Islanders Owner John Spano "late last night signed an
agreement to relinquish his ownership of the team," and
sources close to the situation said NHL Commissioner Gary
Bettman would announce the move today, according to Valenti,
Kessler & Zipay of NEWSDAY. The agreement followed a full
day of meetings with lawyers representing Spano, former
Owner John Pickett, attorneys for the NHL, Bettman, and
representatives of MA-based Fleet Bank, which lent Spano
$80M to buy the team (NEWSDAY, 7/11). Spano: "I just
decided it's not worth it anymore. ... What it amounts to is
that it's not worth the fight" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 7/11).
Bettman will address the media today at 2:00pm ET (NHL). In
N.Y., Colin Stephenson writes "the Islanders future on Long
Island has to be called into question," as Pickett's "stated
intention ... is simply to sell it to someone else.
Naturally there is no guarantee that a new owner wouldn't
move the team off Long Island" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 7/11). The
POST's Peter Botte writes that Spano "quite possibly now
could be facing criminal charges, as the U.S. Attorney's
office is believed to be collecting information to ascertain
whether any of his actions constitute enough evidence to
charge him with fraud" (N.Y. POST, 7/11).
ALL QUIET ON THE BETTMAN FRONT: The N.Y. TIMES' Joe
Lapointe writes on Bettman's role in the Spano affair.
Lapointe: "Since the story about missed payments broke last
month, Bettman has offered no public explanation of a
situation that embarrasses his league during a time of rapid
expansion. He has given only a curt 'no comment' through a
spokesman on a matter of great importance involving a high-
profile entertainment business in the contingent's biggest
market. ... Why is the commissioner so good at staging news
conferences to hype product, but not at discussing a serious
issue facing his league?" (N.Y. TIMES, 7/11).
