The concern shared by some is whether or not the prospective ownership group for the NHL’s return to Manitoba would actually step into the faceoff circle when it counted. Some even suggest that this group doesn’t have the money to do so, contrary to what group spokeperson and/or leader Mark Chipman has said publicly in the past. Some even suggest that an owner still needs to be brought on board that is more akin to riding a white horse as a hockey messiah than businessperson.The public would be OFFside to believe that Winnipeg needs a hockey messiah as owner. (But if he/she wants to ride into the scene, who would turn him/her away?)The news today is that the NHL’s bid price for the Coyotes is $140 million. This is most likely the auction winning bid being the highest in the end. Balsillie's $212.5 million bid needs to have relocation fees deducted (which according to Judge Baum and the Raiders II case is equal to the value of a Hamilton franchise minus the value of a Phoenix franchise). Then compensation to the Leafs and Sabres would also have to come out of that total offer. So you could say that $212.5 million is knocked back by minimum $50 million for relocation plus at least $25 million each for the two teams at a minimum. Using almost best case numbers for the Balsillie camp that leaves the creditors a total of $112.5 million under his bid. This works out to being roughly a season of Coyote losses short of the NHL’s buzzer-beating bid.Is $140 million a doable goal for Chipman’s group to buy the team from the NHL and move it with NHL blessing “back to Bannatyne”? Considering that the Jets sold for $67 million in 1996 without meaningful revenue sharing and a salary cap, that $140 million figure sure looks good compared to other post-lockout team sale prices. more »