9 replies to this topic

[Reb]

click here

A Los Angeles-based company plans to invest $50 million to build a new downtown arena, and hopes to bring an NBA or NHL team to Kansas City.

"I can assure you that there will be an anchor tenant," Timothy Leiweke, vice president of the Anschutz Entertainment Group, said Wednesday. "We have had conversations specifically with those leagues' franchises. I don't think there's a better time to get involved with a National Hockey League team than now."

They talked to the Kings?

[Just Duckie]

What does Lieweke mean by saying "I don't think there is a better time to get involved with the National Hockey League team than now"? That makes no sense given the current financial and labor uncertainty of the league.

And does this mean that Anschutz will only have an interest in the building and not the tenant if the tenant is an NHL team? Or will he sell the Kings? He can't own more than one NHL franchise.

If I were a Kings' fan, I wouldn't know what to make of this. But it would bother me that AES has their fingers in so many pies. Shouldn't Lieweke, as President of the Kings, be concentrating on the Kings?

[SacredCow]

Leiweke and Anschutz are concentrating on making money. They have never cared about the Kings, except making sure that the team is good enough to draw fans while having a low enough payroll that they can make as much profit as possible.

Phil Anschutz is a real-estate guy. He just wants to make money off the Staples Center, possibly own the new stadium for the NFL team in LA, and now for getting an NBA and NHL team into KC.

I highly doubt he'd move the Kings out of LA, nor buy the team to move them to KC. He'd build the arena and then another team would move there. At least, that's my interpretation of it.

I KNOW this: I love having Phil Anshutz own the Kings. As long as he's in charge, the Kings will never be a legitimate Cup contender because they will never pay players what they are worth to stay in LA, will never go after a high priced free agent and will never put anything more than just an average team on the ice. VIVA PHIL!

[Just Duckie]

I know a lot of NHL teams are heavily in the red, but despite that "audit" performed by that Kings' fan last year, and what AES says about their profitability, I don't believe the Kings are losing as much as they say they are. For one thing, Anschutz is a savvy businessman (savvy enough to get out of that potential insider trading investigation) and wouldn't stay in a money losing proposition for long. Also, the Kings' payroll isn't in the top tier of the league, they sold out 25 games and a lot of other games are pretty high capacity, the average ticket price is higher than the league average, the concessions at Staples Center are not cheap (they are higher than at the Pond for the same). I wouldn't be surprised if there is some creative accounting going on that hides some of the profits the Kings' should get a share of and moves some of the expenses of the arena onto the Kings' income statement.

As to that fan, he is a financial/investment analyst, not a CPA or more credibly, a forensic accountant. And in terms of his audit, he only spent a few days looking at the Kings' financial statements (and only those released by the Kings). He didn't do a complete financial accounting audit, which usually would take a team of accountants several weeks to complete. And as the Enron case showed, even audited financial statements could be purposely misstated.

[Francaise]

I know you all dislike the Kings....But my PUPPY better not be moving ANYwhere! heheheeheheheheheheheheheheheheheh

Sorry, I couldn't resist. Let the comments roll in.....

[Reb]

Your "Puppy?" Enh?

[Francaise]

Your "Puppy?" Enh?

:rl: Sorry....Mallard forgives me (I think) for liking Sean Avery...
hehehehehehe

[Just Duckie]

Avery??? Really? Oh, well...different strokes for different folks. He's just not my cup of tea; he reminds me of a junior Lappy. Or like that Bosco guy on "Third Watch".

[MallardFillmore]

" Or like that Bosco guy on "Third Watch". "

Now, that, JustDuckie, is just plain hilarious..and very true!!! Does that make Modry Yokas???

[Just Duckie]

Hmmm...very good question...could be. Is there a physical resemblance? Or is Modry always digging Avery's behind outta trouble out there on the ice :beat: ?