4 Groups Interested in Buying Coyotes, Maintaining the Franchise in Phoenix

From www.tsn.ca

The owners of the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts are among four potential buyers that have expressed an interest in purchasing the Coyotes and keeping them in Phoenix, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a court filing.

Howard Sokolowski and David Cynamon have sent the league one of the four preliminary applications to buy the troubled club, and each has “indicated an interest in operating the franchise in Phoenix,” according to Bettman’s declaration filed with an Arizona bankruptcy court.

The other applicants are: Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf and John Kaites; Coyotes minority owner John Breslow; and a Phoenix businessman who requested anonymity pending the NHL’s due diligence.

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Instant Analysis: This Tuesday, June 9, 2009, game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals and the day that Judge Redfield T. Baum will make his decision regarding who owns the Coyotes, and what their future will hold. The most interesting part of today’s court filing from the NHL is definitely the stated interest of the Toronto Argonauts owners, David Cynamon and Howard Sokolowski. Will their alleged interest in owning the Coyotes and keeping them in Phoenix cause a backlash against their Toronto based Argonauts? Or, are they playing the relocation game the proper way by declaring their intention to keep the team in Phoenix, and then moving them after giving it a few years to turn around in the desert? One thing that we can all be thankful for is that a semblance of resolution to this soap opera will come next week.