Thrashers owners begin negotiations with True North Entertainment

Your Atlanta Spirit/Courtesy: NBA.com

And the countdown starts now. According to published reports and to the surprise of very few people watching or reading, the Atlanta Spirit (owners of the Thrashers) have started negotiations with the folks from True North Entertainment based out of Winnipeg, Canada.

This story has been discussed at length, with OSG Sports telling everyone over a week ago that this was going to happen. The NHL has basically said: "Do what you need to, we won't get in the way".

And while we hate to see this, its inevitable now.

((**ed note--your favorite author was at this press conference and on the same riser as this photographer...oh how things change.))

Nobody in the Atlanta area appears willing to step up and invest in the team, which is unfortunate. We know there are plenty of people in the 8th largest TV market in America with the money if they choose to spend it.

More on the negotiations from Chris Vivlamore of AJC.com RIGHT HERE

Noah Coslov of CineSport caught up with Vivlamore hyah as well... Is it just the HQ thinking out loud, or did Viv get caught in the spare bedroom in the house doing the sit-down...???

We won't bore you with opining on this subject, mostly because we've already done it ad nauseum. At this point, we just wish they'd do it and get it over with.

We really do lament the fact that it's more of an ownership issue than a fan issue that is leading to the team leaving. We also know full well that the Thrash had trouble competing with the variety of other things to do in the Atlanta area, particularly in the late fall, that kept people away.

Of course the lack of investment, poor player development and pretty much no success on the ice didn't help things either.

You'll soon think of this when you think Thrashers, rather than the hockey team: