One day before a judge will make the fate of Jim Balsillie's bid to buy the Phoenix Coyotes a bit clearer, the NHL received support from the three other big leagues in North America to block the sale.
The NBA, NFL and Major League Baseball all filed court documents asking the bankruptcy court to respect the NHL's rules on relocation and expressed concern that doing otherwise could set a dangerous "precedent" that would "disrupt" the leagues.
Judge Redfield Baum will be holding an afternoon bankruptcy hearing Tuesday and will decide who owns the Coyotes.
The is a significant difference between the statements in 100-plus pages of documents filed by the NHL and Phoenix majority owner Jerry Moyes.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman alleged Monday he had full control over any potential sale of the Phoenix Coyotes, according to court documents.
Moyes has expressed interest in selling the team to Canadian billionaire Balsillie, who wants the Coyotes moved to Hamilton.
But Bettman alleges in court filings that he had control of the team, and any talks of selling or moving the franchise should have been directed to him. A Phoenix bankruptcy judge will hear arguments from both sides on Tuesday.
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.
At issue is an April 3, 2009 conversation between Bettman and Earl Scudder, a lawyer representing Moyes.
According to earlier court filings, Scudder says he told Bettman on that day about interest in buying the Coyotes and moving the team to southern Ontario. He alleged that Bettman told him the team would have to move to Winnipeg -- if anywhere in Canada -- because Hamilton's arena was more than 30 years old.
Hamilton's Copps Coliseum was actually opened in 1985.
Scudder said he continued dealing with Balsillie after that conversation.
On Monday, Bettman said in court documents that Scudder's summary of their talk "is both inaccurate and incomplete."
He alleges he told Scudder he was in control of the club and "would handle negotiations regarding any potential relocation of the Coyotes, and that (Scudder) had no authority to deal with third parties on that subject."
On May 5, Moyes put the team into Chapter 11 protection and an announcement was made about a proposed sale of the team to Balsillie.
In court filings last Friday, Moyes alleges the NHL is fraudulently trying to take the team away from its owners.
Balsillie, the co-CEO of BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion, has made a US$212.5-million bid for the Coyotes. But it's conditional on the team moving to southern Ontario.
