Billionaire Jim Balsillie is putting up huge piles of money to buy the Nashville Predators… as much as $238 million for a franchise worth at best 2/3 of that figure. If his strategy here is to raise the bar for the value of all NHL franchises, then certainly he should be able to grab the attention of all the owners.In today’s Toronto Star, we are told again that both Buffalo and Toronto will be seeking compensation for territorial right infringement. But while Buffalo will take their payment and move on, things are much more complex with Toronto.

“But the owners of the Maple Leafs will ask for a much larger cheque, for several reasons. For starters, if there are politicians, even in Hamilton, to be hoodwinked on arena deals, Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment claims first dibs. Then look at all the brands MLSE needs to protect. The masses have yet to acquire a taste for the Raptors. Introduce another NHL team, considering the hold the NHL has on the population around here, and what happens to basketball numbers? Similarly, what happens to LeafsTV? To RaptorsTV? To the soccer team?”

Sounds like deja vu from the 60s again. Back then it was Leafs owner Stafford Smythe who was doing everything in his power to block Buffalo from obtaining an NHL franchise, claiming territorial rights and predicting severe and dire financial consequences for the Leafs if Buffalo entered the league.We all know how that turned out… the Buffalo/Toronto rivalry is one of the best in the NHL and has everyone across Western New York and the Niagara Peninsula riveted year in and year out.I say welcome and bring on an NHL team in Hamilton, where the word is that 14,000 season ticket deposits have already been pledged through ticketmaster.ca should the Predators elect to relocate from Nashville.

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