Franchise Notes

Last night's Avalanche-Blues game was postponed due to inclement weather, and in St. Louis, Jeremy Rutherford notes the NHL "had the final say" and made the decision "after having multiple conversations with" Blues Exec VP & GM Doug Armstrong and President of Hockey Operations John Davidson. Blues Enterprises Vice Chair & CEO Mike McCarthy: "The city advised us strongly to consider postponing the game, and we felt like this was the right decision." The Blues beginning Friday "will play 33 games in the final 65 days, or roughly one every other day," and McCarthy said, "We don't necessarily give ourselves a competitive edge with this (decision). We will have a tough schedule when this game is rescheduled, but we put the safety of our fans and staff and players first" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 2/2).

MARKING THEIR TERRITORY: In San Jose, Bruce Newman reports the Giants yesterday took the World Series trophy "to San Jose to mark their territorial rights in the most public way possible." A total of 2,375 fans visited Municipal Stadium, home of the Single-A California League San Jose Giants, where the World Series trophy was on display "for three hours." But Newman notes civic leaders "were in short supply in San Jose, where local officials have lined up in lock-step behind" A's Owner Lew Wolff's proposed move of his franchise to the city (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 2/2).

LOTS OF UNANSWERED QUESTIONS: In N.Y., Harvey Araton writes "after months of negotiations and continuing grapevine chatter," Mavericks G Jason Kidd said the "smartest thing ... about the Nets' long and supposedly aborted pursuit" of Nuggets F Carmelo Anthony. Kidd contended that NBA players "still consider the Nets a nowhere franchise and probably know as much about Brooklyn as they do about Egypt." Araton writes what Kidd was "astutely saying was that it was always unlikely that the Nets would be a destination for marquee players under present conditions because none of them could envision the new arena or its location," nor did they "have any idea of how it would fit into the New York metropolitan area's professional sports lineup." Araton: "Will the franchise's profile rise drastically within city limits? Or will an outer borough team be treated more like a suburban team (read: Nets, Devils, Islanders)?" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/2).

FINANCIAL WARNING: In London, Matt Hughes writes UEFA "fired a shot across the bows" of EPL clubs Chelsea and Manchester City yesterday by "warning them that their new Financial Fair Play regulations will be rigorously implemented." UEFA responded to the approximate $210M (all figures U.S.) spent by Chelsea and Liverpool on Monday, the final day player transfers are allowed this season. Hughes notes UEFA "will ban clubs, from the 2015 Champions League onwards, who record losses of more than" $61.6M in the preceding three years, a figure that Chelsea and Man City "have far exceeded in recent years" (LONDON TIMES, 2/2). Also in London, Jeremy Wilson writes the two clubs are "confident that they will meet" the rules (London TELEGRAPH, 2/2).