In Raleigh, Luke DeCock writes it will be "hard to find anyone" other than Hurricanes Owner Tom Dundon who is "genuinely excited" about former interim GM Don Waddell taking the position on a permanent basis. Waddell is not a GM in the "traditional hockey sense of the job; he has neither the final word nor total power over the hockey operation." Waddell "knows how to do the job and has earned Dundon's trust, and that's all that's required or asked of him." Across the hockey world, Dundon is "seen as an owner who doesn't want to pay the going rate and has been unable to convince the game's rising stars to join his new experiment" (Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER, 5/9).
NEED SOME SPACE: In N.Y., Frank Isola writes until Knicks Owner James Dolan, President Steve Mills and GM Scott Perry give coach David Fizdale the "freedom and power to run the team his way and allow him to be the lone voice, we'll be back here in two years introducing another head coach." Knicks F Kristaps Porzingis "may not play next season and free agents aren't flocking" to N.Y. to "play for a loser." Fizdale "has to change that." The Knicks "need to give him space and a chance to do that" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 5/9).
ROYAL DECREE: In Salt Lake City, Maddie Lee notes the NWSL Utah Royals "rank second in attendance" at 11,733 per game, behind the Portland Thorns at 15,668. Real Salt Lake Owner Dell Loy Hansen, who also owns the Royals, "set rivaling Portland in attendance as a goal when he acquired the team." But it is "unlikely the Royals will meet it this season." However, RSL Chief Business Officer Andy Carroll said that he "expects to see an increase in attendance to an average of 10,000-12,000 by the end of the season." The Royals "put out an aggressive advertising plan that used" the Utah Transit Authority, billboards, radio, TV and digital media to "spread the word about the team" (SALT LAKE TRIBUNE, 5/9).
