Quote:
Originally Posted by Strange Brew
My comment really stemmed from your assertion that the "league was over a barrel" with the Thrashers situation. Maybe we have different definitions of what that means but since the league runs a legal monopoly I would argue it is impossible for them to be "over a barrel". They get to call the shots on expansion, relo and almost everything else. Hell they even shut their league down for a year and a half to get the salary cap they wanted in collective bargaining.
As I already stated they have options when teams want to move and the NHL had their reasons for cutting the deal they did with True North. When people are wiling to pay $500 million for a piece of the action that should tell you something.
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I was referring to the fact that they ended up relocating a team right after spending several years insisting that they were completely committed to leaving all of their franchises in their current locations and that relocation would only be considered as an absolute last resort. Yes, they had their reasons for cutting the deal with True North. Such as the fact that the league had already bought out one team that didn't have a viable local buyer stepping up and had no appetite for buying, running and losing money on yet another one. "Last resort" means you are out of viable options, hence "over a barrel".