Tampa Turmoil: Bettman To Decide Future
Matt Bodenschatz | National Hockey League
Jun 23, 11:38 AM | Hype this story!
It wasn’t long ago that the Tampa Bay Lightning were the cream of the Southeast Division, rising to the top and winning the Stanley Cup.
But just a few short years later, the Lightning have fallen to the basement – and the stairs appear to have crumbled.
Today, word broke that high-rolling owners Oren Koules and Len Barrie are having a spat of epic proportions that could resort in a “divorce.”
Per the St. Petersburg Times, “The talk is that Koules wants to keep Lawton as GM, wants to trade Lecavalier to get out from under his $85 million contract and wants to pare the payroll to the low $40 million range. Barrie is not as solidly behind Lawton, wants to build around Lecavalier and is in favor of signing some free agents to get the payroll closer to $50 million.”
Quite obviously, they are heading in opposite directions.
Enter Gary Bettman.
The Times reports that the bickering duo will meet today with the NHL Commissioner to determine which owner will be granted the authority to make the day-to-day operating decisions.
It’s a verdict that could mean the end of this match made in Hell ownership group.
From the time they took over the Lightning one year ago, they have been all about being dramatic.
They fired Stanley Cup winning coach John Tortorella and replaced him with ESPN analyst Barry Melrose. They forced out veteran general manager Jay Feaster and replace him with former player Brian Lawton.
And then they went on a signing spree, adding hoards of players on exaggerated contracts.
Now, they’re looking to blow up what they built (a team that finished 29th in the NHL) after just one year of “patience.”
The Lightning were a joke one year ago when making all of these bold moves, and now they’re even more of a joke as they try to cover them up.
As James Mirtle wrote this morning:
“Regardless of Bettman’s decision, this very well could be the next NHL franchise put into bankruptcy – and not in the distant future – and it could also very well be the fourth target for Jim Balsillie’s crack legal team.
“It’s been a textbook example of how not to run a sports franchise, and there aren’t a lot of positives for the few, proud remaining fans. It could get uglier before it gets better, and we’ve already seen a heavy dose of ugly in Tampa Bay.”
Comments
Dabich
Jun 23, 12:06 PM
I’m thinking perhaps Bettman should kick them both off the decision making board, and put in someone else to run interim indefinitely. Does that make sense? lol
These two jokers are an embarrassment to the entire NHL. I hope Bettman makes the best decisions possible regardless, if only for the remaining loyal fanbase.
bag o' pucks
Jun 23, 12:06 PM
Yikes. Between Phoenix and Tampa, this makes the whole league look bad.
What’s that noise? I think I hear Tortorella and Feaster laughing from across a continent…
Matt Bodenschatz
Jun 23, 12:18 PM
@Dabich, they own the team and were approved by the league. It would be mighty tough to completely remove them from the head of the team after just one year. What Bettman is trying to do is determine which owner has the better plan and then give him control to operate. As for the fanbase, it’s losing its loyalty quickly. Their season ticket sales are down by 3,000 from this time last year.
@Bags, you’re exactly right. The NHL needs to sure up its franchises and avoid the perennial embarrassment of teams filing for bankruptcy and losing fans.
doug
Jun 23, 12:27 PM
im loving this…i live in florida and if it helps me get better seats every time the pens come to town
bicker away fellas
TheOneAndOnlySurge
Jun 23, 02:13 PM
@Doug, LMAO.
Commenting is closed for this article.