Re: NHL 2015, Part 3: Stanley Cup and Offseason
IIRC, the North Stars were held hostage. The City of St. Paul/State of MN wouldn't pay for a new barn, so the owner followed through on his threat and moved them to Dallas.
All of us are on the outside looking in. But my belief is that Green never intended to keep the team for the long haul. Rather, it was always about making a large short term profit, and not caring who he hurt in the process.
Note that Green sold the team relatively quickly after moving to Dallas. If the sexual harassment claim had been the key issue, he could have used the move as an opportunity to turn over a new leaf and live happily ever after as an NHL owner. On the ice, the team was on the rise. Instead, he sold for top dollar as soon as the opportunity arose.
It's important to say that the sexual harassment case was and is a serious matter. And I'm not doubting Pat Forciea's veracity. But as an actual motivation for the move? As far as I'm concerned, that's just noise -- if not intentional misinformation on Green's part. If Green had simply wanted to escape the stress of the harassment claim, it would have been preferable to sell to local interests and get out of town ASAP. But that would have been a fire sale. Translation: Lower sales price, less profit.
Met Center is part of the story in the sense that the team would have been worth more on the market with a better arena deal for ownership. Had the Twin Cities overcome the political hurdles and gotten a facility like the X built for the North Stars, Green would have been delighted to make his money by selling the team to Minnesotans. IMHO.
EDIT/CLARIFICATION: Overall, my theory is that he bought the team to move it. The move was happening unless there was a way to make even more money selling locally.
