This is kind of a bizarre story.
Students from an inner city neighborhood are suing the Jacobs family and the Bruins because they have not followed through on a requirement in the agreement that allowed them to raise the old Garden and the TD Center. It turns out that in that agreement the Bruins and the Jacobs family agreed to hold three different charitable fund raisers each year, and distribute the funds to the local community. The Bruins have not held up to that end of the bargain. But you have to ask, why are the students suing?
https://www.thescore.com/news/133360...fae67485ac3dba
It turns out these inner city kids want an arena built so they can get off the street and play the game they love. Yup, these high school kids want a place to go play hockey that is accessible within their inner city community. They tried doing all sorts of fund raising, but ran into too many roadblocks. But they managed to stumble across this condition in the contract with the city, the Jacobs family, and the Bruins, and noticed no fundraising had been done in 24 years! So these enterprising hockey loving kids reached out to Jacobs. Acknowledging this commitment he cut them a check for $1.5 million. The students didn't feel that was enough, given the time and their desire to build an arena, so they are suing Jacobs and the Bruins for $14 million.
I think this is such an opportunity for the Bruins and the NHL to do the right thing. They could generate so much good will if they got out in front of this and admitted that there was a wrong here, and they want to make amends. The NHL should get Jacobs to belly up half that amount, and then build these kids an arena, picking up the remainder of the costs. The goodwill this would buy within the Boston market (no, not the delicious fast food joint) and the positive press this would buy the league would be incredible. The league could even try to get their visiting member clubs to go in and practice in the facility as part of their game development and community outreach programs. This could play out so well, if the NHL and the Bruins had any vision.
What do you think? Worth the investment?