The proposed trade that would send Islanders' RW Ziggy
Palffy to the Rangers "was all but killed" yesterday when
Islanders co-Owners Howard Milstein and Steven Gluckstern
"demanded that Cablevision evade the $2.5 million cash
ceiling in player trades previously imposed by [NHL
Commissioner] Gary Bettman by dramatically increasing the
rights fees it pays to televise Islander games," according
to sources of Larry Brooks of the N.Y. POST. Brooks adds
that the Islanders "currently receive between" $13-14M
annually in its TV deal with Cablevision. Brooks' sources
also suggest that Milstein and Gluckstern "demanded that
Cablevision form a partnership with the Islanders for the
purpose of financing a new arena, and not necessarily within
Nassau County." Execs from the Islanders and Rangers
declined comment, though one "well-placed individual" close
to the situation called the amount of demands presented by
the Isles to Cablevision "a laundry list" (N.Y. POST, 6/16).
In N.Y., Dellapina & McCarron write that "the deal-breaker
... was a rumored demand by the Islanders that Cablevision
pledge financial help to build a new arena in Nassau County
-- as the company had pledged to help the Devils build a new
arena in Hoboken" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 6/16).
