The NHL Board of Governors approved the Panthers request for
a public offering of shares in the team at a board meeting in New
York. In response to the widespread tossing of rats on the ice
in Florida during Panthers games, the board implemented a two-
minute delay of game penalty to home teams if their fans litter
the ice with any object, except in the case of a hat-trick (NHL).
TALKING EXPANSION: In Toronto, Dave Fuller notes Nashville,
Oklahoma City and Houston have applied for expansion franchises,
while the league "expects to have at least four more applications
during the next few months." The entry price is expected to be
between $75-80M, while the league will decide by November 1
whether to allow franchise admittance for next season (TORONTO
SUN, 9/26). Most NHL clubs favor expansion of four teams by
2000, but a "powerful core group is opposed to expansion,"
according to William Houston of the Toronto GLOBE & MAIL. The
"anti-expansion" group includes the Blackhawks, Rangers, Canucks,
Red Wings, and Panthers. Houston notes in a compromise to these
teams, expansion may be slowed to a schedule of one new club
every two years (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 9/26).
