A report in a Montreal newspaper that the Canadiens are for sale was quickly denied on Friday by owner George Gillett and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.
According to La Presse, Jim Balsillie of Research in Motion told the newspaper that the 100-year-old club was for sale.
When asked by TSN to respond to the report, Balsillie’s lawyer Rich Rodier said, “absolutely not, it couldn’t be farther from the truth, there is nothing to it – zero.”
Gillett, who bought 80 percent of the club and the Bell Centre for US$185 million in 2001, says his office does get inquiries from time to time but since the team is not for sale, there have been no negotiations.
“Never, ever, whether in the past or now, have we considered selling or maintained in discussions about selling the team,” Gillett told La Presse. “In this centennial year, as we prepare to introduce the All-Star Game and we have the best supporters in the world and an extraordinary team, I do not know why anyone would invent such a story.”
La Presse: quel jeu joue Jim Balsillie?”>À quel jeu joue Jim Balsillie?
Habster:
Where there is smoke, there is fire??!!
Maybe Jim Balsillie is trying to get under the NHL establishment’s skin for refusing his money or he has information that wasn’t meant to be made public or there is a communication issue between La Presse journalist Jean-François Bégin and Balsillie.
Whether it’s one or more of these situations, Balsillie isn’t making his case to own an NHL franchise any easier. He is pissing off the NHL “old boys” ownership network by throwing such rumours/facts out into the public domain to be digested by all. Maybe it’s his way of saying: “I’m here!!!……I don’t like to be ignored!!!”…..Fatal Attraction type of stuff!!!
But that being said, the NHL is not in a position of strength when it pertains to the future of some of its weaker franchises (Hello Columbus, Atlanta, Nashville and Florida!!!). Balsillie is not going away anytime soon and eventually the NHL better warm up to the idea of having him in the ownership ranks as it will happen sooner rather than later.
There won’t be a lot of suitors lining up to purchase these cash strapped teams when the American economy starts to cause further problems. Mr. Balsillie understands the NHL’s dilemma and will wait in the wings (and hopefully keep his mouth shut!!) for his chance which will eventually come.
The rumoured/alleged sale of the Habs is an unfortunate situation either way, as the Canadiens and George Gillett should be focusing on celebrating their unity, not defending its rumoured breakup.
The only smoke is coming from the grinding of the rusty gears of JF Begin’s brain as he tries to conjure up another baseless rumour.
Jim Balsillie was asked if he could, would he move his favorite team to Southern Ontario. To the hypothetical question, Ballsillie replied ‘to do so, would be a sin’.
So Begin, desperate to be attached to any headline, manipulated the facts and spun a story that Ballsillie was interested in purchasing the Habs.
Shameful journalism but par for the course for this tabloid. It is the same publication who kept alive a Higgins for Gaborik trade (even though it made no sense) and has led the bandwagon to run Saku Koivu out of town on a rail.
Rocket,
I also believe this is a young, eager La Presse “business” writer who along with a colleague interviewed Balsillie and there was possibly a comment by him to the affect of “any NHL team or business is for sale or has a price including the Montreal Canadiens…..blah….blah…etc”
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