A motion filed Friday by bankruptcy trustee R. Todd Nielson
offered a "glimpse into the struggles of the cash-starved" L.A.
Kings, according to Lisa Dillman of the L.A. TIMES. The team's
"already shaky finances" had been bolstered during the season by
Lakers Owner Jerry Buss and the NHL, but the situation "entered a
new realm of chaos in the spring." Court papers also show that
the interim financing provided to the team by a group headed by
Philip Anschutz and Edward Roski can go only towards refunds to
season-ticket holders, payroll taxes and payroll, amounts owed to
the NHL and Bank of America and "other necessary debts."
Meanwhile, there is a "serious mandate" from the NHL that the
team be sold as quickly as possible, with the Anschutz-Roski
group and another group headed by Buss as the leading contenders.
There is also the possibility that the team "could still slide
into a bankrutpcy proceeding" (L.A. TIMES, 7/15). Columnist Mike
Downey calls the Kings a "flesh-and-blood Monopoly board of
people being told to sell, pay or go to directly to jail" (L.A.
TIMES, 7/16).
