Jim Balsillie said late Tuesday he's not giving up on his bid to bring the Phoenix Coyotes to Canada, after a U.S. bankruptcy judge ordered the NHL and the team's majority owner into mediation.
"I am moving forward," Balsillie said in a statement. "I have tabled a comprehensive and attractive offer. I will also be filing formal applications to the NHL both for transfer of ownership and for relocation to Southern Ontario to my chosen Hamilton Copps Coliseum venue."
Judge Redfield Baum has asked the NHL and Coyotes majority owner Jerry Moyes to resolve issues over who controls the team, and he wants a report on the outcome by May 27.
Baum also said he wants a hearing on June 22 to decide whether the team can be relocated. If not, Balsillie will lose his chance to move the Coyotes to Hamilton.
"I appreciate the court's careful consideration of the facts at hand and I respect Judge Baum's decision to recommend mediation for the Coyotes and NHL on the issue of current ownership," said Balsillie. "I also respect his decision to hold a June 22 hearing on the relocation issue."
Balsillie's lawyer, Richard Rodier, was also confident as he spoke to reporters outside the Phoenix, Ariz., courthouse.
"We have the rules covered," he said. "We have the criteria covered in spades. How the NHL deals with that, and how the court deals with that -- well, we have the utmost respect for the process and the courts in the state of Arizona."
The key issue in the dispute is whether Moyes had the authority to file for bankruptcy and negotiate the team's sale, or if the NHL had control of the Coyotes.
On May 5, Moyes announced he had put the team into Chapter 11 protection. That same day, Balsillie, Co-CEO of Research In Motion, made a $212.5-million offer to purchase the team but only if he could relocate it to Southern Ontario.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman alleges in court filings that he had control of the team -- not Moyes -- and any talks of selling or moving the franchise should have been directed to him.
Bettman alleges that on Nov. 14, 2008, he "assumed control of all interests and rights" of the Coyotes, but "made the management decision to delegate certain responsibilities relating to the continued operations of the Club to Moyes" and other team officers and staff.
Trevor Whiffen, a sports and entertainment lawyer, said that normally, control of a business resides with the owner. But in this case, the NHL is asserting that Moyes delegated that responsibility by signing two proxies last November giving the NHL the authority to run the team and the arena.
In return, Moyes received millions in funding from the NHL on a line of credit.
"Does that proxy go so far as to prevent Jerry Moyes from filing bankruptcy? I would have thought, without seeing the document, that he would have reserved that right," Whiffen said.
He said he thinks the court will allow Moyes to file for bankruptcy.
If that happens, the court's mandate at that point is to sell the assets for the highest amount of money to make sure that the creditors of the team are all looked after.
Although Balsillie's bid would cover the debts, Whiffen said he still has hurdles to clear.
"He will have to get the approval of 23 of the 30 owners in the National Hockey League," Whiffen said. "Then he has to get permission to move that team to Ontario... he has to get a vote of 16 of the 30 votes."
With files from CTV's Lisa LaFlamme in Phoenix
