The Preds turn a profit AP Photo/Ann Hisenfelt
This is a good news bad news situation, but it is a story that legitimizes the NHL being in Nashville after a few seasons where that didn’t look like such a good idea.
Let us start with the bad news, by failing to make the playoffs the Predators are out an estimated 750k per home play game it would have hosted in the NHL playoffs. That is a tough one to swallow but all in all the Predators had a pretty good season in a business sense.
The best news on that front is they averaged over 14 thousand fans per home game in the 2008-09 season. They also made a slight 145 thousand dollar profit, after getting a 10 million dollar check from the NHL for revenue sharing.
However in a soft economy not making the playoffs is going to further squeeze corporate tickets sales and make it a lot tougher for the Predators to sign sponsors for next season.
This good news seems to move Nashville out of the category of NHL team in ownership flux, and should finally kill off all rumors of a Predator relocation.
The Preds didn’t make the playoffs but they turned a profit which is more then we can say about the Phoenix Coyotes. The Coyotes are projected to lose 30 million dollars this season, and have lost an estimated 200 million since owner Jerry Moyes bought the club in 2001.
NHL Commissioner Gary Betteman has stated that the Coyotes will be sold but will not be relocated. The Coyotes are in the same boat as the Montreal Canadians and Dallas Stars as teams who most likely will be sold and/or relocated.
The creditors of the holding company that controls the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers have placed that company in default. This is the first move that could eventually unseat Tom Hicks as owner of the Stars and Rangers.
His partner in the Liverpool FC club of the English Premier League, George Gillette, owner of the Canadians is also looking to sell or restructure the team to deal with the finical crisis that has severely reduced his net worth.
All in all it is a pretty good day for the Nashville Predators front office. While disappointing to miss the playoffs living to fight next season is a better place to be that Phoenix, Dallas, or Montreal.
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