Sunday February 16, 2003
The Journal News reports that thin ice appears to be all that separates Pittsburgh from seeking bankruptcy protection for the second time in four years.
Owner/star Mario Lemieux had general manager Craig Patrick peddle the team's next-best player, Alexei Kovalev, to the Rangers for four marginal parts and a whole bunch of cash, $3,999,999.99 to the penny. Then the 37-year-old Lemieux cast doubt on whether he'd play next season.
But the NHL had a ready answer for critics who surmised that the deal represented the league acknowledging Pittsburgh was no longer viable.
"Anyone who makes an assertion like that is suffering from convenient and short-term memory loss," NHL spokesperson Frank Brown said. "(Commissioner Gary Bettman) is a fierce supporter of any franchise faced with challenges and any assertion to the contrary would not be lucid."
Bettman helped Lemieux guide the Penguins out of bankruptcy in 1999 and said two weeks ago during the All-Star break he did not believe in contraction or relocation.
The root of Pittsburgh's problems is the aging Mellon Arena, which opened in 1961, or six years before the Penguins began playing. It's the oldest arena in the league and seems decades older than Madison Square Garden, which opened just seven years later.
New stadiums were built for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Steelers with public funds. But attendance has lagged at PNC Park mainly because the Pirates can't seem to put a good product on the field. To be fair, the Pirates weren't a tough ticket at Three Rivers Stadium even when they were good, and there's nothing to suggest a new arena would cure all of the Penguins' problems.
Athletic Darwinism would suggest the demise of franchises such as the Penguins, Ottawa or Buffalo should at least be considered. But Lemieux gives Pittsburgh an advantage in good ownership � something the two teams that sought bankruptcy protection don't have.
The ice may be cracked under the Penguins' skates, but don't expect them to fall into the pond.
PROSPECTIVE CITIES
TEAMS IN TROUBLE
EXPANISON HISTORY
RELOCATION HISTORY
MESSAGE BOARDS
NEWS ARCHIVE