Finally a good result in a RUSH to bankruptcy court: Judge Rejects Sale of NHL Phoenix Coyotes…RIMM bigwig D-E-N-I-E-D

The attempt to rush NHL Coyotes sale through bankruptcy proceedings has been stopped by a judge….

A win for Phoenix (especially Glendale) at least temporarily:

WSJ:

…A bankruptcy judge has rejected the proposed sale of the team to Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie, who would have moved the team to Hamilton, Ontario.

Judge Redfield T. Baum issued a 21-page ruling late Monday afternoon, concluding that the June 29 deadline imposed by Mr. Balsillie did not allow enough time to resolve the complex case.

“Simply put, the court does not think there is sufficient time (14 days) for all of these issues to be fairly presented to the court given that deadline,” the judge wrote.

The ruling is a victory for the NHL, which had argued Mr. Balsillie was using the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to make an end-run around the league’s rules over who owns teams and where they are located.

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly declined immediate comment Monday, saying the league needed to read the entire opinion before issuing a statement.

The judge’s decision is also a win for the city of Glendale, Ariz., which had spent $183 million to build an arena for the Coyotes and had contended the franchise could not use bankruptcy to evade its lease

So this Balsillie guy is apparently a BIG LOSAH!.. (continues after the break)

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June 16, 2009. Tags: Coyotes to canada, Jim Balsillie, NHL, Phoenix Coyotes. Economy, Entertainment, Popular Culture. Comments off.