I think the intensive involvement of Devils' GM Lou Lamoriello in these talks can be construed a number of different ways -- he's the best GM in sports and is respected by owners and players alike, but I also wonder if the New Jersey franchise is teetering on the brink of insolvency in this whole mess. There is already a move in the New Jersey state government to shut down all plans for that new arena in Newark as long as the NHL is not playing.
THe way I see it
A - it's in New York so Lou is near
B - everybody likes and trusts Lou
C - Lou's well known for not overpaying, or underpaying, if there's one guy that can say "it takes this much money to put a good team on the ice" and make it stick it's Lou
D - inspite of their on ice success the Devils are in grave financial trouble, which really drive home the problems
Sports Center is on in 16 minutes. We'll see.
The "move" to shut down the arena started a long time ago, the constituency was nothing more than a handful of Bergen county government thugs that are worried about losing their Meadowlands kickbacks. When Vanderbeek bought the team and proposed the move to Newark, he did so under the assumption there would be a lock-out. The arena's going forward, demolition is scheduled to begin at the proposed site next month.
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