HABS DEAL NEAR: Molson said the company is in the final
stages of negotiating the sale of the Canadiens, and expects
a sale by the end of the year (FINANCIAL POST, 11/30).
OWNERSHIP ISSUE FOR EXPOS: In Montreal, Jack Todd
writes that Expos Managing General Partner Jeffrey Loria and
Expos Exec VP David Samson "are coming back for more but
what does that mean? That they want to be here? Or that
[MLB Commissioner Bud] Selig won't allow them to move?"
Todd cites a letter Selig wrote to a local Expos fan in
September where he stated he believes "local ownership" is
the key to the Expos future. Todd: "Say what? The commish
is supposed to be reviewing the business plan that would see
the limited partners sell their interest in the club to
Loria - and meanwhile he's saying that 'local ownership' is
the solution?" (Montreal GAZETTE, 11/30).
NFL: In Jacksonville, John Oehser reports that the
first-ever TV blackout for a home Jaguars game is "likely"
for Sunday's game against the Browns. The team is 2,200
ticket sales short from lifting the blackout. Jaguars VP &
CFO Bill Prescott said that 600 tickets were sold yesterday,
but barring an "unexpected surge in ticket sales," the
blackout would occur (FL TIMES-UNION, 11/30)....Despite the
Saints' 8-4 start, the team has 3,000 unsold tickets for
Sunday's game against the Broncos, practically guaranteeing
the game will be blacked out (ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, 11/30).
NOTES: 76ers President Pat Croce, on the team being
ranked No. 7 on Forbes' NBA '00 franchise valuation list: "I
don't know how they calculate it, but any time any
Philadelphia team is near the top of a list like that, it's
great" (PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, 11/30)....ESPN's Peter
Gammons, on free agent SS Alex Rodriguez: "Even the people
around him have no idea where he's going. ... Can [a team]
ensure winning, which is very important to Rodriguez, and
can they kind of give him that star status. Are they going
to be able to make him a Michael [Jordan]. Are they ever
going to be able to make him a Tiger [Woods]? Is he going
to be able to get his own sitcom?" ("SportsCenter," 11/29).
...In N.Y., Eric Lipton reports that the Mets Single A, New
York-Penn League team will be named the Brooklyn Cyclones.
Mets co-Owner Fred Wilpon, Brooklyn Baseball Exec VP Jeff
Wilpon, and N.Y. Mayor Rudy Giuliani announced the name,
picked from 7,000 entries, from the construction site of the
Cyclones' new 6,500-seat ballpark. Giuliani said that the
ballpark will cost around $35M-40M (N.Y. TIMES, 11/30).
