Showing posts with label teams. Show all posts
Showing posts with label teams. Show all posts
Feeding sports fans' insatiable need for rankings...
Ultimate Standings: Buffalo Sabres Are No. 1!
Peter Keating
ESPN The Magazine
Larry Quinn, managing partner of the Buffalo Sabres, knows owner Tom Golisano doesn't like him to talk about other clubs' fans, but he just can't help himself. Anytime the Sabres host archrival Toronto, Quinn enjoys watching the thousands of crazies who make the 101-mile trek to cheer their Leafs.
"Jersey-wearing, face-painted, wig-wearing types, not the kind you see at the Air Canada Centre," says Quinn. "It's ironic that Buffalo has become the place where true Toronto fans can express themselves."
Actually, it makes perfect sense. Because when you ignite fans the Sabres way, you're going to spark passion in your opponents as well as in your own faithful. In this fifth edition of our Ultimate Standings, Buffalo ranks No. 1 among all Big Four pro franchises in giving fans the most back for the emotion, money and time they invest in their teams. Click here to see the Ultimate Standings.
The Sabres weren't always the template. In January 2003, the team went Chapter 11 months after the feds led former owner John Rigas away in chains. (He's appealing a 15-year prison sentence for accounting fraud.) But three months later, Golisano, a billionaire and three-time independent candidate for New York governor, bought the Sabres for $92 million, essentially acquiring the club and HSBC Arena in exchange for paying their debt. Ever since, being a Sabres fan has been found gold for Nickel City residents.
After Golisano and Quinn took over, the Sabres rewarded their staunchest fans by slashing season-ticket prices by 15 percent to 25 percent. But they've also pioneered variable ticket pricing in the NHL, making sure that eight to 11 home games per season feature even lower prices. Result: The average cost of attending a Sabres game is $46.40, 25 percent below the NHL average.
Meanwhile, the Sabres made sure the on-ice product would keep those seats filled, employing a fan-friendly high-speed shoot-and-skate attack. In the midst of a seven-game losing streak in December 2003, Golisano told the team, "I'd rather lose games 6-5 than 3-1," and Quinn and GM Darcy Regier have backed him up, through trades (co-captains Chris Drury and Daniel Briere) and the draft (Ales Kotalik and Jason Pominville). Beloved former captain Lindy Ruff, the longest-tenured head coach in the NHL, keeps all the parts moving at breakneck speed. It works: Since 2002, Buffalo has moved from 24th to first in the league in scoring -- while posting a higher winning percentage every year.
It's all good in the Land of Wings: Season ticket sales have rocketed from 5,800 to 14,815 since the 2002-03 season, while local TV ratings have tripled. In February the seven best-selling jerseys at NHL.com belonged to Sidney Crosby and six Sabres, part of a jump of more than 1,000 percent in sales of Sabres swag over the past year. The team is now worth $149 million, and after losing $46 million over the first half of the decade, it turned close to almost a $4.6 million profit in 2005-06, according to Forbes.
And while financial analysts and media types have been carping about the NHL's lousy national TV deal, four hockey franchises landed in our top 10 this year by keeping local fans happy: Buffalo, Anaheim, Nashville and Carolina. These clubs are models for other teams trying to regain footing in the postlockout era. They're big winners on the ice -- last year's Cup winner plus three current division leaders. All four also rank among the league's 10 lowest in fan costs and are in the top 10 of all big league teams in Fan Relations, according to our research. Throw in players and owners who act professionally, make themselves accessible and show their appreciation to fans, and the mix is unbeatable. These franchises also stand as a counterpoint to teams such as the Red Sox and Redskins -- and the Leafs -- who shove ticket and concessions prices as high as their wealthiest customers will allow.
"We don't have that luxury in Buffalo," says Quinn.
As it turns out, the Sabres don't need it. They're luring a broad new generation of fans to one small corner of the NHL: 12 percent of Buffalo's season-ticket holders are from Canada, which means those single-game Leafs (or Sens or Habs) crazies better already have a ticket.
As for the 121 other big league franchises, you'll see them ranked on the following pages according to how well they rated in eight categories. We surveyed more than 80,000 fans on ESPN.com about their favorite teams to get scores in seven areas: Affordability (including ticket prices, parking and concessions); Coaching; Fan Relations (access to players, coaches and management); Ownership (honesty and loyalty); Players (effort and likability); Stadium Experience; and Title Track (prospects for winning a championship). For the final category, Bang for the Buck, we examined how efficiently teams convert dollars from fans into on-field wins (see methodology). The result is the only ranking that combines the fan's perspective with an objective measure of how efficiently teams use fan money.
Some teams have plunged in this year's rankings without doing anything worse. It's just that this year's list is 31 clubs longer -- the lockout prevented us from including NHL franchises last time around and the NBA expansion Charlotte Bobcats are rated for the first time. But in the numbers that follow, you'll find evidence of busted covenants. Some clubs (Royals, Pirates) sell tickets on the cheap in futile attempts to compensate for too few W's. Other teams (Cowboys, Falcons) have hiked prices expecting to compete for titles, and then fallen short, leaving fans twice burned. A few (Nets, Kings) are either moving or have talked so much about relocating that their hometown loyalists feel abandoned. Quite a few more (Bengals, Pacers) have been crushed by a heightened demand for players who act professionally off as well as on the field.
But you'll also find a batch of teams that are perennial powers in our Standings. The Angels, Colts, Pistons, Steelers and Spurs have ranked in our top 10 in each of the past three years. What do they have in common? First, homegrown and hardworking players. Second, committed owners and smart GMs who don't mind spending money but who don't stretch their budgets so far that average fans can't afford to support their spending. And third -- well, what do you know! -- they're financially successful. The value of these five franchises climbed an average of 13.4 percent last year, and they made a collective $81.4 million in profits.
These teams all have learned well the lesson you can see in action every time the Sabres take the ice: invest in fans, and we'll pay you back.
Financial analysis by The Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon: Melynda Stein, Brian McHugh, David Hobbie, Professor Dennis Howard, Kimberley Saunders, Jennifer Wagner, Jared Schoening, Kevin Snyder and Brett Lentz. Polling by Markitecture, Inc. Team rankings by Morty Ain, Jason Catania, Andy Kamenetzky, Brian Kamenetzky, Molly Knight and Eddie Matz.
Ultimate Standings: Buffalo Sabres Are No. 1!Peter Keating
ESPN The Magazine
Larry Quinn, managing partner of the Buffalo Sabres, knows owner Tom Golisano doesn't like him to talk about other clubs' fans, but he just can't help himself. Anytime the Sabres host archrival Toronto, Quinn enjoys watching the thousands of crazies who make the 101-mile trek to cheer their Leafs.
"Jersey-wearing, face-painted, wig-wearing types, not the kind you see at the Air Canada Centre," says Quinn. "It's ironic that Buffalo has become the place where true Toronto fans can express themselves."
Actually, it makes perfect sense. Because when you ignite fans the Sabres way, you're going to spark passion in your opponents as well as in your own faithful. In this fifth edition of our Ultimate Standings, Buffalo ranks No. 1 among all Big Four pro franchises in giving fans the most back for the emotion, money and time they invest in their teams. Click here to see the Ultimate Standings.
The Sabres weren't always the template. In January 2003, the team went Chapter 11 months after the feds led former owner John Rigas away in chains. (He's appealing a 15-year prison sentence for accounting fraud.) But three months later, Golisano, a billionaire and three-time independent candidate for New York governor, bought the Sabres for $92 million, essentially acquiring the club and HSBC Arena in exchange for paying their debt. Ever since, being a Sabres fan has been found gold for Nickel City residents.
After Golisano and Quinn took over, the Sabres rewarded their staunchest fans by slashing season-ticket prices by 15 percent to 25 percent. But they've also pioneered variable ticket pricing in the NHL, making sure that eight to 11 home games per season feature even lower prices. Result: The average cost of attending a Sabres game is $46.40, 25 percent below the NHL average.
Meanwhile, the Sabres made sure the on-ice product would keep those seats filled, employing a fan-friendly high-speed shoot-and-skate attack. In the midst of a seven-game losing streak in December 2003, Golisano told the team, "I'd rather lose games 6-5 than 3-1," and Quinn and GM Darcy Regier have backed him up, through trades (co-captains Chris Drury and Daniel Briere) and the draft (Ales Kotalik and Jason Pominville). Beloved former captain Lindy Ruff, the longest-tenured head coach in the NHL, keeps all the parts moving at breakneck speed. It works: Since 2002, Buffalo has moved from 24th to first in the league in scoring -- while posting a higher winning percentage every year.
It's all good in the Land of Wings: Season ticket sales have rocketed from 5,800 to 14,815 since the 2002-03 season, while local TV ratings have tripled. In February the seven best-selling jerseys at NHL.com belonged to Sidney Crosby and six Sabres, part of a jump of more than 1,000 percent in sales of Sabres swag over the past year. The team is now worth $149 million, and after losing $46 million over the first half of the decade, it turned close to almost a $4.6 million profit in 2005-06, according to Forbes.
And while financial analysts and media types have been carping about the NHL's lousy national TV deal, four hockey franchises landed in our top 10 this year by keeping local fans happy: Buffalo, Anaheim, Nashville and Carolina. These clubs are models for other teams trying to regain footing in the postlockout era. They're big winners on the ice -- last year's Cup winner plus three current division leaders. All four also rank among the league's 10 lowest in fan costs and are in the top 10 of all big league teams in Fan Relations, according to our research. Throw in players and owners who act professionally, make themselves accessible and show their appreciation to fans, and the mix is unbeatable. These franchises also stand as a counterpoint to teams such as the Red Sox and Redskins -- and the Leafs -- who shove ticket and concessions prices as high as their wealthiest customers will allow.
"We don't have that luxury in Buffalo," says Quinn.
As it turns out, the Sabres don't need it. They're luring a broad new generation of fans to one small corner of the NHL: 12 percent of Buffalo's season-ticket holders are from Canada, which means those single-game Leafs (or Sens or Habs) crazies better already have a ticket.
As for the 121 other big league franchises, you'll see them ranked on the following pages according to how well they rated in eight categories. We surveyed more than 80,000 fans on ESPN.com about their favorite teams to get scores in seven areas: Affordability (including ticket prices, parking and concessions); Coaching; Fan Relations (access to players, coaches and management); Ownership (honesty and loyalty); Players (effort and likability); Stadium Experience; and Title Track (prospects for winning a championship). For the final category, Bang for the Buck, we examined how efficiently teams convert dollars from fans into on-field wins (see methodology). The result is the only ranking that combines the fan's perspective with an objective measure of how efficiently teams use fan money.
Some teams have plunged in this year's rankings without doing anything worse. It's just that this year's list is 31 clubs longer -- the lockout prevented us from including NHL franchises last time around and the NBA expansion Charlotte Bobcats are rated for the first time. But in the numbers that follow, you'll find evidence of busted covenants. Some clubs (Royals, Pirates) sell tickets on the cheap in futile attempts to compensate for too few W's. Other teams (Cowboys, Falcons) have hiked prices expecting to compete for titles, and then fallen short, leaving fans twice burned. A few (Nets, Kings) are either moving or have talked so much about relocating that their hometown loyalists feel abandoned. Quite a few more (Bengals, Pacers) have been crushed by a heightened demand for players who act professionally off as well as on the field.
But you'll also find a batch of teams that are perennial powers in our Standings. The Angels, Colts, Pistons, Steelers and Spurs have ranked in our top 10 in each of the past three years. What do they have in common? First, homegrown and hardworking players. Second, committed owners and smart GMs who don't mind spending money but who don't stretch their budgets so far that average fans can't afford to support their spending. And third -- well, what do you know! -- they're financially successful. The value of these five franchises climbed an average of 13.4 percent last year, and they made a collective $81.4 million in profits.
These teams all have learned well the lesson you can see in action every time the Sabres take the ice: invest in fans, and we'll pay you back.
Financial analysis by The Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon: Melynda Stein, Brian McHugh, David Hobbie, Professor Dennis Howard, Kimberley Saunders, Jennifer Wagner, Jared Schoening, Kevin Snyder and Brett Lentz. Polling by Markitecture, Inc. Team rankings by Morty Ain, Jason Catania, Andy Kamenetzky, Brian Kamenetzky, Molly Knight and Eddie Matz.
"But is it valid? Reliable? Generalizable?...."
-Some Academic
-Some Academic
Who dat say dey gonna move dem Saints?
Louisiana, Saints drop exit clauses
Associated Press
BATON ROUGE, La. — The New Orleans Saints have come to an agreement with state officials that will keep the team in Louisiana through the 2010 season.
Both sides agreed to toss out contract exit clauses that would have let the NFL team leave the state within the next four years.
"For the foreseeable future, Louisiana's team will keep marching to victory right here," Gov. Kathleen Blanco said at the Governor's Mansion on Monday, announcing the latest developments in ongoing negotiations to keep the Saints in New Orleans.
The contract had allowed the Saints to opt out of its current deal with the state by repaying about $70 million the state has provided in inducements to the team. But the Saints will drop that termination clause, and the state will eliminate its ability to opt out of the contract.
Both sides agreed to continue negotiating on a long-term agreement that could keep the Saints in New Orleans beyond the current contract.
Saints owner Tom Benson is "committed over the next four years to get a long-term deal done here and to stay here forever," said team spokesman Greg Bensel.
The current $186.5 million contract with the Saints was negotiated in 2001 by former Gov. Mike Foster's administration and involves making annual payments to the team on top of other subsidies through 2010.
Those state payments will continue. Blanco said she didn't agree to give the Saints any more money — but ongoing upgrades to the Saints' home stadium, the New Orleans Superdome, will continue.
Hurricane Katrina caused extensive damage to the Superdome in 2005. The state repaired the domed stadium and invested another $185 million into improvements and upgrades long sought by Benson.
Benson was in Phoenix on Monday for the NFL owners' meeting and was not at the Governor's Mansion for the announcement of the contract changes.
Louisiana, Saints drop exit clausesAssociated Press
BATON ROUGE, La. — The New Orleans Saints have come to an agreement with state officials that will keep the team in Louisiana through the 2010 season.
Both sides agreed to toss out contract exit clauses that would have let the NFL team leave the state within the next four years.
"For the foreseeable future, Louisiana's team will keep marching to victory right here," Gov. Kathleen Blanco said at the Governor's Mansion on Monday, announcing the latest developments in ongoing negotiations to keep the Saints in New Orleans.
The contract had allowed the Saints to opt out of its current deal with the state by repaying about $70 million the state has provided in inducements to the team. But the Saints will drop that termination clause, and the state will eliminate its ability to opt out of the contract.
Both sides agreed to continue negotiating on a long-term agreement that could keep the Saints in New Orleans beyond the current contract.
Saints owner Tom Benson is "committed over the next four years to get a long-term deal done here and to stay here forever," said team spokesman Greg Bensel.
The current $186.5 million contract with the Saints was negotiated in 2001 by former Gov. Mike Foster's administration and involves making annual payments to the team on top of other subsidies through 2010.
Those state payments will continue. Blanco said she didn't agree to give the Saints any more money — but ongoing upgrades to the Saints' home stadium, the New Orleans Superdome, will continue.
Hurricane Katrina caused extensive damage to the Superdome in 2005. The state repaired the domed stadium and invested another $185 million into improvements and upgrades long sought by Benson.
Benson was in Phoenix on Monday for the NFL owners' meeting and was not at the Governor's Mansion for the announcement of the contract changes.
Major League city? Or just provincial?
Triple-A era closing in Canada
Canadian Press
The Vancouver Canadians were the first to leave, down to Sacramento after the 1999 season. Three years later it was the Calgary Cannons, headed to Albuquerque. The Edmonton Trappers became the Round Rock Express two years after that.
Once the Ottawa Lynx move to Allentown, Pa., following the 2007 season, the demise of triple-A baseball in Canada will be complete. In just eight short years four franchises firmly entrenched in their communities, built on solid foundations, will have disappeared.
The Vancouver Canadians, reborn as a single-A club, will soon be the country's last affiliated minor-league club. Winnipeg, Calgary and Edmonton have franchises in the independent Northern League.
Along with the Toronto Blue Jays, only five pro ball teams will call Canada home in 2008.
"It's not an easy situation when most of your partners are based in the United States," says Branch B. Rickey, owner and president of the Pacific Coast League, which was home to the clubs in Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton.
Adds Blue Jays pitcher Scott Downs, who graduated to the Montreal Expos - now the Washington Nationals - in 2004 after playing in Ottawa and Edmonton: "They were great places to play. It's sad to see minor-league baseball dwindling in Canada."
There are no simple answers to how, or why, no common formula that would have changed things. Geographic isolation, travel issues and aging facilities left the three PCL clubs prone to predatory buyers from more motivated baseball markets in the U.S., and now all three clubs rank in the top-five for minor-league attendance among the 176 teams across the continent.
Ottawa, which plays in the International League, faced fewer challenges but people just stopped going to games and couldn't be lured back. The Lynx will play out the string next summer stocked with the Philadelphia Phillies prospects who will move on to Allentown.
"All of the challenges (in Ottawa) could have been overcome with better attendance," says Randy Mobley, president of the International League. "It has nothing to do with geography, nothing to do with the travel, nothing to do with the Canadian economy.
"The main problem was they couldn't draw 6,000-7,000 fans a night."
But there were larger issues, too.
Major-league teams have never been as demanding of their triple-A affiliates as they are now. They want top-notch facilities, easy access to their players, less travel, worry-free living conditions.
Tampa Bay Devil Rays manager Joe Maddon recalls how when he was the Los Angeles Angels' roving hitting instructor and their triple-A club was in Vancouver, several players couldn't afford to pay their rent.
"The organization had to top them up for a while," he says. "Part of it is also the inconvenience of bringing players back and forth across the border if you need somebody rapidly."
There were troubles with the Canadian dollar, which was substantially weaker than the American greenback only a handful of years ago.
Travel costs for Edmonton, Vancouver and Calgary were also prohibitive, with several flights down to the southwestern U.S., and vice-versa for the rest of the league. Concerns about making connecting flights, weather delays, lost luggage and border issues left the league worried about teams arriving late or missing games.
"There was a lot of money at risk," says Rickey, who oversaw all three departures. "There was an extraordinary intersection of opportunity and availability in these three cases."
Vancouver lost its team when ownership in Sacramento approached Rickey and said it had promises of a new stadium from the city and was looking for a team that could be convinced to sell and would be easy to move.
A similar scenario played out in Calgary, when the sting of losing its team to Portland prompted Albuquerque, N.M., to build a stadium and seek out another club.
Alone in Canada, Edmonton was a sitting duck for the buyers from Round Rock, Texas led by Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan, who wanted a triple-A team to replace the double-A club it already owned in the city. The double-A team was moved to Corpus Christi once the triple-A club arrived.
In each instance, the prospective buyers were pointed north as the viability of running a PCL team in Canada diminished. Despite being longstanding fixtures in their communities, the Canadians (1978-99), Trappers (1981-2004) and Cannons (1985-2002) were surprisingly easy to uproot. Their moves were met with little to no resistance.
"Honestly, I would have to admit that's the case," says Rickey.
The Lynx, on the other hand, struggled for years before another suitor came calling for them.
They set International League attendance records when the began play in 1993, averaging nearly 10,000 fans a game. But those numbers steadily declined into the 2,000-range as apathy inexplicably grew toward the team.
"I've thought long and hard about that, I don't have a simple answer for that, I wish I did," says Mobley. "If we could have identified a single issue, we would have tried to address it.
"There were several factors but the predominant one is that spending the night at a triple-A game was not a high priority for the people of the Ottawa area."
Owner Ray Pecor did not return a message seeking comment and has yet to publicly confirm his sale of the club to businessmen in Allentown. Mobley confirms that there's an agreement and approvals in place with a closing date of November 2007.
Travel, by bus, wasn't a problem for the Lynx and crossing the border was not a major problem. There were no geographical issues that made having Ottawa an inconvenience for the other clubs.
"The weather wasn't always the best but we had good fans, they were fun places to play," says Downs. "Edmonton was one of my favourite places to play. I was able to spend a year and a half there and the fans were unbelievable.
"The weather was a little cold but other than that I enjoyed it."
Few former players and coaches have a bad thing to say about their experience in Canada.
"I truly enjoy the Canadian people," says Maddon. "By nature they're very polite, very hospitable. "They treated us great."
But for business reasons, it's unlikely triple-A baseball will be back in Canada anytime soon.
"Certainly there are scenarios that could be extremely favourable to doing so," says Rickey. "I don't think it's in the foreseeable future."
Adds Mobley: "I wouldn't say never but I don't see it happening. I have no reason to believe that may happen."
Triple-A era closing in CanadaCanadian Press
The Vancouver Canadians were the first to leave, down to Sacramento after the 1999 season. Three years later it was the Calgary Cannons, headed to Albuquerque. The Edmonton Trappers became the Round Rock Express two years after that.
Once the Ottawa Lynx move to Allentown, Pa., following the 2007 season, the demise of triple-A baseball in Canada will be complete. In just eight short years four franchises firmly entrenched in their communities, built on solid foundations, will have disappeared.
The Vancouver Canadians, reborn as a single-A club, will soon be the country's last affiliated minor-league club. Winnipeg, Calgary and Edmonton have franchises in the independent Northern League.
Along with the Toronto Blue Jays, only five pro ball teams will call Canada home in 2008.
"It's not an easy situation when most of your partners are based in the United States," says Branch B. Rickey, owner and president of the Pacific Coast League, which was home to the clubs in Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton.
Adds Blue Jays pitcher Scott Downs, who graduated to the Montreal Expos - now the Washington Nationals - in 2004 after playing in Ottawa and Edmonton: "They were great places to play. It's sad to see minor-league baseball dwindling in Canada."
There are no simple answers to how, or why, no common formula that would have changed things. Geographic isolation, travel issues and aging facilities left the three PCL clubs prone to predatory buyers from more motivated baseball markets in the U.S., and now all three clubs rank in the top-five for minor-league attendance among the 176 teams across the continent.
Ottawa, which plays in the International League, faced fewer challenges but people just stopped going to games and couldn't be lured back. The Lynx will play out the string next summer stocked with the Philadelphia Phillies prospects who will move on to Allentown.
"All of the challenges (in Ottawa) could have been overcome with better attendance," says Randy Mobley, president of the International League. "It has nothing to do with geography, nothing to do with the travel, nothing to do with the Canadian economy.
"The main problem was they couldn't draw 6,000-7,000 fans a night."
But there were larger issues, too.
Major-league teams have never been as demanding of their triple-A affiliates as they are now. They want top-notch facilities, easy access to their players, less travel, worry-free living conditions.
Tampa Bay Devil Rays manager Joe Maddon recalls how when he was the Los Angeles Angels' roving hitting instructor and their triple-A club was in Vancouver, several players couldn't afford to pay their rent.
"The organization had to top them up for a while," he says. "Part of it is also the inconvenience of bringing players back and forth across the border if you need somebody rapidly."
There were troubles with the Canadian dollar, which was substantially weaker than the American greenback only a handful of years ago.
Travel costs for Edmonton, Vancouver and Calgary were also prohibitive, with several flights down to the southwestern U.S., and vice-versa for the rest of the league. Concerns about making connecting flights, weather delays, lost luggage and border issues left the league worried about teams arriving late or missing games.
"There was a lot of money at risk," says Rickey, who oversaw all three departures. "There was an extraordinary intersection of opportunity and availability in these three cases."
Vancouver lost its team when ownership in Sacramento approached Rickey and said it had promises of a new stadium from the city and was looking for a team that could be convinced to sell and would be easy to move.
A similar scenario played out in Calgary, when the sting of losing its team to Portland prompted Albuquerque, N.M., to build a stadium and seek out another club.
Alone in Canada, Edmonton was a sitting duck for the buyers from Round Rock, Texas led by Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan, who wanted a triple-A team to replace the double-A club it already owned in the city. The double-A team was moved to Corpus Christi once the triple-A club arrived.
In each instance, the prospective buyers were pointed north as the viability of running a PCL team in Canada diminished. Despite being longstanding fixtures in their communities, the Canadians (1978-99), Trappers (1981-2004) and Cannons (1985-2002) were surprisingly easy to uproot. Their moves were met with little to no resistance.
"Honestly, I would have to admit that's the case," says Rickey.
The Lynx, on the other hand, struggled for years before another suitor came calling for them.
They set International League attendance records when the began play in 1993, averaging nearly 10,000 fans a game. But those numbers steadily declined into the 2,000-range as apathy inexplicably grew toward the team.
"I've thought long and hard about that, I don't have a simple answer for that, I wish I did," says Mobley. "If we could have identified a single issue, we would have tried to address it.
"There were several factors but the predominant one is that spending the night at a triple-A game was not a high priority for the people of the Ottawa area."
Owner Ray Pecor did not return a message seeking comment and has yet to publicly confirm his sale of the club to businessmen in Allentown. Mobley confirms that there's an agreement and approvals in place with a closing date of November 2007.
Travel, by bus, wasn't a problem for the Lynx and crossing the border was not a major problem. There were no geographical issues that made having Ottawa an inconvenience for the other clubs.
"The weather wasn't always the best but we had good fans, they were fun places to play," says Downs. "Edmonton was one of my favourite places to play. I was able to spend a year and a half there and the fans were unbelievable.
"The weather was a little cold but other than that I enjoyed it."
Few former players and coaches have a bad thing to say about their experience in Canada.
"I truly enjoy the Canadian people," says Maddon. "By nature they're very polite, very hospitable. "They treated us great."
But for business reasons, it's unlikely triple-A baseball will be back in Canada anytime soon.
"Certainly there are scenarios that could be extremely favourable to doing so," says Rickey. "I don't think it's in the foreseeable future."
Adds Mobley: "I wouldn't say never but I don't see it happening. I have no reason to believe that may happen."
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