|
True North negotiating for Thrashers
By
QMI Agency
|
  
|
  Dustin Byfuglien of the Atlanta Thrashers. (DAVE ABEL/QMI Agency) |
The owners of the Atlanta Thrashers are negotiating with a group looking to buy the struggling NHL team and move it to Winnipeg.
According to a report on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's website Monday, the Atlanta Spirit is in negotiation with True North Sports and Entertainment. The two sides have not reached an agreement, the report says, and aren't even at the point where there's an exclusivity to the negotiations but talks are ongoing, according to a AJC source.
"I have never confirmed nor denied specific parties we have been talking to in regards to a possible sale of the Thrashers," Atlanta Spirit co-owner Bruce Levenson told the Journal-Constitution Monday.
The NHL was also mum on negotiations.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said there was "nothing I'm prepared to say at this point" in an e-mail to the newspaper.
The Atlanta Spirit, which owns the Thrashers, Atlanta Hawks of the NBA and Philips Arena, has been looking for buyers or investors for the past few years. Court documents indicate the Thrashers have reported annual losses of $20 million US.
If the Thrashers are sold, the price-tag could be in the neighbourhood of $170 US million.
