By MIKE HEIKA
The Dallas Morning News
The group of lenders serving as owner of the Stars is seriously considering naming an interim president to help guide the team, according to a source close to the sale of the franchise. A decision could come by the end of the week.
According to the source, the move could be seen as a sign that the lenders are content to run the team for the remainder of the season. The source also said it's more a matter of doing what's best for the Stars in the event a sale does not happen.
Former Stars president Jeff Cogen left the team in August for the Nashville Predators . With no contract extension or sign of a new owner, Cogen decided he needed to be open to a new challenge with a different team. As such, the Stars have been operating without a president and have been run by three executive vice presidents. There also is input from the executive committee of the lenders, as well as the NHL.
According to an NHL source, three people have been approved by the league to look at the Stars' books and study a possible offer to buy the team. However, they have not come close to meeting the price that would satisfy the lenders, who took over the team after Hicks Sports Group defaulted on $525 million worth of loans that were used to purchase and run the Stars and the Texas Rangers.
That means the lenders could continue to run the team for the remainder of the season in hopes that either a strong run in the playoffs or a change in the economic environment could entice buyers to raise their bids.
The Stars have been running on the monies collected in the summer through ticket sales, advertising and television revenue, but those monies could run out in December, said a team source.
The Stars have talked to the NHL about getting an advance on future money that is normally collected by teams after the season, but the lenders may have to be prepared to start covering potential losses as soon as December, according to the source close to the sale of the franchise.
That would be one reason to bring in a president who would report directly to the lenders' executive committee. Another reason would be so the lenders could make the Stars a more attractive product by either increasing ticket sales, advertising sales or improving the performance on the ice.
The source said the lenders would look to hire an interim president who has the credentials to possibly carry on in the position once a new owner is found. The source also said the interim president would provide a bridge between Stars general manager Joe Nieuwendyk and the lenders.
The lenders would consider making the Stars better this season, if it made sense on the ice and financially, said the source.
Nieuwendyk is operating on an internal payroll of $45 million this season and has pretty much pushed that to the max. Any move he might want to make to acquire a player would include trading away a similar salary or getting approval from the lenders to increase the budget.
