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Steeeeeerike three...

June 16, 2009, 8:40 AM ET [ Comments]
Paul McCann
Nashville Predators Blogger •Predators Radio Network • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The NHL scored a victory last night in a Phoenix bankruptcy court at Judge Redfield T. Baum (does anyone else think that would make a great character name in a “Smoky and the Bandit” remake?) rejected the bid of Jim Balsillie to buy and move the Phoenix Coyotes. The judge rejected anti-trust claims made, writing that "It is not an antitrust violation for professional sports leagues to have terms and conditions on relocations of its members." He also rejected the contention that the Balsillie group could assume the contract that the Coyotes have with the league while rejecting portions that don’t fit their agenda.

Western justice or miscarriage of justice? Well… that depends on who’s spin you believe. Both sides in this Shootout at the Glendale Corral were spinning their butts off last night. There’s irony galore in this situation as once again Mr. Balsillie shows an astounding lack of understanding about the situation he is in. He continues to listen to the echo-chamber around him instead of analyzing the situation for what it truly is. This time, it appears that his self-imposed deadline was his undoing. Setting an arbitrary June 29th hard deadline gave the judge a perfect out… a lack of time.

How many times will this brilliant businessman shoot himself in the foot? Is it just me, or does Balsillie’s lack of patience seem to be his Achilles heel? In each of his three attempts to purchase a team, he has jumped the gun and shown his hand too early. That's one mighty big "tell" he has there.

In a different sport, three strikes and you’re out… this third self-inflicted failure on the part of Team Balsillie’s business experts really calls their credibility and viability into question. Heck, even the fawning and overly sympathetic Canadian media is starting to ask questions about his tactics.

After the decision came out, a Balsillie spokesman came out and said that the deadline wasn’t “set in stone.” Classic trying to lock the barn door after the horse has gotten out... Team Balsillie is scrambling to retain a look of viability.

The ones I feel for are the hockey-loving fans in Hamilton and Southern Ontario. They continue to be played with, teased by a billionaire who only wants his toy, and he’ll do anything he can to get it, rules and regulations be damned.

Watch how quickly the Hamilton area gets dumped if this group finds another hockey ready arena and doesn’t have the territorial issues that they have to deal with… he’ll be gone in a second. Mr. Balsillie (or one of his myriad spokespeople) can’t even deny they’ll do something like that because their credibility is completely shot.

So Team Balsillie heads back to think up another way to try and get what they want, develop a new strategy, figure out a new way circumvent the rules. They may be saying that the fight is not over, but considering their disregard for playing by those rules… this battle looks to be done.

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The ratings are in for game 7 and they were up… way up. As a matter of fact, it was the most-watched NHL game in the US in 36 years. Great news for the league as more and more fans tuned in to the playoffs.

I’ll be very curious to see the overall ratings for the entire series when they come out on Wednesday.

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A new look for the Predators draft parties this year. There will be three different O’Charley’s locations across the city. I’ll be hosting the party at Franklin, there will also be parties in Bellevue and Rivergate… thing will get going at about 5:30pm and will go to 8pm. GNASH, the Liquid Ice Girls and Predator Dancers will also be part of the festivities.

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You are invited to follow me on Twitter. Search for PredPAPaul… Not only will I be updating when I get news or updates… I’ll also be updating during Pred home games in season with information and explanations from the PA box.

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