Who on that list is on the board?

And what part of this story are we missing, exactly?

I mean, it feels like there's a big part of the picture we're missing (another bid? Katz ran over Butler's dog?). And, while I'd ordinarily be okay with being told that that missing piece is none of my business (ordinarily, being that this is a business deal between private entities, it wouldn't be), the fact that the board is airing everything else out over the newswire makes me wonder why not give us the full picture?

How much more bizarre could it get?
 

OK. So what I don't get is that Katz is pretty much letting that cat out of the bag about an insider offer and there's not one comment out there in the MSM about this. To me, that's big news.
 

We're in bizarro-land. How can they keep turning this guy down? I hope the entire shareholder group brings their brains to the meeting. This is getting beyond ridiculous. And I sure hope they don't do an insider deal. This is so weird.
 

Some of the 'best bunch of guys in the history of Edmonton' obviously had dreams of slowly accumulating EIG shares themselves and slowly ascending to the throne. Katz' offer rankles and crushes those dreams. First they tried to hide behind 'price', now they're trying to hide behind 'location', but truthfully the offer is more than fair and a very good deal for the original investors, Katz isn't going to move the team, for chis' sakes. I think Andy is right; some original EIG guys kinda like the juice they get in the town for being 'owners' and they don't want to give it up.
 

I suspect that as a good business-man, Katz is not willing to sign a paper saying that he could not move the franchise at some point. Edmonton is stable as of the moment, and the fan base is there. But its all about the money, and since Katz is obviously skilled in building a thriving succesful MONEY-MAKING team, the future might be brighter in some part of Ontario in 5 years or 10 or whatever. It is good business to look out into the future, and Katz is to smart to hamstring himself and lock himself into a "small" market with no "out". Thats my interpretation...
 

I'm looking forward to the Joanne Ireland story tomorrow: "Oilers can't be expected to win hockey games while ownership confusion reigns."
 

But its all about the money, and since Katz is obviously skilled in building a thriving succesful MONEY-MAKING team, the future might be brighter in some part of Ontario in 5 years or 10 or whatever.

It was all fun and games until the trucks pulled out in the night and our team was reborn as the Sault Ste. Marie Log Drivers.
 

Anonymous said...
I suspect that as a good business-man, Katz is not willing to sign a paper saying that he could not move the franchise at some point.

The EIG are a group of good businessmen who refused to sign such a deal when they bought the club, so why do they expect Katz to do it?
 

Bets on whether anyone on the MSM will check into the EIG purchase sans location agreement? (granted, MacKinnon did mention at least question that on his blog) Or is the location agreement merely a future bargaining chip some within the EIG are hoping to use as part of their own offer. In that case, the EIG board chair shouldn't be asking the question, the group itself should be asking. Clear conflict of interest to do otherwise.

If members of the EIG are forming an offer of their own, fine. Thing is, if anyone on the board is involved in formulating a 'counter offer', shouldn't they at least recuse themselves from any vote on recommending acceptance or rejection of the Katz offer? Otherwise it's a pretty clear conflict of interest.

The board finally communicated to Katz through their lawyer, late afternoon on the 31st. There's no reason the same papers couldn't be delivered on Jan. 2nd. The 31st was no accident I'm sure, and it was a classless move by the EIG board. Guess I shouldn't be surprised. No wonder Cal Nichols wanted out. Hand holding and massaging those egos must have been an endless chore.

Then, without even waiting a single business day for a response, they issue a press release and hold a press conference to air their concerns. Turns out they haven't even held the board vote on whether to recommend acceptance or rejection. They're just being "transparent". Whatever. The only thing that's transparent is the monster bird they're flipping at their largest corporate sponsor.

By this point Katz has put more money into the Oilers than many EIG shareholders, if not each and every single investor. Yet the EIG likes to cast him as an outsider, and focus solely on what happened a decade ago. Yes, they saved the team. Led by Cal Nichols. Mr. Nichols recognizes it's time to move on. Wake up EIG. Katz is not an outsider.

We're still a month away from the deadline that counts (shareholders individually decide whether to sell to Katz). If today was any indication, we're in for a long month. Complete with thinly veiled EIG orchestrated smear campaigns. This is going to get tiring really quick.
 

Bets on whether anyone on the MSM will check into the EIG purchase sans location agreement?

I'm doing that right now.
 

I always kinda figured you guys were a little hard on Cal but what ive heard these last couple days is just ridiculous.

KAtz said he was willing to sit down with the owners and hash this thing out but Cal puts on a news conference. Dont be a douche Cal and just sit down with your lawyers and work something out.

-Doug
 

Uh, Doug, it's not Cal. He resigned as board chair back when the Katz offer was announced (which he endorsed).

Highlighting a quote from my previous post (plus an edit to clarify):
No wonder Cal Nichols wanted out [as board chair]. Hand holding and massaging those egos must have been an endless chore.
 

Terry Jones embarrasses himself further

http://www.edmontonsun.com/Sports/Columnists/Jones_Terry/2008/01/03/4750005.html

Still in hiding

Katz, who has yet to appear in public to answer any questions of his own, sent out another press release later in the day which was just plain curious considering the circumstances.

While he said he'd respond to the EIG questions, he didn't leave it at that.

"I think they owe an equal duty to come clean about any involvement members of the Board may have in fashioning an alternative bid, how much debt they plan to assume to retain ownership, and what commitments they are prepared to make to help secure a new arena ..."

Come clean?

The choice of those two words will likely result in two predictable words coming back his way.

This is a guy who won't come out of his hole and appear in public demanding answers from the citizens who saved the team without his help and without making a dime to answer to him because why? Because he's Daryl Katz and is worth two billion bucks?

Come clean? Come on!
 

Without his help? Has Jones never seen the big lighted sign on REXALL PLACE?
 

and with that, Terry Jones' last shred of journalistic integrity disappears (TJ probably thought it was a small piece of turkey stuck to his shirt and quickly hoovered it up)…
 

Thanks for that link, btw, PJO. That article is a fantastic conversation starter!