He has come across the confidential agreement that got old owner Craig Leipold ((pictured, thanks thetennessean.com/George Walker IV)) out of owning the NHL's Nashville Predators and got the local consortium in as the owners.
There's one problem... Leipold and AEG, the parent company of the Los Angeles Kings, loaned "Boots" Del Biaggio 17 of the 30-million dollars that he pitched in to be part of the new sandbox.
Del Biaggio and his Forecheck Holdings outfit was in possession of 31-percent of the franchise until it was disclosed that Del Biaggio had apparently falsified financial records to make himself a bigger ((and more solvent)) player in the owning game than he was. Del Biaggio is currently chasing bankruptcy protection.
The Bettman is receiving a fair amount of flak these days because he was persuaded in some form or another not to perform his normal due diligence to check Del Biaggio's financial records before he was to become part of the frat.
Leipold also put in another $10-million in the form of a seller's note, and the new owners wanted Leipold to throw more money in ((or find another owner for the group)) if Del Biaggio's involvement disappeared. His original $10-million could have become $40-million.
And it ain't over...
"In contrast to the Del Biaggio loans, Leipold's $10 million seller's note to the Predators was disclosed in the purchase documents. That loan, which Freeman described as seller financing, along with an additional $20 million put in by the local owners, was intended to be a short-term loan.
The bank involved in the deal, CIT Group, had withheld $30 million in financing, pending the changes to the team's Sommet Center lease with Metro. But even after the more favorable lease terms were approved by the city in April, the $30 million didn't come through. So those notes to Leipold and the local group are still outstanding, though they were disclosed in the purchase documents."
The remainder of the Schrade article can be found hyah
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