News Article: Lightning working on sale for value close to $2 Billion

[Todd1a]

Wonder if this has anything to do with his divorce?

I imagine he’s going to have to cut her a big check for sure

This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Vinik didn't die or anything. Can we PLEASE get someone to buy the Rays?

This is terrible news watch this team cut payroll when the new group takes over there going to want to see a bigger profit

 

[bigdaddio]

I hope he is in good health and this is not a move to ease out of operating the team. I can say with confidence losing Vinik would be the worst thing for this team and region, worse than Stamkos leaving for sure.

Mr. Vinik is a model that all sports ownership should strive for. And a note to the cheapstakes across the bay, Mr. Vinik made his real money in the team's valuation, which increased more than 10 fold. He was not counting nickels at the turnstile.

Tampa Bay Rays on the Forbes MLB Team Valuations List

Tampa Bay Rays #27 on the Forbes MLB Team Valuations List

www.forbes.com

Tampa Bay Lightning on the Forbes The Business of Hockey List

Tampa Bay Lightning #13 on the Forbes The Business of Hockey List

www.forbes.com

Note one team maximizing operating income. The other team increased value a lot more in less time. One team is loved. The other has ownership who is hated.

 

[TampaIceman]

He was the owner we needed to build the team and fanbase but no one is going to pay for a majority share on a $2b valuation then run the team into the ground. Plus with the salary cap almost every team is at around the cap max anyway so cutting payroll isn’t a huge concern. I actually think it might be a good thing to get new blood. To a certain degree it seems like the fans and sellouts are kind of taken for granted lately. For example there hasn’t been a pre-season fan fest, or Bolts Carnival or anything like that for a few years and you can’t blame Covid anymore.

 

[Hoek]

Came here for the misinformed panic, wasn't disappointed.

 

[Todd1a]

A new owner is the unknown we just don’t know what is going to happen so we’ll see

 

[Lightning1995]

This is devastating news, the “control for a few years and significant ownership thereafter” is all window dressing. Once the sale takes place there will be a handshake with new ownership on any significant deals. No private equity or bank is financing a non controlling ownership at these levels. Then the “official” transition occurs.

Vinik will retain a minority stake for PR purposes. His name is valuable and it improves the teams value. I’m sure Vinik wants to remain involved but let’s be honest if he doesn’t like the direction he will just bail. I’m sure there will be a put on Viniks minority shares.

This is the end of an era with the greatest owner in Tampa bay history gradually existing the franchise. I have no way of knowing but I imagine the divorce is a major factor.

There’s no spinning this, it sucks. Hopefully Vinik will find an owner that we can get behind but at the end of the day he will sell to the buyer that pays the most and can execute. The Lightning will never be the same.

 

[Rschmitz]

Came here for the misinformed panic, wasn't disappointed.

I think extreme concern is the appropriate response considering the impact he’s had in the area. When he first got here he talked about being a permanent fixture in the community, the fact that is no longer the case isn’t something to dismiss. Going from best owner in sports to unknown would be easier to stomach if we knew more

 

[Felonious Python]

The Friedman article

Those sources stressed the deal is not done yet, adding there will be no immediate change of ownership control and no change in the day-to-day operations of the team.

What does 'immediate' mean here? There are multiple ways to interpret that.

'There will be no immediate change of ownership control' (as in, it's delayed).

versus

'There are no immediate plans of changing ownership control' (meaning that there are no plans, but using some hedging language).


You can say the first line, but mean the second.

If Friedman had a 'Vinik to sell majority stake' or 'Vinik to phase out of majority ownership' article, he'd probably have gone with that. Instead, the headline is about franchise valuation.

 

[Todd1a]

Remember when I said oh no vinik is getting divorced?

I hope he doesn’t sell the team i think the divorce is definitely the reason. Basically Vinik has been selling all his business to probably protect his partners from the ex wife soon to be

This is devastating news, the “control for a few years and significant ownership thereafter” is all window dressing. Once the sale takes place there will be a handshake with new ownership on any significant deals. No private equity or bank is financing a non controlling ownership at these levels. Then the “official” transition occurs.

Vinik will retain a minority stake for PR purposes. His name is valuable and it improves the teams value. I’m sure Vinik wants to remain involved but let’s be honest if he doesn’t like the direction he will just bail. I’m sure there will be a put on Viniks minority shares.

This is the end of an era with the greatest owner in Tampa bay history gradually existing the franchise. I have no way of knowing but I imagine the divorce is a major factor.

There’s no spinning this, it sucks. Hopefully Vinik will find an owner that we can get behind but at the end of the day he will sell to the buyer that pays the most and can execute. The Lightning will never be the same.

Definitely Jeff Vinik has been the best sports owner In tampa bay ever. This seems similar selling to a sports group like the Penguins sold too and look at them now .

Jeff Vinik getting out while the value is how and before the team has to go through a rebuild in the coming years .

 

[Todd1a]

What the heck the new sale will be down in a multi stage process according to Friedman? So that mean probably for 1-2 years vinik is majority owner then probably after the 2025-2026 season he completes the sell off fully ?

 

[Todd1a]

 

[T REX]

Need more info. Gotta wonder what the terms of the divorce are...it is not uncommon during a major corporate sale to have a major stakeholder stay on for a designated time period to help with transition.

IMHO, this is bad news. Best owner in sports. Huge loss to the Bolts and Tampa.

We will see how it unfolds but this is common with a major sell off like this.

 

[Fan from AK]

Absolutely horrible we have the best owner in the league makes sense why vinik let Stamkos walk now

"Best owner in the league"????? The best owner of ALL professional sports!!!!

 

[FinnLightning26]

Well I hope the new owner isn't someone like Elon Musk who renames the team to Tampa Bay X and f***s everything up throughout the organization.

 

[These Are The Days]

Well I hope the new owner isn't someone like Elon Musk who renames the team to Tampa Bay X and f***s everything up throughout the organization.

I hate you for speaking this into existence

 

[StammerHammer]

Well I hope the new owner isn't someone like Elon Musk who renames the team to Tampa Bay X and f***s everything up throughout the organization.

He could get some additional advertising from the Tesla coils.

 

[These Are The Days]

For what it's worth. If the new ownership sucks, we can all just leave Amalie in droves like we did to those ignorant twits at OK hockey. Just tank the shit out of the team's value. I don't think Vinik would do that to us but we can absolutely force them to sell if they're bad

 

[Felonious Python]

Well I hope the new owner isn't someone like Elon Musk who renames the team to Tampa Bay X and f***s everything up throughout the organization.

I think psychological evaluations for very top roles needs to become a thing.

 

[Hoek]

For what it's worth. If the new ownership sucks, we can all just leave Amalie in droves like we did to those ignorant twits at OK hockey. Just tank the shit out of the team's value. I don't think Vinik would do that to us but we can absolutely force them to sell if they're bad

Team's lease at Amalie is up in 2037 so gotta make sure it doesn't tank around then I guess.

Maybe the new owner will finally let us get a true black retro.

 

[Felonious Python]

Elliotte Friedman dropped a surprise 32 Thoughts podcast.

32 Thoughts: The Podcast

Hockey fans already know the name, but this is not the blog. From Sportsnet, 32 Thoughts: The Podcast with NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman & Kyle Bukauskas is a weekly deep dive into the biggest news and interviews from the hockey world.

www.sportsnet.ca

Segment starts around 21 minutes

(paraphrasing) 'I do think in the short term, you'll see no real changes. Vinik is going to keep operating control. There will be no changes in the day-to-day operations of the franchise. Although I do think over time, though, Vinik is going to keep a significant ownership share, there is the chance that sometime in the future, that, I don't know if the structure will change, in terms of ownership, but Vinik may end up taking less of a role somewhere down the road. We'll see, but that's kind of where it stands right now.


It's basically the Twitter meme of endless qualifiers.

 

[Todd1a]

For what it's worth. If the new ownership sucks, we can all just leave Amalie in droves like we did to those ignorant twits at OK hockey. Just tank the shit out of the team's value. I don't think Vinik would do that to us but we can absolutely force them to sell if they're bad

We’ll see vinik is
Selling to a guy with an investment firm his goal won’t be to win Stanley cups his goal will be to put people in seats and make
Money

 

[Hoek]

We’ll see vinik is
Selling to a guy with an investment firm his goal won’t be to win Stanley cups his goal will be to put people in seats and make
Money

Well only way to do the latter consistently is to keep building a winner anyway...

I do wonder about the actual structure of this deal, because Vinik has already sold off other chunks, maybe nobody will really have a singular controlling interest, and that's why they're being all murky about his role. The Sportsnet article just says it's a multi stage process, while that radio show link is the only one saying it's a "majority stake." Vinik himself describes it as "expanding the ownership group"

 

[Todd1a]

If they break it off in chunks someone has
To be the chairman and representative the team and board of governors meetings. Basically maybe the new ownership group will have vinik be the chairman of the board if it’s many owners?

 

[Felonious Python]

Well only way to do the latter consistently is to keep building a winner anyway...

I do wonder about the actual structure of this deal, because Vinik has already sold off other chunks, maybe nobody will really have a singular controlling interest, and that's why they're being all murky about his role. The Sportsnet article just says it's a multi stage process, while that radio show link is the only one saying it's a "majority stake." Vinik himself describes it as "expanding the ownership group"

Majority stake doesn't mean the same thing as a controlling stake, unless there's some kind of NHL rule.

We know that he's selling only part of his share of the ownership of the team.

We're getting a bunch of sports guys (including us) talking about business, and that's not our area of focus.


Owning the majority of the team (over 50%) is good, because there can't be any hostile takeover. The thing is, you're essentially leasing a team from the NHL. They have to approve owners and transactions.

There also may be a clause in the deal that allows them to only sell back to Vinik. (I guess a sub-lease in this case)

 

[Outl4w]

I think Vinik knows where jbb has this team heading and is selling while he can get top value.