Flames President Ron Bremner "has no doubts his
franchise will qualify" this season for the reported $2.5M
NHL subsidy for small-market Canadian teams, according to
George Johnson of the CALGARY SUN. Bremner: "The league can
come in and do a proper audit of the guts of your business.
But I'm confident that under one or more of those criteria,
we'll be there" (George Johnson, CALGARY SUN, 5/29). In
Edmonton, Oilers Exec VP Doug Piper said that the Oilers
were less than 1,000 seats shy of the 13,000 needed by the
end of the month (Jac MacDonald, EDMONTON JOURNAL, 5/29).
SUPER: In Pittsburgh, Joe Starkey reported that Mario
Lemieux, "determined to collect the money the Penguins owe
him," has filed a grievance against the team through the
NHLPA. The grievance, filed at the end of March, means that
the matter "could go to an arbitrator" if Lemieux and the
Penguins can't settle (Pittsburgh TRIBUNE-REVIEW, 5/28).
NOTE: The Sabres announced that season tickets will
increase $1-2 per ticket for the '98-99 season, while window
prices for next year will be raised from $1-6 (Sabres).
