How much will it cost to buy the New York Islanders?
The New York Islanders are for sale, which is great news for anyone that hopes a resurgence of that franchise arrives as it physically arrives in Brooklyn in 2015. Kudos to Charles Wang for keeping it on the Island rather than in, say, Kansas City or Quebec, but change starts at the top and he signs the checks.
So how much will it cost to purchase the Islanders?
According to Chris Botta of Sports Business Daily, a memorandum to potential bidders reveals the terms and the price of the Isles:
In the memo, Islanders owner Charles Wang offers 75 percent ownership of the club, with a five-year option on the other 25 percent. The memo also states that the Islanders sustained an operating loss during the 2013-14 season of $4.8 million, with the loss minimized greatly by $15 million received from NHL revenue sharing and escrow payments.
According to the memo, total revenue for the Islanders in the just-completed season was $84 million. That included $22 million in ticket revenue. The Islanders played 40 home games at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and one game (as part of the NHL’s Coors Light Stadium Series) as the home team at Yankee Stadium against the New York Rangers.
The value placed on the team in the memo: $370 million.
Forbes valued the Islanders at $195 million in its 2013 Business of Hockey package.
As Botta notes, Wang isn’t guaranteed to sell the Islanders, being that the team should reach a level of profitability once the on-ice product improves and thanks to the windfall from the move to Barclays Center. Plus, the Islanders will finally stop making payments to Alexei Yashin next season. That too.
