Reinsdorf re-emerges as potential Coyotes suitor
May 10, 2011, 10:30 PM | Updated: 11:37 pm
Just when you think the Phoenix Coyotes ownership drama couldn’t get any more convoluted, a familiar name has re-emerged as a potential suitor.
According to the Phoenix Business Journal, the City of Glendale and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman have been in contact with Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf.
Glendale city manager Ed Beasley and National Hockey League commissioner Gary Bettman have approached Reinsdorf numerous times over the past two years in hopes of getting him to buy the financially challenged Coyotes.
The city will take another run at Reinsdorf if the Glendale City Council approves another $25 million outlay to cover the team’s losses next season, and a deal can’t be struck soon with Hulsizer.
If you remember, Reinsdorf had reached an agreement with the NHL to purchase the team at the same time that then owner Jerry Moyes filed bankruptcy papers with the government back in 2009 to start this entire drama.
The news comes just a week after the same paper reported that Matthew Huslizer was getting cold feet and may back out of the deal and pursue purchasing the St. Louis Blues. A report the Chicago businessman later denied.
At this point the entire thing is a mess. By adding Reinsdorf back into the mix the city and the league is just driving that point home. Even if Winnipeg moves on and gets a franchise like the Atlanta Thrashers, the time to end this debacle is now.
After two years of being in limbo, the brand is suffering and each passing moment makes it that much more difficult for whoever the new owner is to turn things around. The team and the fans can’t be expected to operate like this for another year while the city and league play games with potential ownership groups.
