Your morning Preds update

by Dirk Hoag on Jun 14, 2007 9:30 AM EDT

The news is coming fast & furious this morning on the Predators front, so here's your quick recap:

Jim Balsillie has rapidly escalated his relocation efforts by launching a season-ticket drive in Hamilton, alongside his agreement to move the team to Copps Coliseum in the event of Nashville's lease expiring. This has gone far beyond the mere setup of a contingency plan, and by launching this drive now, Balsillie clearly aims to undermine the effort in Nashville to support the team.

As Damien Cox notes, Balsillie's tactics are becoming increasingly more aggressive, and are basically setting up a legal battle with the NHL to assert his will to buy the team and move it wherever he likes. This ill-will has already bumped Balsillie off the NHL Board of Governors agenda for June 20, meaning the sale is extremely unlikely to close before the end of June.

Meanwhile, in Nashville, the prospect of this issue lingering into July and beyond has implications for the Predators' options in the free agent market. While there have numerous stories that GM David Poile is flying blind without a clear budget directive, the Nashville media needs to press harder on this point. Current owner Craig Leipold hasn't gone bankrupt, and should have a "business as usual" number for Poile to work with in the event that Balsillie's sale doesn't go through (which appears more likely by the day). With ticket price increases heading into the fall, and a groundswell in support from the community in an effort to save the team, there's no reason he should have to gut the roster at this point.

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Do you get the impression Balsillie's got a master plan in progress. All of his moves seem somewhat aggressive but it all seems so calculated.

by Mark Evans on Jun 14, 2007 4:12 PM EDT reply actions

I think Balsillie wants a clear indication that he'll be able to relocate the franchise as he wishes before completing his purchase of the team, and that's why his offering price was so surprisingly high to most observers. It's a fair price, in his eyes, if he can indeed move the team to a place he thinks can sell out the building for years to come.

And really, from the overall NHL perspective, adding a team to Southern Ontario might well be feasible, but there's no reason to blow up the Nashville market to do it. I'd rather see a Canadian site like K/W or Winnipeg get a team before Kansas City, for example. That said, I do wonder how the Buffalo Sabres would fare with another team in their backyard (if Hamilton is the front-runner). Yes, their attendance and fan support were outstanding this year, but their ticket prices are among the lowest in the league. That, to me, doesn't suggest a particularly underserved hockey market.

by The Forechecker on Jun 14, 2007 5:27 PM EDT reply actions

Have you seen Mirtle's posts the last few days. The "Balsillie Bandwagon" seems to be growing by the day in Canada.

http://mirtle.blogspot.com/

Makes me vomit in my mouth.

by Mike at MHH on Jun 15, 2007 9:22 AM EDT reply actions