In New York, Phil Mushnick writes, "A chat with [Devils
Owner John] McMullen provides little hope that the Devils will
remain in Jersey." McMullen, in an exclusive interview with the
N.Y. POST: "You have to understand that a modern franchise needs
an active stream of revenue to survive. A franchise needs
support from the area it serves. No one seems to understand
this. ... Everyone's now concentrating on what I'm doing wrong.
I don't think that's fair. The [NJ] Sports Authority has
significant support and a better public-relations machine than I
have" (N.Y. POST, 6/21). A front-page Bergen RECORD piece this
weekend examined the differences between Brendan Byrne Arena and
other "state-of-the-art" arenas around the league, such as the
United Center in Chicago. Hirsch & Fitzgerald write, "Although
it looks like a spaceship next to the New Jersey Turnpike, Byrne
Arena is a dinosaur" (Bergen RECORD, 6/18).
ALSO: The TENNESSEAN continues its monthly update on
the construction of the city's new 20,000-seat arena. The
latest installement: the roof (Mark Ippolito, Nashville
TENNESSEAN, 6/19)....ESPN's Keith Olbermann: "The latest
word out of sources around the NHL is that the Nashville
thing is not done. So it might be a big week in New Jersey
hockey history" ("SportsCenter," ESPN, 6/20).
