Report: Jamison $20 million of Coyotes' price tag
The prospective new owner of the Phoenix Coyotes reportedly is about $20 million short of the NHL's asking price.
Greg Jamison, a former CEO of the San Jose Sharks, is courting investors to make up the shortfall, The Sporting News reported Saturday.
Jamison, a former San Jose Sharks part-owner, is leading the latest group to bid for the Coyotes, who have been owned by the NHL since it went into bankruptcy in 2009. The NHL wants $170 million for the team.
Recently the city of Glendale -- which owns Jobing.com Arena, the team's home -- rejected petitions that would have put Jamison's lease agreement to a public vote and delay the sale. The city faces a hearing on that rejection Monday.
The NHL's pursuit of a new owner also has been blocked often by a public-policy advocacy group, the Goldwater Institute. Glendale twice has staved off the group's attempts to torpedo the lease with Jamison.
The Coyotes are coming off a season in which they won the Pacific Division and advanced to the Western Conference finals before falling to eventual NHL champion Los Angeles Kings.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said Saturday the league is still confident the sale would get done and the Coyotes would stay in Glendale.
The sale has held up the signing of Shane Doan, who is an unrestricted free agent. The team's captain, who has played all 17 of his NHL seasons with the franchise, has said he would like to remain with the Coyotes, but not if the team is embroiled in more politics.
Doan reportedly met with Jamison on Friday night. No details of that meeting have emerged.
