By GREGG DRINNAN
Daily News Sports Editor
If it comes down to it, will it be Door No. 1, Door No. 2 or . . .?
Murray Owen, the president of the Kamloops Blazers Sports Society, said Tuesday there now are two offers on the table for the WHL franchise. And he is anticipating seeing more, should the franchise be put up for sale.
River City Hockey Inc. (RCH), the group headed up by Vancouver businessman Tom Gaglardi, made an offer to purchase for $6,100,176 on July 18.
At a news conference last week, Owen said he had received an expression of interest from a second party. Owen said yesterday that expression of interest turned into a legitimate offer over the weekend. And, he said, it’s an offer that is quite a bit different than the one from RCH.
“Yes, it is (an offer),” he said. “It’s got a little different slant on it because they have a different approach to their ownership. They’re thinking that they’d like to partner with the society rather than buy us outright. They’d like to keep some connection with our society members . . . keep them involved.”
Former Blazers star Mark Recchi, who now plays for the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins, is part of RCH. His group, he said, isn’t surprised at there being another offer.
“We are not surprised that there is other interest for the team,” Recchi said in a statement. “It is the goal of River City Hockey, and my personal goal for the Blazers, that the Blazers be rebuilt. We believe that private ownership is key to future success for the team.”
Added Shane Doan, another former Blazers star who is part of RCH: “If the society board discloses to the membership the details of the offer they have received from another party, then I trust the members to evaulate it fully against our offer.
“If it represents four Blazers alumni with national and international hockey success who are also committed to the Kamloops area, and bring with them the proven business acumen and continued business interests in Kamloops offered by Mr. Gaglardi and a price tag that meets or exceeds the $6.1 million we have offered, then the Blazers should absolutely consider it.”
Owen wasn’t prepared to identify the person fronting the second offer, nor would he get too specific about it. Owen is on vacation and hasn’t had the opportunity to “carry on with the dialogue on whether he wants to make the terms and conditions public.”
What Owen has done, as requested by that person, is distribute the written proposal to the eight other members of the society’s board of directors.
The society and RCH appeared in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver on Friday and are awaiting a ruling that is due today.
The society’s board of directors believes that (a) it must change its constitution if it is to entertain offers and (b) it needs approval of 75 per cent of its members if it is to alter its constitution.
RCH argued that the board doesn’t need to change its constitution and that it needs approval from 50 per cent plus one of its membership to sell the franchise.
Should the members empower the board to receive offers, Owen expects to end up with more than the two he has seen to date.
“That’s what my thought would be,” he said. “If they want to sell it and we were instructed to go ahead and do that, we would do it in a businesslike manner and go to the marketplace.”
In the meantime, Owen will be in a Vancouver courtroom this morning, along with legal representation, to hear the decision resulting from Friday’s hearing.
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The Blazers released their final schedule yesterday.They will open the season at home to the Chilliwack Bruins on Sept. 21, with the Seattle Thunderbirds here the next night.
All told, the Blazers will play 11 Friday night home games, 10 on Saturdays, five on Sundays and one on a holiday Monday. Sunday games now will start at 6 p.m.
The complete schedule is in Scoreboard.
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Dean Clark, the Blazers’ GM/head coach, got to Calgary yesterday in time to watch a scrimmage at the Canadian under-18 team’s camp. C Jimmy Bubnick, a highly touted 16-year-old Blazers prospect, is in that camp.“He had a goal and an assist, and didn’t look out of place,” Clark said, adding that Bubnick’s team lost, 10-4.
There are 40 players in the camp, with 22 of them to make the Canadian team that will be named this morning. The team will play in the Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament, Tuesday through Aug. 18, in Hodonin, Czech Republic, and Piestany, Slovakia.
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