Balsillie is making progress

I have to admit I like the way Judge Redfield Baum operates. He has this huge dispute dropped in his lap that really has nothing to do with Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This is an anti-trust dispute and he knows it. So Judge Baum has carefully avoided making any decisions. He hasn't even ruled on whether the Jerry Moyes or the NHL own the Coyotes.

His strategy has been to attack each sides position on issues to create uncertainty as to whether they can win the dispute. For example, when the Balsillie claims the NHL won't allow the Coyotes to relocate, Baum points out that no application was ever filed. He jumps on the NHL for not following its own constitution when Quebec was moved to Colorado. Baum shrugged off Bettman's claim of 4 or 5 parties interested in keeping the Coyotes on Phoenix.

As I've stated from the start, no bankruptcy court wants to wade into the issues being presented in this case. That is why I have been pessimistic about Balsillie's chances here. But I did not take into consideration the craftiness of the Judge. Baum is pushing back at the lawyers before him in an effort to get the parties to reach an agreement outside of the courtroom. That gets him off the hook. He obviously want to avoid setting any precedents in this case.

So yesterday when the discussion of relocation comes up, Judge Baum quickly acknowledged that of course Balsillie would have to pay a relocation fee. The judge has put Bettman in a box. He’s going to have to attach a price to the legitimate NHL interest in the Ontario market. Instead of arguing about whether Balsillie has the right to buy and relocate the team, they will be arguing about how much Balsillie has to pay to acquire a right the NHL doesn’t want to sell. And what if Balsillie agrees to the price? That is why his lawyer quickly declared that Balsillie would walk if the price was $100 million. But if the league says the price is $150 million and Balsillie decides to accept then Bettman is stuck. Though I believe Bettman will wiggle out of this one too. He has already suggested that the league doesn't come up with a price before it approves a franchise relocation. Somehow I don't think Judge Baum will buy that one.

I for one am intrigued.

NHL coaches have no job security

Today Joe Nieuwendyk, in his fifth day in the job fired coach Dave Tippett. That makes it 13 coaches who have been fired or resigned during the current season. That's a turnover of 43% per season. Add to that the 6 coaches who have only been with the current team for one complete season and you have 19 or 63% of coaches have been with their current team for 82 or fewer games. These guys don't last as long as a minority government in Ottawa.

There are only 2 coaches (Lindy Ruff and Barry Trotz) who have been with the current team for 5 complete seasons. No job security here.

So how does this compare to the experience in the NBA? Well it's similar. There are 16 coaches (53%) who have been with their team for one full season or less. And 3 coaches have stuck with their current team for 5 full seasons.

Maple Leaf goalie situation

Brian Burke has thanked Curtis Joseph for his years of service as he shoved Cujo out the front door. Now word is spreading that Burke will not retain the services of restricted free agent Justin Pogge. So much for the goalie of the future. It obviously didn't come soon enough.

This means that the Leafs will likely pursue a free agent to back up Vesa Toskala. It could be Martin Gerber who played decent though not great in his short run with the Leafs. Clearly Gerber is not Plan A. Burke has stated that Swedish free agent goalie Jonas Gustavsson is who he is after. Gustavsson is planning to visit a few NHL cities including Toronto this month to determine who he signs with.

It appears that the Leafs still have faith in Vesa Toskala but coming off two injury plagued seasons and a $4 million contract, what choice do they have? Probably the biggest news on the goaltending front was the signing of François Allaire as goaltending consultant from Anaheim. He will not take over from Corey Hirsh as their goalie coach. He is considered one of the best in the business and is credited with developing Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Jonas Hiller in Anaheim and Patrick Roy in Montreal.

Allaire may be used to convince Gustavsson to sign with Toronto. But there are rumblings that Burke may be interested in picking up Giguere who lost his job to Hiller this past season and perhaps the Allaire signing is connected. Giguere has two years left on his contract for a total of $13 million which is a lot for a backup. For this to work the Ducks would have to take back Toskala. He could be their backup and provide a signficant savings for the Ducks who have cap problems. Toskala and Giguere are the same age but Giguere is clearly the better goalie at this stage of their careers.

Should be interesting.

Another Game 7!!

Pittsburgh is preparing for the Red Wings

If you have Michigan ID it might be tough buying live octopus on Tuesday in Pittsburgh. Hopefully no new group announces plans to bring another hockey franchise to Toronto on the same day Game 6 is to be played. Bad enough the Coyotes bankruptcy proceedings continue in Phoenix on Tuesday. Which will get bigger headlines?

Meanwhile the NHL continues to shoot itself in the foot. Red Wing fans have just learned that there will be no broadcast of Tuesday night's game inside Joe Louis Arena because NBC would not rescind its exclusive rights to the telecast. And what does the NBC pay for those exclusive broadcast rights? $0!!!

Some reasons why the NHL should be considering Hamilton

With all the talk about the Phoenix Coyotes relocating to Hamilton, I thought it would be helpful to pass on some interesting facts in support of Hamilton. I've been to both Hamilton and Phoenix and you will never confuse the two.

1. Hamilton already has a professional sport team


The Hamilton Tiger-Cats football club has played in the Canadian Football League (CFL) since 1950 and have won eight Grey Cup championships. The Tiger-Cats play out of lovely Ivor Wynne Stadium. The CFL Hall of Fame is located in Hamilton.



The most famous Tiger-Cat player was Angelo "King Kong" Mosca who went on to have a very successful wrestling career.


2. Hamilton has an international airport

The John D. Munro Hamilton International Airport is situation on a former Royal Canadian Air Force base. It is named after one of Hamilton's illustrious politicians Johm Munro. Munro and his associates were investigated under the Criminal Code and faced 37 charges alleging illegal kickbacks to his 1984 leadership campaign and other irregularies bu those charges were thrown out. Flights from Hamilton will take you to Edmonton, Halifax, Moncton, Orlando [seasonal], Winnipeg which will helpful in getting you to many other NHL destinations.



3. Hamilton has a variety of fine dining

Hamilton has some excellent restaurants but most Hamiltonian pass on them. The food of choice in Hamilton is the sausage which can be purchased from licensed carts throughout the city. Some are pretty sophisticated operations and will even take reservations.


4. Canada's steel industry is based in Hamilton

Sixty percent of Canada's steel is produced by Stelco and Dofasco in Hamilton. These economic giants have pumped millions into the Hamilton economy and provided the city with a lovely skyline.


5. Hamilton is the home of the African Lion Safari

One of the biggest attractions in Hamilton is the African Lion Safari which is a private-owned, world class exhibit of animals in as close as possible their natural habitat. The manner of exhibiting animals is completely different from the traditional approach; that is, the visitor is caged in the car, and the animals roam in 2 to 20 hectare (5 to 50 acre) reserves.


6. Hamilton already has professional hockey

Hamilton failed in 1990 to gain an NHL expansion franchise and the city selected was Ottawa. But Hamilton has been the home of the Hamilton Bulldogs in the AHL and they play in Copps Coliseum which could be used by an NHL team. The Bulldogs won the Calder Cup championship in 2007.


7. Hamilton's downtown has much potential



The recession has hit Hamilton hard but it has the potential to have a thriving downtown core. Most Tim Hortons shops have continued to thrive and are enthusiatically supported by the 700,000 residents of Hamilton. Hamilton has one donut shop her 300 residents.

Goaltenders for the Olympic team

Well Storm Nation has selected their choice for goalies to play on next year's Olympic team:

Roberto Luongo - 77%
Cam Ward - 50%
Marc-Andre Fleury - 45%
Martin Brodeur - 40%
Steve Mason - 22%
Marty Turko - 9%
Carey Price - 4%

I would have to agree with the first choice. There is no dominant goalie in the NHL at the moment. Certainly not in the way Hasek, Roy and Brodeur once dominated. However, at this moment Luongo is likely the top goalie in the NHL and certainly the top Canadian goalie. From there it gets messy. Ward and Fleury are two young goalies that reached the Stanley Cup finals and in Wards case won a Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe. He is likely going to be in Vancouver next February. Steve Mason may yet develop into the next dominant NHL goalie if he can continue to build on his spectacular rookie season. But he hasn't got the experience to be selected. As a third choice I just don't see Fleury making it. I think the Olympic team will be younger than in the past and for that reason I expect that Martin Brodeur will be called on to provide some leadership. And in the event of a must win game, I would still put my faith in Brodeur. Though one consideration is that the GM of the Olympic team is Steve Yzerman and the head coach will likely be Mike Babcock. So don't count out Chris Osgood. He too has a few Stanley Cup rings.

The most vile food on the planet has been discovered

.it's cheeseburger in a can. My only question is why? It's sound and looks vile and someone actually tested it. The conclusion it even taste worse than it looks.

Spectacular Penguin goal in game 4

Toronto Legacy or umm the Toronto Make Beleafs

ATTENTION: All those who are after a Toronto hockey franchise please take a number for quicker service.
There was a press conference today where a band of venture capitalists calling themselves The Toronto Legacy Group announced their intention to acquire a second NHL franchise in Toronto for the 2012-2012 season. Just like that.

The team, to be called the Toronto Legacy, plans to build an arena (price unknown) at Downsview Park, with no help from the public purse. The arena who hold 30,000, 50 percent of which would be sold for $50 or less. Another notable part of the plan is the group's charitable priorities, which say that 25 percent of the team's annual profits would go to a selected group of international charities. Never mind that the largest NHL arena holds 21,000 and an 30,000-seat arena would likely have terrible sight lines.

Yup everyone wants a hockey franchise in Toronto. So soon we have a hockey team in Hamilton, Vaughan, and North York. What's next, Scarborough, Leaside, Barrie or maybe Pickering. Afterall this is the centre of the hockey universe. We can support 6 NHL teams. Maybe the NHL can create a GTA division.

So the geniuses behind this plan - have they had discussions with the NHL? No. Have they spoken to the federal government regarding Downsview Park? No. Do they have an arena design? No. How about the capital to make this project work? No. Do they have any big names to front their expansion bid? No. Well what have they developed so far? A name and logo.

Good Luck with that.

Brian Burke blows up on the Bill Watters Show

Burke was on the Bill Watters show at the beginning of the week and he must have had a bad day as well. Steve Simmons had a column in which he had the following quote from Burke :
” ‘The overwhelming commentary I get (around Toronto) is, do it right,’ he said. ‘If that means we have another tough year, that’s fine. People are sick of the Band-Aids, so we’re going to do it right.’ ”

Watters and Brady asked Burke about the quote. They read the quote as implying that perhaps making the playoffs wasn’t necessarily the endgame for Burke for this season which would have been in contrast to what Burke has said in the past.

Burke got pretty nasty. He said that he don’t know what they were talking about- Doesn’t know what Steve wrote- and that is not all that he said- Burke told Simmons and is saying now that he intends to make the playoffs- but as long as making the playoffs is consistent with the long term plan. Burke said that he could have traded Schenn and made the playoffs this year. However, everyone would know that would be another bandaid and we aren’t going to do that…but our goal is to make the playoffs.

After he blew up there was silence for almost 10 seconds. Radio hates dead air. Watters thought he had hung up but he was still on the line.

They tried changing the subject. Burke was asked if he was still trying to move up in the draft- he was clearly pissed and answered with:

“yes, nothing to report”

He was then asked if there was anything on Gustavsson. Again, he was very short with his answers.

“nothing to report”

Before the interview ended they once again tried to clear the air, Burke sternly said, “There was no misunderstanding, you guys got it wrong-and you should say so after I am gone. He told them to read it again and then said “We done”

This is a classic folks, well worth listening to, you can hear it here.
Simmons’ article is here

A dark day in Maple Leaf history

Just 16 years ago last week was the infamous non-call by Kerry Fraser. In game 6 of the playoff series between Toronto and Los Angeles, Wayne Gretzky high-sticks Doug Gilmour. The rulebook says it's an automatic five and a game, Fraser and his linesmen huddle up and then decide that nobody saw anything, and Gretzky scores the OT winner seconds later. Years later, Fraser finally came clean to the Toronto Sun and admitted that he blew the call. He claims he was blocked out on the play but the video below shows that he did have a clear view.

The Leafs were leading the series 3-2, and were a win away from meeting the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup final. Wendel Clark was a dominant force in the series. In that 6th game he had a hat trick including the tying goal in the 3rd period with the goalie pulled.



Then came the infamous non-call. The Leafs might have very well beaten the Canadiens but for Kerry Fraser. It may very well have been the only Maple Leaf Stanley Cup win I would have witnessed as an adult. I was just a kid when the Leafs won in the 1960s. I have the sick feeling that the Leafs will not get to a Cup final in my remaining life. I still feel robbed to this very day.

HNIC at its worst

The playoffs have been great this year but the CBC shouldn't bother with bits like this:

Latest Maple Leaf rumours

Although Brian Burke tends to do a lot of talking, he isn't foolish enough to get hit with a tampering charge so there is no way of knowing which free agents he will go after. His recent announcement that he plans to spend to the cap suggests he won't be going after fringe players.

A lot of rumours floating around have the Leafs chasing after the Sedin twins. I continue to skeptical. It has been suggested that the Canucks have offered the two Swedes 10-year contracts at $5 million per year. That's a lot of money to spend on 28 year olds that are pretty soft and do not ormally finish in the top 20 scorers (sounds like copies of Mats Sundin). You might have to offer $120 million or more to sign them both. That would require the Leafs shedding some big salaries if they are to fill the other 4 or 5 holes in their roster. Some poor unfornate Leafs could be suiting up for the Marlies this fall to free up cap dollars.

I'm still convinced Burke's number one target is Jay Bouwmeester. He will be the best free agent available. Also I can see him going after Toronto boy, Mike Cammalleri. I also see the Leafs moving Pavel Kubina despite the fact that Burke likes the way he plays. Not sure there will be enough ice time for Bouwmeester, Kubina and Kaberle. Then there is Samuel Pahlsson who is currently with Chicago but played for Burke in Anaheim. Pahlsson is an excellent shot down centre, something the Leafs need badly. Then poor Dominic Moore may return from exile in Buffalo.

The goaltending situation is still up in the air. Jonas Gustavsson is not talking to teams at the moment as his mother died recently. But he may not be ready for the NHL. But there could be some good veteran goalies available including J.S. Giguere.

The Islanders appear to be leaning towards using their first pick to grab Victor Hedman. That means that Tampa Bay could be persuaded to deal away their second pick overall (John Tavares) and Brian Burke is certainly eager to deal. But don't expect it to happen until draft day if it happens at all. There is a lot of talk about the Leafs drafting Luke Schenn's brother Brayden if they remain with the 7th pick in the draft. I think Burke would be happy with Brayden Schenn put it appears he may not around by the time Burke steps to the mike. His stock has continued to rise.

Stanley Cup ratings fall in the U.S.

What a surprise. After the NHL bends over backwards to accommodate NBC who doesn't even pay the league to broadcast games we find out that U.S. television ratings for Game 1 of the Red Wings-Penguins Stanley Cup final rematch were down from last year's levels.

The NBC telecast drew a 2.6 rating and a 5 share. That's compared with a four-game NBC average of a 3.2 rating and a 6 share one year ago. That means that less than 3 million households in the U.S. were watching the game which is likely just barely above the CBC's numbers. So obviously the NHL's strategy to build their U.S. base is...ummm..well needs some work.

Speaking of the NHL strategy. How about the league office overriding Malkin's automatic suspension last night? Or as I like to describe it, the NHL suspended the instigator penalty so no suspension applied which means Malkin wasn't an instigator. Do you follow? Meanwhile Sean Avery gets a suspension if anyone falls within 10 feet of where he is skating. And you wonder why the NHL has problems ...and no viewers.

Florida State beats Ohio State 37-6

No college football hasn't started early this year. That was the score of a baseball in a regional tournament no less.

Well if you wanted to know how lopsided this game was here are some of the ridiculous stat lines that came out of the game:

• Florida State shortstop Stephen Cardullo went 7-for-9 with 5 RBIs
• The Seminoles went 38-for-65 as a team (.585), with seven walks
• The Seminoles led 32-0 at one point in the fifth inning; FSU scored 11 runs in the fifth
• Ohio State’s starting pitcher Jared Strayer had a game ERA of ∞ after allowing seven earned runs before being pulled without recording a single out (oh, and he only faced seven batters)

Copps Coliseum makeover plans

Jim Balsillie's plans for renovating Copps Coliseum are quite impressive considering what it looks like now (below). It would certainly mean a great deal to the city to have an attraction like that, given that, as it now stands, few if any people from the larger surrounding area are flocking to the city for events. These plans were apparently done up back in 2007, when Balsillie's purchase of the Predators looked to be well underway.

But first he has to win on June 9.

Warning in Thailand

Free agency for owners? It could happen

The latest round of the ongoing battle between the NHL (or maybe just Gary Bettman) and Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie was yesterday in a courtroon in Phoenix. For those that missed it, Judge Baum ruled that Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes was still the owner and therefore had the authority to file for bankruptcy protection. The NHL had been arguing that Moyes had handed over control of the team last November when the league began covering his bills.

The next step in the process is for the judge to decide to whom the team should be sold. Right now the only offer is from Balsillie and at $212.5 million it may be the only bid. Of course there is a catch. His bid is conditional on the team moving to the Copps Coliseum in Hamilton. So there is a possibility that on June 12, Judge Baum rules on whether the team can relocate without NHL approval.

If the Judge says yes, this may have similar reprecussions on sports leagues as did the landmark 1975 Andy Messersmith case where baseball's reserve clause was struck down by the courts. In other words, it could provide owners with the free agency. Right now all teams can only be sold and/or relocated with the approval of the other league owners. So if you own a failing franchise in Wichita, Kansas you are stuck losing money. The league can reject any prospective buyer or a proposal by you to move your team to prosperous Augusta, Georgia.

If all you have to do is file for bankruptcy to get around league bylaws, well then who is going to even bother to get league approval. Any owner not happy in his market will look for greener pastures. Communities may begin competing with each other to lure sports teams to move. Islander owner Charles Wang can become the owner equivalent to A.J. Burnett. The Buffalo Bills could just pack their bags and move to Toronto. There would be 5 NHL teams in Toronto competing the team owned by some pension plan.

So please Judge Baum, lets break up these private clubs run by rich guys who soak fans across North America. Force these rich capitalists compete for our dollars.

Welcome back Jim Gregory

It was great to see Jim Gregory, Senior VP of Hockey Operations present the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl to the Wings last night. Mr. Gregory suffered a very serious heart attack a few months back and it was niceto see him out and about.

Coach Willie's Stanley Cup prediction

Well I was 2-0 in the last round of the playoffs and an overall 8-6. Both Pittsburgh and Detroit return for a rematch of last year's final. The final is a bit more challenging to predict since both teams have a realistic shot at winning the Cup. Their regular season record doesn't help since they went 1-1. At this point both teams have key players banged up and too injured to play. However, Pittsburgh doesn't have as much depth as Detroit which will be a disadvantage as the the series lumbers on.

Detroit's weakness was supposed to be goaltending but Osgood doesn't seemed to have hurt them. Pittsburgh has a slight chance of winning the Cup but it will only happen if Crosby and Malkin continue playing at the same level as they have been over the first three rounds. Either way it will be an exciting series dominated by very skilled players.

Detroit in 6 games.

They rose to the ocassion

The series lasted only 4 games because the Penguins two superstars played like superstars. The rematch with Detroit could be very interesting.

Peter Zezel dead at 44

Former Toronto Marlboro and Maple Leaf Peter Zezel died on Tuesday after a more than 10-year battle with a rare blood disorder. I regularly went down to watch the Marlies play in 1983-84 when Peter Zezel and Steve Thomas were young stars. The team was managed by my father-in-law until the Leafs sold the team in 1889. Zezel scored 133 points that season and finished 4th in OHL scoring.

Zezel went on to score 219 goals and added 389 assists in 873 games over a 16-year career. He played for Philadelphia, St. Louis, Washington, Toronto, Dallas, New Jersey and Vancouver.

For the past 11 years he ran the Peter Zezel Hockey and Sports Camp, and also coached minor hockey with the Don Mills Flyers.

My condolences to his family.

All quiet on the Phoenix Coyotes front

I continue to be fascinated by the struggle going on in Phoenix. People ask why does it really matter? Afterall this is a dying franchise in a struggling league. Well because a central question in this dispute is whether major sports leagues have the ability to control the sale of teams and where the franchises are located. Up to now they have had that control.

If Balsillie wins, it could set a precedent that impacts all sports leagues. His ability to buy and relocate the Coyotes out of bankruptcy could inspire other owners to file for bankruptcy protection in order to circumvent league rules and sell their teams to a buyer who might be willing to pay more if the franchise can be relocated. Just in the NHL, the Islander and Thrasher owners must be watching these developments closely. Both owners are considering relocation and/or selling their teams. And lets not forget the Sabres, Stars, and Canadiens are for sale. Nashville is on life support.

Therefore the Judge Baum has a big decision to make. A bankruptcy judge's first responsibility is to the creditors and $212.5 million will certainly address their needs. But will Baum create instability in major league sports where all teams are experiencing reduced revenue. Somehow I can't see a bankruptcy judge creating such a precedent. A hearing is set for June 22.

I still believe the NHL will make a deal with Moyes which will lead him to reject Balsillie's offer. It happened with Nashville so why not now?

Phoenix Coyotes slowing whithering away in the desert sun

The Globe and Mail reports that Coyotes ticket sales for next are at about $20,000. At the ACC that will get you a pair of golds for next season and leave enough for a couple of beers per game. Last season at this time the Coyotes has sold about $1.5 million in tickets. So obviously bankruptcy proceedings are not conducive for selling hockey tickets. Their core fans are waiting to see what the courts decide before committing to renewing their seats. This past season, the Coyotes had a 0.4 TV rating. That translates to about 7,210 homes. The team also struggled to even meet minimum standards to qualify for full shares of the NHL's revenue-sharing program, which takes money from rich teams and distributes cash to poorer teams.

But lets not forget that the team has been terrible and has failed to make the playoffs for six straight years. Glendale, the site of the arena is far from downtown Phoenix. This is a marketing nightmare.

I would have to say that the death watch is on. Millions in liabilities and no revenue. You can't cut salaries since the team is already at the minimum salary cap. I'd say prospective buyers are lining up to put a bid on this cash cow.

When the team finally folds up the tent and leaves, Glendale and taxpayers will be left with some big bills to pay. Glendale borrowed $180 million to build the $220 million arena. The city will also lose rent income and ticket surcharge revenue. What do you do with a 17,000 seat arena in the middle of the desert?

A "No Decision" in Phoenix

As I suspected he would, Judge Baum did not make any decisions yesterday in the bankruptcy proceeding for the Phoenix Coyotes. It was obvious that issues around sports team ownership and relocation are beyond the jurisdiction of a bankruptcy court. Had the matter of ownership been clear cut (and my suspicions were the documents were at best ambiguous) then at least the judge could have concluded who owned the team - Jerry Moyes or the NHL.

But even had Moyes proven he was still owner, the judge could not have made a decision on the sale. Jim Balsillie has made a conditional offer to purchase the team - the condition being that the franchise relocate to Hamilton. Afterall, Balsillie is not interested in owning a team in Phoenix but then who is. Relocation of a sports franchise is not within the court's jurisdiction. So Judge Baum sent the parties off to mediate these issues and then come back so he can continue to work out a plan to pay off creditors of the Coyotes. However, these parties are so far apart than one has to wonder if an agreement can be reached.

The NHL continues to embarrass itself by not dealing with Balsillie. There differences could have been resolved in 2006. Instead he continues to wait in the weeds ready to pounce on the next failing franchise. Unless the NHL is willing to make some compromises, there may only be 29 teams next season.

If Balsillie wins then what next for Canada?

Court drama in Phoenix

Yes the whole country is supporting Jim Balsillie as he enters a Phoenix courtroom today to try to wrestle control of the most pathetic sport franchise in North America. How do you lose $35 million a year. Well start with an average ticket price of $37. You can get deals where for $40 you get a pair of upper bowl tickets with parking, hot dogs and drinks thrown in. Shane Doan probably comes pick you and drives you to the game. Yes there are not suitors lining up to buy this turkey.

So here is a recap of the battle as I see it:

• New gets out during the winter that the Coyotes have not been paying their bills and the NHL has stepped in to keep the team operating.
• At various times during the season Gary Bettman declared that the Coyotes were not in financially trouble at that there were as many as 4 (unnamed) potential buyers.
  
• Coyote owner Jerry Moyes and Basillie have been talking since February on how to sell the team the Balsillie bypassing the NHL process since Balsillie's last two attempts failed.
  
• They come up with a scheme where the Coyotes file for Chapter 11 bankrupcy and Balsillie immediately makes an offer to buy the team for $212.5 million. That may be $100 million more than its worth but allows Moyes to walk away with money in his pocket.
• The NHL files documents with the court indicating that ownership had actually transferred to the NHL in November but to protect Moyes from embarrassment it was never publicly disclosed.
• The city of Glendale cries foul because they have a 30 year lease with the Coyotes and see the bankrupcy filing as a ruse to get out of the lease and relocate.
• Balsillie goes on the offensive and accuses the NHL of being either opposed to him personally or a team in Southern Ontario.
• Balsillie works out a deal with the city of Hamilton to bring the Coyotes to Copps Coliseum.
• Bettman suggests on the weekend that if the Coyotes were to relocate it wouldn't be to Ontario but back to Winnipeg. This is declaration is either intended to generate some competition for Balsillie or to split the Canadian public on relocation.
• Balsillie suggests that he would keep the team in Phoenix for one more season with financial support from the league.
  

If the Judge makes a decision today and that it a big if, this dispute will not be resolved. Neither side will likely back down which means more litigation. So what happens to the Coyotes in the interim? Will anyone operate the team?

I hope at the very least someone will be appointed to operate the franchise. If the NHL wins today then they own a hockey team nobody wants. If Moyes/Basillie win then there will be appeals. We are about 4 or 5 weeks away from the Amateur Draft and 7 weeks away from a large number of contracts expiring and free agency. If someone doesn't take over the team then it will likely not be operating next season.

So stay tuned.

Charles Barkley has copied my golf swing

Stanley Cup facts

• Couldn't help but notice that 3 of the 4 surviving teams fired their coaches in mid-season (Chicago, Pittsburgh, Carolina). Even coaches on good teams have problems surviving.
• Not sure if Pittsburgh or Carolina would have both even made the playoffs without a coaching change.
• There are no Canadian teams remaining but there are 37 Canadian players remaining in the playoffs which is 43% of the players still playing.
• In terms of Canadian representation, Chicago has 13 players, Pittsburgh 11, Carolina seven and Detroit only six.
• I wonder who Mrs. Staal is cheering for? Eric has already won a cup so maybe she is slightly partial to Pittsburgh.
  
• Best playoff beard belongs to Johan Franzen.
• Leading candidate for the Conn Smythe right now is Sidney Crosby.
  

Coach Willie's third round NHL playoff predictions

Well I was 0-4 in the second round and now 6-6 in the playoffs. My pet monkey Skippy was 2-2. Well it was a fabulous round of hockey and quite difficult to predict considering the number of round that went to a 7th game. Let's hope this round is as exciting.

Pittsburgh vs Carolina

Well frankly I have never seen Sidney Crosby play such inspired hockey and if he keeps it up then it will be quite difficult to the Penguins this year. Carolina has been the surprise team in the playoffs but then they finished the season as the hottest team in the league. There has been no goalie that has dominated during the playoffs though Cam Ward has come the closest. The two teams split their season series.

Penguins in 6.

Detroit vs Chicago

In the first round I picked Columbus to upset the Wings and in the second round I picked Anaheim. So do I keep bashing my head against the wall or acknowledge the Wings are the cream of the NHL. They have had little offense from Datsyuk or Hossa but it doesn't really matter. Players like Hudler and Franzen are playoff monsters. Chicago does it with blazing speed and solid goaltending from Khabibulin. Someone recently commented to me that Chicago will win the Stanley Cup in 3 years. With the salary demands of their young stars and the salary cap I would have to say if its not this year or next year, then it won't happen. The Red Wings have tons of Stanley Cup rings while the Chicago lineup has just 3. Detroit won the season series 4-2. I'm going with a rematch from later season's Stanley Cup final.

Red Wings in 6.

The worst pitcher ever

This pitcher gives up the game-winning run in extra innings by throwing a wild pitch on an intentional walk.

His parents should be arrested

Maple Leaf trade rumour heat up

For at least a month there have been rumours that the Leafs would be picking up Ryan Malone's salary from Tampa Bay. Malone is under contract through the 2014-15 season at a salary cap hit of $4.5-million US a season for each of the next six years. In exchange the teams would sway first round draft picks. That would allow the Leafs to move up from 7th pick to 2nd overall. Tampa Bay is denying the deal and suggesting that the Leafs would have to throw in Luke Schenn and Tomas Kaberle. It is strange that the Lightning would negotiate through the media but then they also revealed players being discussed in a potential trade with Montreal for Vincent Lecavalier. My guess is that trade talks are going on but obviously the team are very far apart.

Sports Illustrated names MLSE the worst NHL owner

Can you imagine beating out Charles Wang or Jerry Moyes as the worst owner in the NHL. But Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment managed to do it according to Sport Illustrated.

Will Toronto get a 2nd hockey team?

Former Maple Leafs tough guy Kevin Maguire met recently with NHL VP Bill Daley and is fronting a group that is interested in a NHL franchise in Vaughan. Jim Balsillie is trying to buy the Phoenix Coyotes for $212.5 million and move them to Hamilton. Another group headed by Vancouver developer Tom Gaglardi would like to move the Atlanta Thrashers to Hamilton as well.

However, Jim Balsillie's bid and the league's response has created an incredible amount of negative PR for the NHL among Canadians (especially in Southern Ontario). There's always been a large anti-Bettman faction in this country, but in recent days, it seems to have grown considerably. There's growing bitterness in Toronto over the fact that the league has become all but inaccessible for everyone but the wealthy elite and the business community, and that could have long-term effects on the fan base in this part of North America.

It seems everyone would like to own a hockey franchise in hockey mad Toronto. Let's face it, at least 20 NHL teams would make more money if they could relocate to Toronto. But don't expect the NHL to approve a move to Toronto. If Toronto is such a lucrative market, then why would the NHL allow someone to move into the region without the league getting something out of it.

After the dust settles in Phoenix, Tampa Bay, Atlanta and other troubled franchises, the league will have to eventually turn its attention to Southern Ontario. There is big money to made here by selling an expansion franchise to the highest bidder. That could be anywhere between $250 million and $400 million.

Sidney Crosby scores a beauty

No Drowning either

Happy Mother's Day Storm Nation

History backs NHL on an antitrust suit

Jim Balsillie has threatened to file an antitrust lawsuit if he is prevented by the NHL from moving the Phoenix Coyotes to Hamilton. The NHL would prefer not to have their bylaws challenged in court because anything can happen there. But history is clearly on their side.

Following expansion in 1967, the original owners of the California Golden Seals quickly soured on the Oakland-San Francisco area and wanted to move the team to Vancouver. The owners led by Barry van Gerbig launch a lawsuit under the Sherman Antitrust Act and the case was finally decided in 1974. The US District Court determined that the Act did apply to professional hockey but that teams were not in economic competition with each other. Therefore the NHL's restrictions on relocation was not an illegal attempt to monopolize trade. Of course the league would not agree to move the team during the period that the issue was being litigated (something Balsillie might want to take note).

However, the NHL thought a team in Vancouver was an excellent idea and added the Canucks as well as the Buffalo Sabres in 1970. In 1976 the Seals were finally moved to Cleveland and renamed the Barons. Two years later the team merged with the failing Minnesota North Stars and eventually moved to Dallas in 1992.

Gary Bettman is Darth Vader in Canada

All eyes in Canada are focused on a bankruptcy court in Phoenix where Jim Balsillie battles the NHL to repatriate the Phoenix Coyotes back to Canada. I refer to it as a repatriation because at one time the Coyotes were the Winnigeg Jets. One of the reasons that Canadians despise Bettman is that he openly dismisses Canadians' claim to their national sport.

His misguided attempts to establish hockey in the U.S. Sunbelt is laughable. He's not fooling anyone down their into thinking its football on ice. Instead he has weakened the financial viability of the entire league. He desperately attempts to keep teams in bad markets while he never once intervened to keep the Jets in Winnipeg or the Nordiques in Quebec City.

If Basillie wins he will be a true Canadian hero and may open the door for more Canadian franchises.

Meanwhile the Toronto Maple Leaf owners are stewing silently. They have relentlessly milked their loyal fans for every dollar they could for decades while providing an inferior product. To publicly oppose Balsillie would only drive a knife in the hearts of hockey fans in Southern Ontario. As they stumble to rebuild the last thing they need is a public backlash for opposing another team in their huge market.

How did they miss that goal?

For those who weren't up at 1 am last night, the refs were also asleep and missed the Red Wings' tying goal with 1:05 remaining. That might turn out to be a pivotal call in the series and the moment seems to be slipping away from the Wings.

Do you think Gary Bettman owns a Blackberry?

Jim Balsillie vs Gary Bettman: Round 3

Round 3 of the ongoing battle between Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie and NHL czar Gary Bettman has officially begun and it will be vicious. Round 1 and 2 were easy takedowns by Bettman.

You may recall that back in 2006 Basillie had put in a bid to purchase the Pittsburgh Penguins from Mario Lemieux. However, before the deal could be closed the NHL requested that a number of new conditions be added to the deal including one that would have closed the door on relocating the team. Balsillie walked away. He returned in 2007 to attempt to purchase the Nashville Predators. A tentative deal was reached but suddenly Predator owner Craig Leipold backed away and accepted less money. Subsequently Leipold was able to acquire the more viable Minnesota franchise. In both cases it was obvious that Bettman was pulling strings behind the scene to keep Balsillie from joining his “exclusive club.”

So here we are again but now the drama is taking place in Phoenix. Gary Bettman shows up this week in Phoenix to inform owner Jerry Moyes that he had found a buyer for the Coyotes – it is White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf. Bettman was shocked to learn that Moyes had been secretly meeting with Balsillie and had filed for bankruptcy. Balsillie then announced that he was offering to buy the Coyotes for $212.5 million and relocate it to Southwestern Ontario.

The Globe and Mail is suggesting that Balsillie has finally got the jump on Bettman. But it’s not a slam dunk. A few hours after the announcement, the NHL removed Coyotes owner, Jerry Moyes, from all decision making regarding the future of the Phoenix Coyotes. Essentially giving the NHL full control over the bankruptcy and purchase proceedings. That might not stop bankruptcy proceedings. However, the Balsillie offer is conditional on moving the franchise to Ontario. How will a judge treat a conditional offer against a clean offer for less money? I can’t see a bankruptcy judge ordering the NHL to allow the franchise owner to move the team. So the judge may decide to go with an offer without any conditions. Now Balsillie has no interest in owning a team in Arizona. Another possibility is that the NHL provide a potential owner with an “interest-free loan” which would allow that person to beat the Balsillie offer.

I believe Bettman has successfully painted Balsillie as a dangerous maverick. His threats to move a franchise even without league approval is a potential threat to all owners. If a court agrees with an unapproved relocation then every owner understands that the next maverick owner might move a team into their territory. The Flyer owner does not want a team move to South Jersey and the Bruin owner wouldn’t want to see another team in New England. So the answer is keep franchises out of the hands of people like Jim Balsillie.

As in the past, the other NHL owners are totally silent which suggests that Bettman continues to run the NHL with an iron fist.

Are the Wild seriously considering Pierre McGuire?

The media has reported that Pierre McGuire has been short listed for the general manager's job in Minnesota. The other candidates mentioned are Pittsburgh Assistant GM Chuck Fletcher, former Leaf GM/Coach Pat Quinn, Nashvillie Assistant GM Paul Fenton and Minnesota Assistant GM Tom Lynn.

Many people I've spoken to are intrigued by the possibility of McGuire managing the Wild. I'm just not one of them. The GM job in the NHL has become very complicated. Just read the collective agreement and you'll know what I mean. It's over 450 pages. You need to be a lawyer to understand it. Actually a growing number of GMs are lawyers (Brian Burke, Scott Howson, Peter Chiarelli, Ray Shero and Dean Lombardi) and there just as many assistants who are also lawyers. Meanwhile fewer and fewer GMs have playing experience in the NHL. Twenty years ago most GMs had played in the NHL at one time.

So what does it take to be a GM in the NHL? Well it appears a good business acumen. Many GMs were previously assistants either in their current organization or with another team. A smaller number jumped from being player agents to the front office. But you could argue that they have a good exposure to the business side of the game representing players.

That brings me back to Pierre McGuire. As a broadcaster he gives the impression that he is very knowledgeable about the game. He has seen enough hockey in his life to be an expert but what experience does he have running a business? None. He has had minimal experience on the management side. In 1991 he was hired by Scotty Bowman as a scout with Pittsburgh and the following year made an assistant coach. In 1993-94 he coached Hartford to a dismal 23-37-7 record. For the past 15 years he has been up in the broadcast booth which is miles away from the executive offices of an NHL franchise. Remember the short lived experiment of Barry Melrose as coach of the Lightning. I suspect McGuire wouldn't do much better.

Penguin-Capital series living up to the hype

Last night was a magnificent display by the league's premier talents. How often will you see the best two players in the league match each other by each scoring hat tricks? However, this series is just about nearly decided. With Alex Ovechkin in overdrive, it's hard to see how the Penguins can win 4 out of 5 games in order to take the series from the Penguins. Still Washington was able to come back from a similar deficit in the last round. And they did it the hard way by losing the first two games at home.

The Penguins have really failed to slow down Ovechkin who had 12 shots on net and is responsible for 1 out of every 3 shots taken by the Capitals this series. Those shots are not just coming on the powerplay. Eight shots last night were taken while even strength. Pittsburgh needs to prevent him from getting the puck or separating him from the puck before he gets a shot away.

It doesn't help that Pittsburgh hasn't not been able to win very many faceoffs in their own end. Washington operates a puck control offense so allowing them to take control of the puck after most faceoffs is going to lead to trouble. One of Ovechkin's goals was scored right off an offensive zone faceoff.

Sidney Crosby has also been outstanding but has been overshadowed by the extroverted Russian. Those goals he scored close in were just as marvelous as the rockets fired by Ovechkin. He didn't help his cause by asking the officials to announcement that fans should stop throwing hats on the ice following Ovechkin's hat trick. Crosby has a reputation as a whiner and this episode which was quickly picked up by the media will only reinforce that perception.

Crosby has not had much support from his teammates. Malkin has disappeared in the playoffs as he did a year ago. If he becomes a Russian version of Joe Thornton (i.e., big numbers in the regular season but little to show during post-season) then the Penguins may need to consider whether they can afford to carry both big salaries. Replacing Malkin with proven playoff performers may get them more bang for their bucks.

Lets hope this series stays close because I can't get enough of this kind of hockey.

Luongo and Varlamov each make an incredible save

There's a lot of sugar in those drinks

A can of coke has the equivalent of 10 sugar cubes (46 gm.) and that bottle of Snapple ice tea has the equivalent of 11.5 cubes (39 gm.). So you might want to stick to water.

Top All-Time Toronto Maple Leafs by Jersey Numbers

#93 - Doug Gilmour

#94 - Sergei Berezin

#96 - Phil Housely

#99 - Wilf Paiement

Blue Jay Rotation: Doc, 3 rookies, a reliever and a lot of hitting

The first month of baseball has been a bit of a surprise in Toronto. This city has been the City of Losers - until now. It has been well documented how the Blue Jays were supposed to stink this year but contend in 2010.

Well the Jays haven't run into the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees so those predictions might still come true. Or maybe the Jays intentionally lowered expectations. If that is the case then it may have backfired on them since they have the second lowest home attendance in the AL, averaging just over 22,000 per game.

If you look at the online MLB power rankings, the Jays are getting a lot of respect:
TSN: #1 (ok they are homers)
ESPN: #3
Sports Illustrated: #3
Fox Sports: #1
CBS Sports: #4

Everyone of course is talking about the hitting. They are first in the AL in batting average, hits total bases, runs, RBIs, doubles and walks. They are third in home runs. They have so many hits that they also lead the league in men left on base. But it's not just the hitting. They bandaid pitching rotation is fourth in the AL in ERA (4.29). That is a drop over last year but still respectable. The staff have given up the seventh fewest hits and lead the AL in strikeouts.

So how long can the starting rotation get by with fill ins? Well as long as they have to. Rickey Romero is out with a strained oblique which shouldn't take long to heal. Casey Janssen has been pitching in the minors so hopefully he will be back this month. Jesse Litsch has begun to throw must with a forearm strain, I'm not too optimistic.

In the meantime, enjoy it while it lasts. The Red Sox are coming.

1976 swine flu public service announcements

Collision Alert

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Jonas Gustavsson at the Worlds

Brian Burke has made it clear that he is pursing Swedish free agent goalie Jonas Gustavsson. Last month, Gustavsson, led his Farjestad team to the championship, losing just once in the playoffs, registering five shutouts and finishing the post-season with a .961 save percentage, less than a single percentage point behind Henrik Lundqvist's 2005 record.

Right now he is one of 3 goalies the Swede brought to the World Championships. His numbers there may you wonder about how ready he is for the NHL. His goals against average is 4.90 and his save percentage is .873. Although he had a strong game against the Austrian, he game up 5 goals against the Americans and 3 goals in just over half a game against the Russians.

Sounds like another long term project for the Leafs if they sign him.

2009-10 Storm Midget B lineup is now set

The worst part of the season is over now and the lineup is complete. It was an incredibly successful yet difficult series of tryouts for the Midget B team. There were a total of 34 different players that came out this past week which is quite a large number for a B team. In fact, considering North York plans to go with 2 Midget B teams next season makes the turnout even more surprising. The coaches had the difficult task of turning away one out of two players to come out.

Not only were the numbers high but so was the skill level of players . I think it speaks volumes of what is happening in girls hockey in this country. The girls are getting better and better. Over the past 9 seasons we have seen a vast improvement in the calibre of hockey at the B level. We never used to sign players out of houseleague because the players that came out did not have the skills necessary to play at this level. However, this is now the third year in a row where a houseleague player has earned a spot on our team. So congratulations to Skye who came to us from Goulding Park.

Also, welcome (or in some cases welcome back) to the Storm organization to Alexa, Alex, Genevieve and Emma. We care about our players here and you will have fun.

Thank you to Madeleine A, Amanda, Allie and Gabby for doing a terrific job at recruiting friends to the team. Brian Burke may be looking for an assistant some time in the future. We will put in your names for consideration.

Next season's team will be younger, bigger and maybe even faster than last season's team. Which means more exciting hockey. The team is made up of 7 first-year Midgets, 6 second-year Midgets and 4 third-year Midgets. So here is the new Midget B lineup:

Madeleine A
Alicia
Paolina
Kailee
Gabby
Alexa
Caitlin
Bianca
Genevieve
Madeleine L
Skye
Emma
Amanda
Phyliss
Paitra
Allie
Alex

Is the NHL running the Coyotes?

It is really getting silly around rumours regarding the Phoenix Coyotes. Not only has the NHL loaned the franchise money above and beyond its advances on revenue sharing, but Glendale City Manager Ed Beasley claims the League has actually been running the team since February.

According to the Arizona Republic, the NHL has promised Glendale that "it would reimburse the city for parking fees and security costs owed by the team." However the Coyotes management has gone on the record denying the claim: "We are not reporting to the league." Who knows where is right.

If the city manager is correct and the NHL has been running the team since "around the time the rent payment was made in late February," when exactly did they take over and what is their role in operating the franchise?

If it was before the trade deadline, how much autonomy did the Coyotes' hockey operations have in making all those deals including the blockbuster trade of Jokinen to Calgary?