NHL - Phoenix Coyotes Bidding War Getting Hilariously Messy

Ice Edge recently yanked their attempt to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes, boasting a relationship with the Arizona network that can make this franchise economically viable. Sure, they’re completely negating the fact that the Coyotes have hemorrhaged money like Citigroup, but it’s nice to have some optimism around. Now the bidding war has come down to two forces: Jim Balsillie…and the NHL itself.

Yep, that’s how much Gary Bettman hates Balsillie. He’s willing to submit a bid on behalf of the very league that the father of the Blackberry is trying to penetrate. Apparently, the NHL would purchase the league and try to find an owner who would keep the team in Glendale…or give them to someone who’s willing to relocate the team.

Yes, you read that last line properly. If people actually cared about the NHL on a grander scale outside of Canada, Gary Bettman would be the most hated commissioner in the world. Hey Bettman! Balsillie wants to relocate the team to Hamilton! What the hell is wrong with you?

Making the situation even more hysterical is the fact that the judge overseeing the case might throw out both of the remaining bids. Why? I have no idea. Maybe Judge Redfield T. Baum wants to see this dead horse be beaten mercilessly for a few more weeks.

The league as a whole fears change, and they don’t want to openly admit that the experiment in the desert is an undeniable failure. And yes, they want to expand the NHL in the United States. If we’ve learned anything from bankruptcy this year, it’s to walk away at the right time.

They did it Winnipeg. They pulled out the heart of Quebec City and moved it to Colorado. Where was Bettman’s zealous protection then?