For those unaware, St. Louis has a hockey team and it’s up for sale again.
Dave Checketts, the owner of the St. Louis Blues since 2005, has put his chunk of the team up for sale after months of trying to find other partners after the bulk of his initial backing left.
So Checketts will step out of the way and put his personal stake on the market with the hope of expediting a sale. Checketts and his investment firm, SCP Worldwide, own approximately 20 percent of the Blues. TowerBrook owns 70 percent. Local beer distributor Tom Stillman and other minority investors account for the other 10 percent.
“It’s not what I wanted to have happened,” Checketts said. “But I can’t make a deal with (TowerBrook) and we agreed a long time ago that if we got to this spot, then I would have to take this step. And now I have to take this step.”
Bummer. Checketts seemed like a great owner. Someone that did everything he could to get this team back on track on the ice and with the fans, turning the Blues in to one of the most fan friendly franchises in the nation. Even better, he invested in the surrounding area, like his work with the Kiel Opera House, which, he told the Post Dispatch’s Bernie Miklasz, he plans to continue with and open on schedule. The fact of the matter is that Checketts wasn’t rich enough to hang in the owner’s box.
So who buys the Blues now? Checketts says he will do everything he can to sell to a local interest that will keep the team in St. Louis, but owners always say that. When it comes down to it, if an offer comes by that they can’t refuse the deal will be done regardless of local affiliation. Hopefully the process is quick and the Blues prove to be a viable enough franchise to draw some interest.
Hell, the Blues might be the only game in town come fall. You think if we all chip in and buy the Blues we can get them to play football or pitch well enough to replace Wainwright?
via STLToday