fall apart, there now definitely appears to be another Southern NHL team in need of rescuing. This time, the franchise is the Tampa Bay Lightning.

According to the St. Petersburgh Times, the NHL has issued an ultimatum to the Lightning ownership: "The NHL apparently has decided the Lightning's ownership situation is unsustainable and set up a process in which squabbling co-owners Len Barrie and Oren Koules can buy each other out." There is apparently a 60-day window in place for Barrie to buy Koules, and if he fails to so do, then Koules has 60-days to buy out Barrie. But along with buying the other out, Barrie or Koules must also prove that he can handle the substantial debt obligations to the previous owner, Palace Sports & Entertainment. Should neither be able to do that then it is possible the NHL will be charged with finding a new owner -- and we all know how good the NHL has done with finding a new owner for Phoenix.

So once again, Mr. Bettman, how is that whole strategy of moving away from Canada and into the South working out for the NHL?

[Addendum] The Phoenix Coyotes Are Dead, Almost, Just Give It A Minute

Ding dong. The witch is dead. Maybe. Almost. We'll know more next month. But in a ruling that perhaps surprised only the NHL, the Phoenix bankruptcy judge overhearing the Phoenix Coyotes bankruptcy today announced that the Jerry Reinsdorf no-money bid, the mythical-yet-to-be-submitted bid from Ice Edge Holdings, and the $212.5 million bid of Jim Balsillie will all be considered by the bankruptcy court in an auction on September 10.

Originally, there were to be two auctions regarding the Coyotes -- a keep the team in Phoenix auction which was supposed to have been done today, and the September 10 open to relocation auction if the original auction was deemed to be unsatisfactory. But Jerry Reinsdorf's bid has proven to be a bit inadequate, and he's still attempting to negotiate with the city of Glendale, AZ over the use of the Coyotes arena, so he and the NHL requested a delay so as to work on the bid. The judge granted that delay, with the result being that all bids will be considered on the same day.

This is bad news for Phoenix, Reinsdorf, and the NHL seeing as how the judge and the leading creditor have both stated that they prefer Balsillie's bid, seeing as how actual money is involved and the creditors are paid off. But in even worse news for Phoenix, Reinsdorf, and the NHL, the judge also stated that the auction is "open to any and all bidders including, but not limited to P.S.E. [Balsillie]."

What that, in effect, means is that the everybody is welcome to bid on the team, and there has been speculation that once the team was open to relocation more bidders might leap in. So it's possible, seeing that this team can now be moved and is not stuck with having to stay in Phoenix, that other parties are going to submit bids to purchase the team and move it, and the NHL has virtually no way to prevent this unless they find a way to get Reinsdorf to offer up at least as much cash as Balsillie.

There is also going to be a court hearing next Tuesday so as to address the fact that the NHL last week rejected Balsillie's bid. My thinking is that the judge will hear the NHL out, tell them to shut up, and get on with the real work. Considering some of the owners they have let into the league, like "Boots" Del Biaggio for example -- it's funny to listen to Minnesota Wild owner Craig Leipold go on about Balsillie being a liar when you consider that Leipold thought Del Biaggio was an honest guy -- I don't think the judge is going to be too sympathetic to the NHL's concerns. Especially since the judge's concern is getting the money back to the creditors, not helping Gary Bettman dig himself out of this grave he's buried himself in.

So the future of the Coyotes in Phoenix is dead. Almost. Not quite. But in a minute. They'll be stone dead soon. It won't be long.



ADDENDUM:

I want to be clearer about something: with the bidding process thrown open to anybody who wants to buy the club and move it, I wouldn't be shocked or surprised if someone makes a bid that surpasses that of Balsillie's and ends up with the team.

Disorder In The Court: The Phoenix Coyotes Drag On And On

For those of you still attempting to follow along, the idiocy continued in Phoenix today as once again, the bankruptcy judge refused to bring things to an end. Of course, there are a couple of good reasons the bankruptcy judge didn't bring things to an end, first and foremost being that the idiots running the NHL couldn't get a decent bid from the savior that is supposed to be Jerry Reinsdorf, and Reinsdorf and the other so-called bidder seeking to keep the team in Phoenix begged for a delay in the auction so as to have more time to negotiate with the creditors -- primarily the city of Glendale.

Another reason that the judge couldn't end things today is that there's only one legitimate bid, and that's Jim Balsillie's bid to move the team to Hamilton, but that portion of the auction is scheduled for next month. The judge declared Balsillie's bid to be the "highest and best" of the offers, and it's actually the only one in which creditors will get money.

That's probably why the largest creditor of the Coyotes, SOF Investments, a fund owned by Michael Dell of Dell Computers, appeared in court and said it was only interested in being paid in full and in cash and requested that the court reject the other bids. That should end up having a big influence on the court because the role of the bankruptcy court is to make sure that the creditors get their money back -- and when the largest creditor is happy with only one bid, then that's probably the bid the judge will end up backing.

The matter as to Reinsdorf is now being postponed until September 10 to give Reinsdorf and the mythical bid (mythical because a bid has yet to actually be made) time to get their act together and get not only concessions from the city of Glendale, but also to find a way to make creditors like SOF Investments happy. (There will be a hearing on Wednesday as to whether the relocation auction will be still be held on September 10.)

There are major problems arising with Glendale, and Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes revealed these problems in court filings last Friday. Primarily, Reinsdorf is trying to get a $23 million subsidy from the city over the use of the arena, and that subsidy would be raised by creating a special district around the arena which would charge a so-called voluntary surcharge on retail sales in the district which includes a large mall. More importantly, the district also includes the stadium used by the Arizona Cardinals, and the Cardinals have made it known that they're not happy about this: "The NFL team’s stadium would be in the special district and team president Michael Bidwell was quoted in local media reports as saying it was not fair that Cardinal fans should have to pay for the Coyotes’ problems."

And it gets better, if Glendale couldn't raise the necessary money through the surcharge, the city would end up paying the Coyotes out of city funds, and if, within five years, the team was still not showing a profit and if the city then refused to pay the team $15 million a year, then Reinsdorf would be able to move the team.

And if you have the time, there's a good story from a sister paper to the mothership which reports that there are some very serious shenanigans on the part of Glendale's city manager to make sure a good friend of his (a co-bidder from Reinsdorf) gets the team, and that this city manager has failed to offer up similar deals and concessions to the current owner and any others who might have been interested in the team.

So, in summary, there will be a hearing on Wednesday to determine if the relocation auction originally scheduled for September 10 will still take place on September 10, or whether it will be pushed back so that the incompetent fools chosen by the NHL can attempt to get their act together in time for another auction on keeping the team in Phoenix on September 10. Further, the judge likes the Balsillie bid. The largest creditor likes the Balsillie bid and has stated it wants to be paid in full and in cash. There's some shady business dealings going on between the city of Glendale and Jerry Reinsdorf, and even the Arizona Cardinals are against the Coyotes.

At this point, I think we should all be happy that George W. Bush put Mike Brown in charge of FEMA and not Gary Bettman because I can't help getting the feeling that the Gulf Coast would still be under water from Katrina if Bettman was running things.

P.S.: For a little fun, here's some real disorder in the court.

NHL May Accept Reinsdorf, But That Means Nothing To The Court

For those of you wondering about what the NHL's action of approving Jerry Reinsdorf's bid to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes means, I provide as a simple an answer as possible: NOTHING.

The NHL has no say in this matter anymore. It's all up to the bankruptcy judge. And if the bankruptcy judge doesn't like Reinsdorf's bid, then it doesn't matter a bit what the NHL wants. The judge will consider the bids next week. There is, technically, only one bid for the judge to consider, and that's Reinsdorf's bid which doesn't even involve any money -- it's just Reinsdorf assuming the debts and promising to pay back the creditors at some point. The so-called second bid from another Canadian group was nothing more than a letter of intent to make a financial bid at an unspecified time in the future. The Court was quite clear that the it wanted bids, but it's possible that the judge will also consider this as a bid and take this into account at the auction next week.

It's quite possible -- I really wouldn't rule it out because there's never no telling what will happen in bankruptcy court -- that next week the judge will accept Reinsdorf's bid. But he will accept or reject the bid on the basis of what's actually included in the bid, not on the basis of what the NHL decided on yesterday. The judge has already indicated in the past that he thinks the NHL is full of it, so it's quite possible the NHL decision could harm the chances of the team staying in Phoenix past this upcoming season.

Like I said, it's possible the judge will rule in the NHL's favor and give the team to Jerry Reinsdorf. Personally, I doubt it as bankruptcy judges don't like being bossed around by parties that have no role in the proceedings. But we're not going to no until next week.

An Update on the Phoenix Coyotes Situation

Toward the end of last season, I spent a lot of time on the Phoenix Coyotes bankruptcy situation. Things have been kind of quiet recently as the bankruptcy proceedings have been ongoing. Well yesterday was the deadline for prospective owners to submit bids for the franchise to the Phoenix bankruptcy judge. These are the bids that would go to keeping the club based in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, and the auction is set for August 5th.

Only one bid was submitted for the franchise. Jerry Reinsdorf, as expected, submitted the only legitimate bid. But the seriousness of this bid is somewhat questionable to me. The bid is only for about $148 million. There will be no cash exchanged, and will consist of Reinsdorf assuming the team's debts. The deal is also contingent upon Reinsdorf achieving huge concessions from the city of Glendale regarding the use of Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, and it is also contingent upon concessions from the creditors. Also, Jerry Moyes, the current owner of the team, would not receive much from Reinsdorf.

I've been surprised by the judge's actions in this case in the past, but I just can't see the judge accepting this bid, not when Jim Balsillie has already offered up $215.5 million in a bid that would actually provide the creditors with real funds and not require any concessions on their part. I know if I were a creditor I would want the real cash, not some other sucker coming in and taking over the debts with the pledge to pay them off later. And under the Balsillie bid, Moyes would actually receive money for his share of the franchise.

I know the NHL thinks it's above the rules, but the role of the bankruptcy judge is to set whole the creditors, not to make the NHL happy. And you would think that the NHL would have done everything possible to make sure an actual bid with actual money was offered. This just serves to prove Moyes contention back when he filed for bankruptcy that he couldn't find any buyers fo for the team so he was left with no choice but to go into bankruptcy and accept Balsillie's bid.

If the judge doesn't accept this bid, new bids will be accepted from people seeking to move the team out of Phoenix, including Balsillie. And that auction would be held in September. So no matter what, I think the Coyotes will be playing in Phoenix this season.

Along with the Reinsdorf bid, a letter of intent was filed which stated that a real bid would be following at a later date. I honestly don't see the judge accepting this because it's not an actual bid, and the rules set forth by the judge were rather clear and easy to understand.

Lemaire To The Devils

ESPN is reporting just now that Jacques Lemaire, recently departed coach of the Minnesota Wild, has signed on to coach the New Jersey Devils. More info as we get it.

UPDATE: And Russo confirms.

Hey Dallas! Have You Been Paying Attention To Phoenix?

I hope the Dallas Stars fans have been paying attention to what's been going on with the Phoenix Coyotes, because Tom Hicks is having some severe financial problems with the Texas Rangers, and there's nothing to indicate that, come hockey season, this won't be happening with the Stars.

Specifically, and stealing from my summary over at my ClownVision Chronicles blog, it goes like this. According to Yahoo! Sports the Rangers recently borrowed $15 million from MLB to meet payroll obligations.

Now, unlike with the NHL and the Phoenix Coyotes, MLB isn't claiming that this loan of money is allowing it to take control of the team. It is assumed that should the team attempt to add payroll come the trading deadline, that MLB will have a say in whether that happens -- kind of like what happened when MLB was running the Montreal Expos.

There's been some major financial problems with the Rangers and Stars for Tom Hicks this year, and the problems have been so serious that owner Hicks has announced that he's selling a controlling interest in the Rangers and is willing to part with an ownership interest in the Stars. And earlier this year, Hicks purposefully defaulted on loans for money that was used to purchase the Rangers and the Dallas Stars.

This could all mean nothing when it comes to the Stars. The Yahoo! post seems to imply that the Rangers will soon be sold, which would probably give Hicks the money needed to handle affairs with the Stars. But if not, is it possible that there could be another repeat of Phoenix in Dallas with the NHL loaning Hicks money to keep the Stars afloat and the NHL attempting to take control of the franchise?

It's too early to know the answer to this question. But for those of you interested in the well-being of the Stars, keep a close eye on the state of the Texas Rangers. The sicker the Rangers, then possibly the sicker the Stars.

Draft Day 2: Two goalies!

Here's the run-down provided by the Wild of the kids they picked up today, some of whom are sure to spend some time in Houston. None this upcoming season, but all but the last two (born in '91) will be of age for the 10-11 season, though we won't likely see the college-bound kids for a while.

Before I get to that though, one note is that Chuck Fletcher has basically confirmed to Russo that Benoit Pouliot will be qualified. From his blog:
Russo: You won’t throw away Pouliot?
Fletcher: Absolutely not.
Now, I suppose that could be interpreted that he could be traded still... I guess it's not throwing away if you get something in return. But there ya go.

Okay, onto the new kids:

GOALIE Matt Hackett, 19 (3/7/90)
Posted a 34-15-3 record with a 3.04 goals against average (GAA), a .913 save percentage and two shutouts in 55 games with the Plymouth Whalers of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) in 2008-09. The 6-foot-2, 170-pound native of London, Ontario was the top ranked North American goalie by NHL Central Scouting. Hackett ranked eighth in the OHL in save percentage during the regular season and was named the Whalers most valuable player in the playoffs going 6-5 with a 3.01 GAA and a .930 save percentage in 11 contests. He is the nephew of former NHL goaltender Jeff Hackett.

NHL Central Scouting’s Al Jensen
“He has great potential, very good size, very poised. His angles, his net positioning are very good. He's a very smart goaltender with excellent net coverage.”

Plymouth Whalers’ goaltending coach Stan Matwijiw
“You look at Matt, and he’s a pure goaltender. He’s the type of goaltender that NHL teams are looking for. He’s big in stature and takes up a lot of net. He’s very fundamentally sound. The work that I’ve done with him is tweaking a thing here and there. He’s already had good instruction, with his uncle (former NHL goaltender Jeff Hackett).”

From The Goalie Guild site:
And just when you expect to see another “big” goalie get pulled out of Europe, Matt Hackett is finally taken by the Minnesota Wild. The #1 ranked North American goalie prospect had high expectations to be drafted sooner, but the deed is done and now he has work to do with the Plymouth Whalers. This is an all around steal at #77 for Minnesota.

Hackett’s pedigree is well-documented through his uncle Jeff, who also happens to be Matt’s hero and idol. Similar to Lehner and Lundqvist, Matt’s positioning and stance is similar to Jeff, with skating ability, reading plays and composure under pressure as his major assets.

Over the next few years Hackett needs to work on playing higher up in his crease and giving the shooter less time and space to work with. Movement wise, Hackett is fluid and confident and with a great 6-foot-3 frame, so he takes up a lot of space up high after he drops into the butterfly.

BOTTOM LINE: Hackett had an amazing season for the Whalers, but his bloodline with his uncle Jeff is a little over-hyped in my opinion. He still has impressive skills though, so he could impress you at training camp!

LEFT WING Kristopher Foucault, 18 (12/12/90)
Tallied 17 points (9-8=17) and 16 penalty minutes in 26 games with the Calgary Hitmen and Kootenay Ice of the Western Hockey League (WHL) in 2008-09. He added 16 points (11-5=16) in 18 playoff games for the Hitmen and was named MVP of the Eastern Conference final. The 6-foot, 202-pound left wing native of Calgary, Alberta was the 96th ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting.

Calgary teammate of Carson McMillan, who will likely be an Aero this season.

RIGHT WING Alexander Fallstrom, 18 (9/15/90)
A senior captain at Shattuck St. Mary’s in 2008-09 led his team with 40 goals and 87 points in 52 games. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound right wing registered 67 points (20-47=67) in 62 games in his first season with Shattuck in 2007-08. He has committed to play at Harvard University this fall. The native of Gothenburg, Sweden was the 69th ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting.

GOALIE Darcy Kuemper, 19 (5/5/90)
Posted a record of 21-25-8 with a 2.96 GAA, a .898 save percentage and three shutouts in his rookie season with the WHL’s Red Deer Rebels. He ranked second among WHL rookie netminders in save percentage and wins and third in goals against average. The 6-foot-4, 195-pound native Saskatoon, Saskatchewan was the ninth ranked North American goaltender by NHL Central Scouting.

From The Goalie Guild site:
The Minnesota Wild secured their second solid goalie prospect of the day by choosing Darcy Kuemper early in the sixth round. Kuemper played an impressive 55 games for the Red Deer Rebels after taking over for Morgan Clark early in the season. He posted very respectable numbers for a rookie with a 2.96 goals against average and his size is a big asset, as he stands at 6-foot-4 and 193 pounds.
When Clark started to struggle, Kuemper took over thanks to some great enthusiasm and his efficient movement. His ability to save energy over the course of a game was one factor in his great work early in the season and even better as the season came to an end.
I actually got some great insight on Kuemper back in February when I found this video about his season. I’m impressed with his perseverance and his understanding of the duties he has as a starter in the CHL.
BOTTOM LINE: Kuemper is an awesome sleeper prospect and Minnesota becomes a winner in the Entry Draft for their informed goaltending decisions. Kuemper’s a keeper!

FORWARD Jere Sallinen, 18 (10/26/90)
Recorded three points (1-2=3) and 31 penalty minutes in nine games with the Blues Espoo of Finland’s Junior League. The 6-foot, 183-pound native of Espoo, Finland registered three points (2-1=3) and 31 penalty minutes in six games for Team Finland at the 2008 Under 18 World Hockey Championships in Russia. Sallinen tallied 30 points (11-19=30) and 94 penalty minutes in 36 games in the Finnish Junior league in 2007-08. He was the 73rd ranked International skater by NHL Central Scouting.

LEFT WING Erik Haula, 18 (3/23/91)
Notched 84 points (26-58=84) and 46 penalty minutes in 53 games in his first season with Shattuck St. Mary’s High School in 2008-09. He led the team in assists and ranked second in goals and points. The 6-foot, 170-pound native of Pori, Finland will play for the United States Hockey League’s (USHL) Omaha Lancers in 2009-10 and has committed to play for the University of Minnesota in 2010-11. He was the 57th ranked North American skater by NHL Central Scouting.

CENTER Anthony Hamburg, 17 (8/30/91)
Notched 99 points (29-70=99) and 76 penalty minutes in 70 games for the Dallas Stars AAA Midget team in 2008-09. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound native of Phoenix, Arizona led the team in scoring and assists and ranked tied for third in goals. He was selected by the Omaha Lancers in the USHL Entry Draft May 13.

Texas kid! How cool is that?

Wild Draft Action Day 1; Kalus is back

The NHL entry draft started tonight with Round 1. Minnesota had the 12th overall pick but traded down with the Islanders for the 16th and a 3rd and 7th rounder.

Great move to trade down and get a third as the previous regime had traded away both the second and third round picks in this draft. We'll see tomorrow what they do with those (starting at 9 a.m. on the NHL Network).

With the 16th pick, the Wild picked puck-moving defenseman and Minnesota native Nick Leddy. Apparently head scout Tom Thompson loves the kid. Better be for good cause, because the Wild system needs to be developing scorers like nobody's business. But there's always free agency.

Leddy will be attending the University of Minnesota, so he'll be close at hand for the team as he develops through his college years.

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In other news, Russo is reporting that Petr Kalus is returning to play for the Wild next season and will be at development camp in July. Presumably the new system the Wild is promising appeals to his hockey sensibilities better than Lemaire's system, but nothing is changing in Houston, so if he doesn't make the big club, does he bail for Europe again? We'll see!

Back on tomorrow with the remainder of the Wild's picks, who are more likely to spend more time developing in Houston than the first rounder.

And The Phoenix Coyotes...Oh, To Hell With It, There's Still No Ruling

And the soap opera that is the Phoenix Coyotes will continue just a little while longer. The bankruptcy court judge -- who had earlier said he would hold a hearing regarding the possible relocation fee that Jim Balsillie would pay to move the club to Hamilton -- issued a statement yesterday that he will not hold a hearing regarding the relocation fee and will instead issue one ruling on all matters that were heard by the court earlier this week.

There are two possible explanations for this: one, the judge has decided that the team can't move without NHL approval, so the relocation fee issue is moot; or, two, the judge did a little research and discovered that relocation (or indemnification) fees are not allowed under U.S. law -- for which Balsillie would owe a big debt of gratitude to one Al Davis. And indeed, looking at past NHL relocations, it has been determined that all indemnification fees paid were voluntary. And also of importance, the last time a NHL team invaded the territory of another NHL team, an indemnification fee was not paid.

The NHL expanded in 1993, and one site of the expansion was a place called Anaheim which was part of the territory of the Los Angeles Kings. The Walt Disney Company paid $50 million for the rights to the expansion franchise, and Michael Eisner, the man who was running Disney, refused to pay an indemnification to Bruce McNall, the owner of the Kings. To make up for this, the NHL gave McNall half of the $50 million expansion fee. And McNall has confirmed that this is what happened.

All of this would play into Balsillie's contention that he is not legally obligated to pay a territorial rights or indemnification fee. And all thanks to the NHL's own ineptitude.

The NHL is now claiming that, if Balsillie's court bid fails, that it will hold an auction to be supervised by the bankruptcy court for the franchise. Only qualified bidders will be allowed, and to be a qualified bidder, the bidder must agree to keeping the team in Phoenix. A $10 million deposit deposit and bids must be submitted to the court by August 10, with the auction on September 10, and the bids must be in $2 million increments.

The NHL has declared that $120 million will cover most of the team's creditors. But if the NHL does not get a bid that good to keep the team in Phoenix, it will hold a second auction for the purpose of relocating the team, and they will allow Balsillie to enter that auction.

The judge has not indicated when he will deliver his ruling, but it is expected to come before June 22, which is the date that Balsillie has indicated is his drop dead date.

And The Phoenix Coyotes Go To...Who Knows Yet?

There is not expected to be a final ruling on the Phoenix Coyotes situation today, but based on the line of questioning by the judge, and some of the statements he provided, it's looking like the NHL is currently positioned to end up as the loser.

The Judge didn't buy the NHL's contention that it has received "four expressions of interest" for the club: "This old judge is not that excited about expressions of interest," the judge told lawyers for the league according to the Toronto Globe and Mail. "You either make an offer or you don't."

The Judge also called bull on the NHL's contention that the move could wreak havoc with sports leagues and their various rules, and he used as support the midnight move of the Baltimore Colts to Indianapolis.

The primary issue appears to be relocation fees, with the judge seeming to agree that, if he approves the move, Jim Balsillie will have to pay the NHL a relocation fee on top of the $200-plus million he has already bid for the team. The NHL has claimed in papers that the relocation fee should be $100 million. Attorneys for Balsillie argued that that fee is too excessive, and that if that is what the NHL should charge, he will drop his bid.

The Judge stated that the relocation fee must be resolved, and it must be resolved in a manner that protects the interests of the creditors. A fee that is too excessive could cause Balsillie to drop out, and if there are no other legitimate bids -- which there do not appear to be -- the creditors would be harmed by having the NHL continue to run the team out of Phoenix. The Judge has asked the parties involved to settle this issue.

And so the matter continues.

And The Phoenix Coyotes Go To...

Quick note: for those who are tired of this topic, hang on, the mothership should have an Aeros post later today that I will link to over here. Now on with, to me, the fun stuff...

The parties to the mess that is the Phoenix Coyotes will be convening inside a Phoenix courtroom today, and it's just possible that the bankruptcy judge will make some kind of decision that might determine the fate of the team. The Toronto Star says that the judge is faced with making a decision that has Jim Balsillie easing creditor debt versus his reluctance to buck the tradition of sports that has the leagues being the rulers regarding where franchises are located: "(If) Judge Baum is focused on helping creditors, (it) means Balsillie should win," says Penn State law professor Stephen Ross. "But many judges are reluctant to challenge the tradition of sports, which helps the NHL."

One of the mistakes I've been making is that I thought the focus of this case, and the one true precedent, was the one involving Al Davis and the NFL where Davis won the right to move the Raiders to Los Angeles without NFL approval. But it just so happens that there this is a case that is even more on point -- and one which I should know since I'm such a baseball fan. But in 1970, on the literal eve of the regular season, the Seattle Pilots of the American League were relocated to Milwaukee, WI where they became the Milwaukee Brewers. The Pilots were put into bankruptcy by their ownership group, and Bud Selig moved in and purchased the team while it was in bankruptcy.

The Pilots owners were losing money, and they struck up a deal to sell to Selig and his partners for $10.8 million. Local officials in Seattle objected to the deal, and they tried to stop it. The owners then put the team into bankruptcy protection and argued that the deal should be approved because it would pay off the creditors -- does that sound kind of familiar? The NHL argues that the one difference is that the American League supported the move, to which Balsillie has responded that the American League only approved of the deal after the bankruptcy court judge approved of the plan and had instead insisted the team had to remain in Seattle.

I'm not the judge, and what I say has absolutely no power. But I've thought from the get-go this is a loser for the NHL. I understand that they're trying to protect the integrity of the league constitution and by-laws, and that they're trying to prevent the chaos that could result in teams constantly relocating, but I've thought ever since this thing ended up in bankruptcy court that the league was going to lose because the judge's primary concern is the setting whole the creditors, not protecting league constitutions. And frankly, if bankruptcy court judges can go about voiding union contracts, then they can go about approving this deal. (I also feel good about this as it seems there are a lot of bankruptcy experts who agree with what I think.)

(A side note, for anyone interested in reading more about the Seattle Pilots, then allow me to recommend Jim Bouton's groundbreaking Ball Four, which was about the season he spent between the expansion Pilots and the Houston Astros.)

And Gary Bettman really needs to be careful regarding the arguments that he is pushing before the Court. For instance, over the weekend, the NHL filed papers in which they questioned Balsillie's integrity, noting that Balsillie recently settled with Canadian and American securities regulators regarding allegations that he and others backdated stock options at Research In Motion with Balsillie and his fellow company officials paying more than $70-million (Canadian) to settle the allegations.

Now the reason that Bettman might want to be careful with this argument can best be summed up by one name: William "Boots" Del Biaggo. Boots recently pled guilty to falsifying documents to obtain $100 million in fraudulent loans, and that he did so by way of a Ponzi scheme. Boots used these loans to purchase a $25 million stake in the Nashville Predators. Now the Predators were actually supposed to be purchased from Craig Leipold, current owner of the Minnesota Wild, by one Jim Balsillie. But when Balsillie started making plans to move the Predators to Hamilton, Bettman and the league stepped in to stop the deal and to broker the deal which allowed Boots to become one of the owners.

If Bettman wants to keep pressing the integrity issue at Balsillie, then any attorney who knows what he's doing will certainly push back with Boots Del Baggio, and I can guarantee that that attorney, and the judge, are going to know what exactly Bettman and the league knew about Boots, and when they learned it.

It was also reported that the owners of the CFL's Toronto Argonauts are interested in purchasing the team, and that they would keep the Coyotes in Phoenix. But from what I've read, only an idiot would believe that -- so I guess that means Bettman has either fallen for it or else he's lying. In fact, according to the Toronto Globe and Mail, these guys want to move the team to Toronto.

So later today, maybe, hockey fans might have some idea of what is to become of the Phoenix Coyotes. I've been wrong, often, but I think the law is in favor of Balsillie.

Meanwhile...An Update on the Phoenix Coyotes

Actually, there's not much to update as we're still waiting on the court date, but...some of the Canadian papers have been digging through all of the documents and papers filed by the NHL in support of their effort to take control of the Phoenix Coyotes.

Among those documents is the NHL Constitution. And the constitution has what has been dubbed the Doomsday Clause which says that upon the unanimous consent of all of the league members, the NHL can be dissolved. So while I haven't read the briefs that have been filed, I'm taking the filing of this document to mean that Gary Bettman is threatening to destroy the NHL if he doesn't get to keep a badly failing team in Phoenix.

And in other papers filed by the NHL, Gary Bettman argues that he has four ownership groups that are prepared to purchase the Coyotes, including the owners of the CFL's Toronto Argonauts, Jerry Reinsdorf, the minority owner of the Coyotes, and a Phoenix businessman who prefers to remain anonymous. And all of these groups want to keep the team in Phoenix.

Bettman argues that the bankruptcy shouldn't be approved because Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes didn't try hard enough to find a legit buyer for the franchise. This of course, contradicts what Bettman said in an e-mail to Moyes back in April in which he said it was proving difficult to find a new owner for the team.

But how about that Doomsday Clause? Seriously, it just seems like the NHL just keeps attempting to commit suicide. There's Gary Bettman, who has got to be the worst commissioner in the history of sports yet has a firm grip on his job. There's bad TV contract after bad TV contract. There's the glowing puck. There's the fact that Los Angeles and New York City have two teams, but Toronto has only one, and don't forget that lockout that shut down the entire sport for a year, but which seems to have failed in its goal of providing economic certainty for all teams.

My first love is baseball. And baseball will always be my number one sport. But I've always liked hockey, since I was a mere kid at the time of the original Houston Aeros, and since I've been covering this version of the Houston Aeros I've become a huge fan as I've gotten to know what great guys the players are and just been around. And it almost kills me to watch the NHL go on constant self-destruct mode.

I might not feel this way if it weren't for what Houston went through with losing the Houston Oilers despite supporting what was often an awful product, but it just seems to me that the Canadians, the people who love this sport more than anyway, have to suffer with a lack of big league franchises in their national game while teams fail year after year in Atlanta and Phoenix and Tampa and Miami, but Winnipeg and Quebec City and Hamilton deserve the teams more than the States do.

So perhaps it would be best for the NHL to exercise that Doomsday Clause. Then maybe some competent people could come and run things. Though I somehow suspect that, like the cockroach surviving the nuclear war, Gary Bettman will survive everything.

More From Chapter 11: The Strange Case of the Phoenix Coyotes and Some Other NHL Oddities

There was a bankruptcy court hearing in Phoenix yesterday regarding the attempt of Jerry Moyes to put the Phoenix Coyotes into Chapter 11 Bankruptcy while selling the team to Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie who wants to move the team to Hamilton, Ontario. And in 12 days, we should all have some idea of where the Coyotes will be playing next season.

The judge yesterday ordered all parties to file briefs by June 5, 2009, and he ordered a hearing for June 9, 2009, in which he stated he hopes to offer a ruling on whether putting the Coyotes into bankruptcy allows the team to be relocated without approval, per NHL bylaws, of the owners. The NHL, with the support of the NBA, NFL, and MLB, is arguing that the bankruptcy court doesn't have the power to order a move that contradicts league bylaws. Moyes and Balsillie say that the court can void whatever contracts it wants and ignore whatever internal bylaws it wants in order to set whole the creditors.

According to the Toronto Globe & Mail, the judge expressed reluctance to order the move, and says he's not sure that he has the power to rewrite NHL bylaws. He might be reluctant, but I call bullshit on his argument about NHL bylaws. If bankruptcy courts can void union contract after union contract after union contract when mismanaged corporations go into Chapter 11, then he can ignore NHL bylaws.

The judge stated that if he rules in favor of relocation, the bankruptcy auction for the club will be held on June 22. If he rules that there can be no relocation, then the bankruptcy auction will be held on September 10.

Balsille has stated that if there is no decision regarding relocation by June 29, he will withdraw his bid for the team. And the Globe & Mail is also reporting that the NHL will be spending about $17 million over the next several weeks to keep the team running -- most of that money will be going to one Wayne Gretzky.

AND SOME MORE NON-HOCKEY NHL NEWS:

The Wall Street Journal yesterday mentioned that one of the teams closely following the Coyotes matter is the Atlanta Thrashers. Without citing any sources, the Journal reported that if the Chapter 11 relocation is allowed, then the same thing would probably be happening with the Thrashers. It also stated that the Nashville Predators are also in the mix for this type of relocation since the team has a clause in its contract that allows it to get out of its lease if the team averages under 14,000 per game in attendance for a season.

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The Columbus Blue Jackets, meanwhile, are heading up an effort to sell Nationwide Arena to Franklin County, the county where the Blue Jackets arena is located. The purpose of the sale would be to help the Blue Jackets, who are having financial difficulties that are partly originated from the lease the team has with the arena.

Apparently, the County's assuming of the arena would result in a better lease for the team. As it stands, the Blue Jackets lease the arena and pay for its operations, but arena revenue isn't covering the operating costs. The club states that this forces the team to take money from hockey operations to make up the rest of the operating costs.

The sale of the arena to the county would be funded by, of course, the taxpayers, who would pay increased tax costs on alcohol and tobacco sales. The puck is now in the zone of the state politicians who are debating whether to grant the county the authority to impose the tax, or else giving the county the approval to hold an election on the issue.

Oh, and the Blue Jackets stated that if the lease problems aren't resolved in their favor, they will relocate to another city.

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Charles Wang, the owner of the New York Islanders, announced last week that unless the Town of Hempstead, NY approves of an arena project for the Islanders by October 3, then the Islanders will be relocating when the team's lease expires in 2015. The franchise, apparently, makes the Coyotes look like a financial success, having lost between $15-20 million last season alone. And among the suitors mentioned for the Islanders, should relocation result, are all of the usual suspects: Hamilton, Las Vegas, Kansas City, and Houston.

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And things are getting interesting up Dallas way where today Tom Hicks, owner of the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers, announced that he is now selling a majority interest of the Rangers. It was not long ago that Hicks defaulted on loans to the creditors who made the purchase of the Stars and Rangers possible, saying that the default was just a negotiating tactic to get better terms on the loans. At that time, Hicks also stated that he was willing to sell a minority interest in the Stars and Rangers.

Now he's on the record as saying that he's up for selling a majority interest in the Rangers. It appears, for now, that the Stars are safe. But then again, Hicks appears to be having some real financial difficulties, no matter the PR spin, so I wouldn't count out Hicks putting a majority interest in the Stars up for sale soon.