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Boston businessman Jeff Vinik buys the Lightning Print
Southeast
Written by Brett Friedlander   
Saturday, February 06, 2010 01:13
Southeast Division notebook:

The Atlanta Thrashers weren’t the only team in the Southeast Division to experience a franchise-changing transaction this week.

Unlike the trade that sent Atlanta captain Ilya Kovalchuck to the New Jersey Devils for three players and a draft pick, Tampa Bay’s deal will have a much greater impact off the ice.

There are still Is to dot and Ts to cross, along with approval from the NHL, but those are considered mere formalities to the sale of the Lightning to Boston financier Jeff Vinik.

The deal, which was announced Friday in a three-page statement, ends a year of financial turmoil in which the Lightning had to ask the NHL for an advance on its end-of-season revenue sharing to help make its payroll.

In addition to the Lightning, Vinik will also gain control of the company that operates the St. Pete Times Forum and 5½ acres of land adjacent to the downtown arena. Although details have not been disclosed, published reports have indicated that the sale price is significantly less than the $200 million current owner OK Sports paid for it in June 2008.

Vinik’s immediate plans are to keep the team in Florida.

“Buying the Lightning and joining the Tampa Bay community is a dream come true,” Vinik said in the statement. “I’ve been an avid hockey fan my whole life and I pledge to our fans that I will work my hardest to build the Lightning into a world class organization both on and off the ice.

“I have a passion for the game and will do my best to restore a winning culture at the St. Pete Times Forum that all of our fans and partners can be proud of.”

Before going into business for himself, the 50-year-old Vinik served as manager for Fidelity’s Magelian Fund, which at the time was the world’s largest equity fund. He has an undergraduate degree from Duke and a Masters in Business Administration from the Harvard Business School, and is a minority owner of the Boston Red Sox.

He is expected to take over operation of the Lightning as soon as the sale is completed, which should take about 3-4 weeks.

“We look forward to seeing Jeff take the team from here and move it forward,” said team chairman and governor Oren Koules. “I believe we are leaving him with some great pieces in place and hopefully he can build upon them to deliver a consistent winner in the future.”

ATLANTA

The two newest Thrashers made their Atlanta debuts on Friday after being obtained from the New Jersey Devils in the Kovalchuk trade. Johnny Oduya was paired on defense with Ron Hainsey while Niclas Bergfors was given the unenviable task of taking Kovlachuk’s spot at left wing on a line with Nik Antropov and Bryan Little. Neither figured in the scoring in a 5-3 loss to the red-hot Capitals. … With their 2-1 loss to Tampa Bay on Tuesday, the Thrashers are now 0-16 all-time against Lightning goalie Antero Nittymaki. … Center Marty Reasoner played his 600th NHL game Friday against the Capitals.

CAROLINA

The injury bug continues to bite the Hurricanes. First forward Chad LaRose was placed on injured reserve with an upper-body injury he suffered on Jan. 30 in a win at Chicago, less than three weeks after being activated from IR because of a lower-body injury. G Cam Ward, who was just starting to round back into form after his own stint on the injured list, was sent back home to Raleigh after stiffening up on the team’s flight from Calgary to Buffalo Thursday night. … Rookie G Justin Peters was called up from Albany of the AHL to serve as backup for veteran Manny Legace against the Sabres on Friday. Peters nearly had to start the game when Legace was stunned momentarily after being hit in the chest by a shot from teammate Aaron Ward during pregame warm-ups. … According to bizjournals.com, the Hurricanes are negotiating to move their AHL farm club from Albany, N.Y., to Charlotte, N.C.

FLORIDA

After missing 45 games because of a serious concussion, forward David Booth returned to the ice and picked up an assist last Sunday in the Panthers’ 2-0 victory against the New York Islanders. … In that game, G Tomas Vokoun stopped all 33 shots for his team record-tying seventh shutout this season. It was also his fourth shutout in January, a month in which Florida recorded 13 points – its most ever in January, surpassing the 12 points it earned in 1999-2000. … The Panthers missed out on another team record on Tuesday when a 3-0 loss to the Anaheim Ducks ended their home winning streak at five. … Vokoun, who has started 16 straight games, was chosen the NHL’s third star for the month. …. Florida managed just 13 shots on goal Friday in a 2-1 loss to Calgary.

WASHINGTON

The league-leading Capitals won their franchise-record 13th straight game Friday, 5-2 against Atlanta. Washington has outscored its opponents 62-29 during the streak and has not lost on home ice since the start of 2010, a span of nine games. … The 13-game winning streak is the longest in the NHL since since the New Jersey Devils did it in 2000-01. The league record is 17, set by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1992-93. … Two-time MVP Alex Ovechkin has five goals in his last four games and leads the league with 39 goals, 82 points and a plus-minus rating of plus-38. …D Mike Green was suspended for three games for throwing an elbow to the head of Florida’s Michael Frolik on Jan. 30. He returned to the lineup Friday against Atlanta and scored his 13th goal of the season, the most among league blueliners.
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