Post by pegcity1 on Mar 8, 2011 14:08:02 GMT -5
Since ownership went public with the reality that the Thrashers could be leaving Atlanta, three groups have emerged as potential buyers to keep the team in Georgia. Bruce Levenson, one of the Thrashers owners, told Sporting News on Tuesday that discussions with these groups are ongoing.
“There are three that have gotten to the point where we’re comfortable enough to provide them information,” Levenson said. “We’ve been in the process of providing them the information that they have requested. We are having open dialogue.”
The Atlanta Spirit, which owns the Thrashers, Hawks and Philips Arena, continues to work with Joseph Ravitch, formerly of Goldman Sachs, and the investment bank The Raine Group to find a new owner for the team.
Both the Thrashers and Coyotes are candidates to move to Winnipeg if deals to find local ownership fall through. According to reports, potential Coyotes owner Matthew Hulsizer is growing impatient with the inability to close the Phoenix deal and may move on to purchasing another NHL franchise. An NHL source told Sporting News that Atlanta is not on Hulsizer’s radar.
The Atlanta Spirit closed on the refinancing of Philips Arena in December and there have been conflicting reports as to how much money ownership would lose in the naming rights deal with Philips if the Thrashers leave town.
Levenson cleared that up.
“There really is no link between the Philips naming rights and the teams. There are obligations we have to fulfill as the naming rights partner to Philips,” Levenson said. “There’s no link between Philips and the teams.”
According to Levenson, the three potential buyers are currently only interested in buying the Thrashers and not the NBA’s Hawks — and all would keep the NHL team in Atlanta.
The preference is to sell to a local buyer, but ownership hasn’t ruled out ultimately selling to someone interested in moving the team. The group has not yet engaged in serous conversations with anyone outside of Atlanta interested in moving the Thrashers.
When will that change?
“When we have exhausted our efforts to find somebody in Atlanta,” Levenson said.
The challenge in finding a local buyer is finding someone willing to lose money for a potential long period, like Hulsizer said he’s willing to do in Phoenix. The Thrashers, despite an improved team, could lose as much as $20 million this season. Ticket revenues remain near the bottom of the league.
Despite the losses, the franchise has been aggressive in extending the contracts of key contributors. General manager Rick Dudley recently signed a four-year extension and franchise defenseman Dustin Byfuglien signed a five-year deal worth $26 million.
Levenson believes these moves are added value for the franchise and hasn’t received any indication from potential buyers that suggest otherwise.
“The first thing that brings them to the table is the core group of young players that we have,” he said.
There is no timetable to sell the Thrashers to a local buyer but Ravitch has been working with the Atlanta Spirit for more than two years to find investors or a buyer without success. It’s clear the patience is limited.
Read more: aol.sportingnews.com/nhl/story/2011-03-08/atlanta-thrashers-have-three-potential-buyers#ixzz1G2KhO68K