Judge nixes Coyotes’ move. Update.

The Coyotes’ proposed move to Hamilton, Ontario was shot down by an Arizona bankruptcy judge late tonight, apparently giving the Kings and Ducks a league rival in Phoenix to beat up on for at least another year.

From tsn.ca:

Judge Redfield T. Baum made his highly anticipated decision public earlier in the evening, saying in a 21-page ruling that there wasn’t enough time to deal with all the unresolved issues raised by the unprecedented case.

That prompted (Jim) Balsillie to offer the NHL an olive branch and propose to work with it in attempt to find “an appropriate” relocation fee to bring the club north through mediation.

But buoyed by the judgment, the league says it plans to help a future owner make the Coyotes viable in Glendale, and its claims that four parties have expressed an interest in operating the team there will now be put to the test.

“We are confident that we will be able to find such a buyer for the Coyotes,” deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in a statement, “and that the claims of legitimate creditors will be addressed.”

The ruling brings to a close more than a month of intense of often dramatic legal maneuvering, set off when Balsillie sought to buy the Coyotes out of Chapter 11 protection with a $212.5 million offer that was conditional on being able to move the team to Hamilton. He had set a June 29 closing date for the sale in an attempt to speed through the process and have the club in place for the 2009-10 season.

But Baum rejected that timeline and several aspects of the arguments made by his lawyers, writing their claims that the league’s refusal to allow the team to move does not violate antitrust law and permit “the sale free and clear of the relocation rights of the NHL.”


UPDATE: The Globe and Mail has posted the entire ruling on its Web site. Check it out:http://beta.images.theglobeandmail.com/archive/00075/Phoenix_Coyotes_ruli_75401a.pdf

This entry was posted in Anaheim Ducks/NHL by J.P. Hoornstra. Bookmark the permalink.

About J.P. Hoornstra

J.P. Hoornstra covers the Dodgers, Angels and Major League Baseball for the Orange County Register, Los Angeles Daily News, Long Beach Press-Telegram, Torrance Daily Breeze, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Pasadena Star-News, San Bernardino Sun, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Whittier Daily News and Redlands Daily Facts. Before taking the beat in 2012, J.P. covered the NHL for four years. UCLA gave him a degree once upon a time; when he graduated on schedule, he missed getting Arnold Schwarzenegger's autograph on his diploma by five months.

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