[News] UPD: City of Glendale to vote on new arena agreement with Coyotes

[Locke]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

They appear to have found a legal loophole to cancel the agreement. They are trying to force the Coyotes to renegotiate or they will cancel it.

Really? That'll be interesting. I'll refer to my previous post, if they cancel the agreement I imagine the Coyotes will be looking to move and leave the City of Glendale in an even more precarious position than they're currently in.

Although, 'there will be fewer lawyers' if that loophole exists because someone involved in writing it initially will likely soon be drawing unemployment insurance.

[sureLoss]

Originally Posted by Locke

Really? That'll be interesting. I'll refer to my previous post, if they cancel the agreement I imagine the Coyotes will be looking to move and leave the City of Glendale in an even more precarious position than they're currently in.

Although, 'there will be fewer lawyers' if that loophole exists because someone involved in writing it initially will likely soon be drawing unemployment insurance.

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/c...terrible-time/

According to several reports, council is trying to void the deal on an Arizona statute indicating it “may, within three years after its execution, cancel any contract, without penalty or further obligation … if any person significantly involved in initiating, negotiating, securing, drafting or creating the contract … is, at any time while the contract or any extension of the contract is in effect, an employee or agent of any other party to the contract in any capacity … with respect to the subject matter of the contract.”

That would indicate the dispute involves Craig Tindall, who resigned as Glendale’s city attorney in February 2013, although there are reports he was kept on retainer until September. According to this Arizona Republic story, Tindall joined the Coyotes as general counsel in August. Lease negotiations began in May.

I don't know if that statute will stand up in court, but it looks like the Coyotes created the situation for potentially voiding the contrat themselves by hiring a former city lawyer.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/c...terrible-time/

I don't know if that statute will stand up in court, but it looks like the Coyotes created the situation for potentially voiding the contrat themselves by hiring a former city lawyer.

Ah! That is interesting!

But again, if they cancel that contract the Coyotes up and leave and the City is sitting there with no tenant and an exceptionally expensive, yet empty, building with no money coming in.

[Benched]

this whole saga is so ridiculous it's actually getting commical

[Resolute 14]

In 1999, the Major League Umpires' Association had a beef with MLB and voted to strike. Except they had a valid CBA, so couldn't do so legally. The person in charge of the union had a brilliant idea. The union members would resign en-masse and basically force MLB into new negotiations. Instead, MLB simply accepted the resignations of 22 umpires and hired replacements from the minor leagues. Years of legal fighting followed. Some got their jobs back. Many did not. The union decertified and was replaced by another with new leadership.

Watching Glendale act is reminding me of this. They are trying to be clever in an effort to get out of a contract, but I don't think the NHL is going to go into this thinking "crap, too late to relocate. Guess we have to deal." We're talking about a league that was willing to go nuclear against it's players' union.

[codynw]

Originally Posted by Benched

this whole saga is so ridiculous it's actually getting commical

Getting comical?

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

In 1999, the Major League Umpires' Association had a beef with MLB and voted to strike. Except they had a valid CBA, so couldn't do so legally. The person in charge of the union had a brilliant idea. The union members would resign en-masse and basically force MLB into new negotiations. Instead, MLB simply accepted the resignations of 22 umpires and hired replacements from the minor leagues. Years of legal fighting followed. Some got their jobs back. Many did not. The union decertified and was replaced by another with new leadership.

Watching Glendale act is reminding me of this. They are trying to be clever in an effort to get out of a contract, but I don't think the NHL is going to go into this thinking "crap, too late to relocate. Guess we have to deal." We're talking about a league that was willing to go nuclear against it's players' union.

Exactly!

The only thing that makes the Coyotes a viable enterprise is the fact that their losses are underwritten, if that changes then so does the whole profitability model in which case the Coyotes suddenly become losers.

Effectively the City of Glendale wants to renege on their contractual liability to underwrite the losses of the Coyotes thus transferring that liability elsewhere and elsewhere is profit-sharing payments from the rest of the owners of the NHL and that is a hill that the League will die on and fast-track a relocation.

If the Coyotes become a burden to other 29 teams because all of a sudden the 'insurance' against their losses has to come from the other owners their relocation approval will be the fastest vote in NHL history.

In which case the City of Glendale is going to wind up sitting there empty-handed.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Benched

this whole saga is so ridiculous it's actually getting commical

'Comical.'

[Resolute 14]

Originally Posted by Locke

In which case the City of Glendale is going to wind up sitting there empty-handed.

In truth, that is probably the true end goal for a couple of the councilors.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

In truth, that is probably the true end goal for a couple of the councilors.

But why? I dont know the final numbers but are they going to be shelling out less money with an empty building than they would with a full building and subsidized losses? Whats the net difference?

I'd like to say that I imagine they ran the numbers before going through with this but they also signed that asinine contract in the first place so my trust in their business acumen is very, very low.

[Resolute 14]

It's also a different council though. IIRC, the new mayor is not nearly as high on the team as the old mayor was, and in one of the stories I read today, one of the pro-Coyotes councilors has already abstained from this meeting and vote. So really, it's largely new people with new agendas trying to change the vote after the fact.

As to the question of revenue, the city is losing $8 million a year on the current deal. So assuming they lose the team, the question will be whether no Coyotes + no management contract + some number of other events pulled in that were previously unavailable because of the Coyotes existence results in less than $8 million in losses.

Honestly, the city should just convert the arena into a casino. It's been nothing but gamble after gamble from the time it was conceived.

[Jordan!]

#Phoenix Councilman @MRNowakowski says he's pushing to bring @ArizonaCoyotes hockey team to downtown. Wants team 2 share new arena w/ @Suns.

[Locke]

The Coyotes should be launched into the Sun. They are a monument to Man's arrogance!

[heep223]

Originally Posted by Bouw N Arrow

#Phoenix Councilman @MRNowakowski says he's pushing to bring @ArizonaCoyotes hockey team to downtown. Wants team 2 share new arena w/ @Suns.

Why.....why didn't they just do this in the first place? Wow. If I was a taxpayer in Glendale I would be so pissed.

[troutman]

Chris Johnston ‏@reporterchris
Co-owner Anthony LeBlanc says the #coyotes have "no intention" to renegotiate the lease deal with the city of Glendale.

[Resolute 14]

Originally Posted by heep223

Why.....why didn't they just do this in the first place? Wow. If I was a taxpayer in Glendale I would be so pissed.

Because the Suns arena is a craphole for hockey and there was no prospect of building a new rink inside Phoenix proper 12 years ago. And, Glendale wanted to make a splash.

[topfiverecords]

Originally Posted by troutman

Chris Johnston ‏@reporterchris
Co-owner Anthony LeBlanc says the #coyotes have "no intention" to renegotiate the lease deal with the city of Glendale.

Which is because this was all part of the plan to tide them over until QC was ready. Then Glendale looks like the bad ones for 'forcing' the team to move by pulling out of the lease. Once the team is moved it will be sold to Quebecor for a profit.

[jayswin]

Originally Posted by Vulcan

I doubt very much the franchise goes to Quebec as it would screw up the recently made re-alignment and none of the teams moved to the East will move back. It looks like the only way Quebec gets a team in the near future is by one of the Eastern franchises re-locating.

Is there precedent for this, though? I can't see the NHL being at a point where they have;

a) a team ready to move, and;

b) an ownership group and arena ready

and then saying "Well this would be perfect, except we just re-aligned our divisions, so unfortunately you guys will have to wait until an eastern team is in trouble, but thanks for being ready!!

We've certainly seen the opposite where the league has a team ready to move and an ownership group ready in Winnipeg, and then they just played them in the former team's division until they realigned.

Maybe sureloss or someone else more in the know could point to a time where they've ditched a move over alignment issues, but I just couldn't see them doing it from a business perspective.

[ForeverFlameFan]

Originally Posted by Bouw N Arrow

#Phoenix Councilman @MRNowakowski says he's pushing to bring @ArizonaCoyotes hockey team to downtown. Wants team 2 share new arena w/ @Suns.

Took them this long to figure that out?

[Sec218]

It'll be cool having the Flames play the Quebec Nordiques 4 to 5 times a season.