Coyotes confirm they're talking with potential investor

PHOENIX - The Arizona Coyotes, responding to a media report of a new majority owner and trying to reassure nervous fans, said Thursday that the team is talking with a potential investor who would join existing owners.

The Coyotes, often rumored to be leaving Glendale, did not identify the potential investor in the team's statement but indicated that any new investment would bring stability to the team in Arizona.

The New York Post, relying on unnamed sources, reported that Andrew Barroway, a Philadelphia hedge-fund manager, plans to buy a 51% stake in IceArizona, the team's management entity.

Barroway had been trying to buy the New York Islanders.

The Coyotes' statement said they have made no deal, but the current ownership group has had discussions with an unsolicited investor.

The team's statement went on to say:

"This should be viewed as an incredibly positive development and is due to the successful first year of IceArizona's ownership. This is all about the long-term stability and viability of the franchise in Arizona."

Coyotes owners did not respond to requests for additional comment.

Reports about the potential new owner spread from New York to Glendale, which has struggled to keep the team as its anchor for the newly named Gila River Arena.

NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly did not confirm Barroway's pursuit of the Coyotes when reached via e-mail, but he also didn't shoot down the idea of an ownership negotiation.

"There should be no concern about ownership," Daly wrote. "It is and will be strong and committed."

Daly reiterated that moving the franchise isn't on anyone's radar, which would suggest that keeping the team in Arizona is the intent of whatever ownership group is in charge.

"Nobody is considering relocation," Daly wrote.

Glendale City Councilman Gary Sherwood said he was caught off guard by the report.

He said he was investigating whether the city's management agreement with IceArizona was transferable if a new majority owner took over the Coyotes.

'A little nervous'

"I know the fans are a little nervous and thinking that maybe Anthony (LeBlanc, the Coyotes' president) is selling the team, but that's not close to what's going on," Sherwood said.

"This would be an infusion of more money into the club, allowing them to do more. They're not going anyplace."

The Coyotes were first thrust into bankruptcy in 2009 and weren't rescued until last August when IceArizona, a nine-person ownership group, purchased the club from the league for $170 million.

The sale came in conjunction with a 15-year, $225 million deal with Glendale to manage Gila River Arena — an agreement that called for the city to pay IceArizona $15 million a year while the city was to receive about $9 million a year from the ownership group.

If IceArizona's losses reach $50 million after five years, it can leave Arizona.

LeBlanc said earlier this summer that IceArizona hit its hockey attendance goals in its first year of ownership but did not fill the arena with enough concerts and other events.

IceArizona expects the team to be profitable in its third year of ownership, he said.

The Coyotes do not have to report their hockey revenue.

The NHL paid $140 million to buy the team out of bankruptcy five years ago.

Peter Corbett and Sarah Mclellan write for the Arizona Republic