TORONTO, March 3 (UPI) -- The Toronto Star reported Thursday that a Wall Street company had made an offer to the NHL to buy the entire league.
Representatives of Boston-based Bain Capital Partners and Game Plan International told the league they were willing to pay $3.5 billion to take over the NHL's 30 franchises.
Although the offer is not expected to be accepted, Commissioner Gary Bettman told the newspaper that because of the size of the proposal, he felt it should at least be heard by the owners.
NHL owners have said they lost a combined $500 million over the past two years. The 2004-05 season was wiped out by a lockout of players.
The newspaper said if the NHL accepted the offer, each team would have a pre-determined budget and would make its own decisions concerning personnel.
