In St. Paul, Charley Walters writes that Wednesday's
Coyotes-Stars game at the Target Center, sponsored by the
expansion NHL Wild, is "expected to attract a sellout crowd
of 18,000 ... which will be a record attendance" for an NHL
game in MN (ST. PAUL PIONEER-PRESS, 9/29). The title
sponsor for the game will be U.S. West, and the presenting
sponsors are KARE-TV and the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. The
game will also have 15 corporate partners (Wild)....The
expansion ABL Chicago Condors had sold 409 season tickets as
of last Friday (SUN-TIMES, 9/29)....Disney CEO Michael
Eisner, asked if family-owned sports franchises are a thing
of the past: "It would be horrible if sports wasn't
available to family ownership. These economics don't work
no matter what people say. Eventually sanity will come
back. ... It's never the player's fault or the agent's fault
that these big contracts get done. It's the fault of the
owners. You don't have to pay these big salaries"
("Fabulous Sports Babe," 9/28)....The Reds will change their
uniforms for the '99 season by going to black shoes, adding
a black cap with a red visor and wishbone "C," and by going
to vests on the road. The white-pinstriped caps worn at
home will no longer be used (CINCINNATI POST, 9/29).