Karmanos Nears Deal To Add 20-30 Investors For The Hurricanes

Karmanos looking to add investors to Hurricanes ownership group

Hurricanes Owner Peter Karmanos yesterday said that an "agreement to bring in as many as 20 to 30 investors could be finalized in the next three months," according to Chip Alexander of the Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER. Karmanos said that the investors are based in the Raleigh area and "would put up" from $1-3M apiece. He declined to identify the prospective investors. Karmanos has been "seeking investors to buy into the team" since Hurricanes co-Owner Thomas Thewes passed away in September '08. Karmanos noted that he used a $240M valuation for the team "in computing the ownership shares." He said that the "group of investors would own about 30 percent of the team and that he would retain the remaining 70 percent." In an interview during NHL All-Star weekend in Raleigh, Karmanos indicated that an "announcement on investors could come in the next three to six months, but the pace apparently accelerated" since then. Alexander notes Karmanos "slashed the team payroll this season, saying it would make the franchise more attractive to potential investors." But with the NHL trade deadline less than two weeks away, Karmanos yesterday said that he has authorized team GM Jim Rutherford to "make any moves, if necessary, to enhance the team's playoff chances." That "could add to the payroll" (Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER, 2/16).

STAYING IN TEXAS: In Dallas, Mike Heika wrote there is "no chance the Stars move at any time in the near future." Heika: "There are several teams in much worse financial shape. Phoenix, Atlanta, Florida, Nashville and maybe even Carolina are in worse shape than the Stars." American Airlines Center also is "seen as one of the top five most lucrative arenas" in the U.S., and the Stars "own half of American Airlines Center, so their value as a franchise is grounded in the fact they are in a good building in a good city." The Stars' lenders "want to maximize their value" in the sale of the team, but they "have to get the approval of the league to sell to someone who would move the team, and the league will not approve that." Heika: "Bottom line, the Stars will be in Dallas for many years to come" (DALLASNEWS.com, 2/14).