We get the warhead and we hold the world ransom for… ONE MILLION DOLLARS!

This Katz thing is sure becoming one helleva mess. It’s beginning to become VERY evident that there are some movements behind the scenes to sell within the team. An article in the Edm Sun gives some more lovely quotes from the new chairman of the EIG, Bill Butler.

“Our group can do as much as Katz with his billions. The Oilers are a debt-free $200-million asset that can be leveraged to buy out the current shareholders who want to exit. The Katz offer isn’t as simple as it appears.” Investors group members will meet at the end of January to further discuss Katz’s offer. Butler said a vote over whether to sell the team is not expected to be held at that meeting.”

So the EIG can do the same as Katz with his billions? Can you buy a hockey team outright without taking on debt? Can you offer up a $100 millions dollars of your own money to help build an arena? Can you please pull your head out of yours collective asses? No on all accounts!

Even better, Terry Jones from the Sun has an article that is just as predictable as the EIG. Thank you for telling me that Butler is a real estate developer. Cause selling a billion dollars worth of real estate (where does that figure come from?) is surely the same or better than actually being worth several billion dollars. Good point!

Jones also surmises (once again, where are these questions coming from?) that Katz’s motivation is not about a billion home-town boy wanting to own his childhood team but it’s all about the arena. That’s quite the leap. The first three offers for the Oilers did not mention the arena. So yes we see his super evil plan is all about the arena. It’s all about the “greater wealth of Daryl Katz.”

Butler thinks there are a “hundred different ways to finance this thing.” Yes that is so true because building arenas are easy to finance. Like he said, a hundred different ways. I want to know: can they match Katz’s offer of $100 million for the arena? They refuse to answer this question so the answer is an obvious NO.

So the “group which saved the franchise” is planning on taking on more debt, mortgaging the $200 million dollar worth of the Edmonton Oilers and financing the buying out of fellow shareholders and building an arena. Yes this is for the good of the Oilers. It’s all about community!

Terry then takes another shot at Katz demanding he come out of hiding. I didn’t know he was in hiding. He’s trying to buy a hockey team, not implementing the final solution. He doesn’t owe us any public declarations at this point.

This is a guy who won’t come out of his hole and appear in public demanding answers from the citizens who saved the team without his help and without making a dime to answer to him because why? Because he’s Daryl Katz and is worth two billion bucks?

Come clean? Come on!

The EIG sent a letter asking some questions (arena, keeping the team in Edm, etc) on New Year’s Eve. Two days later, the EIG holds a press conference recommending to reject the offer. I have a wild idea. Stay with me because this is so out there, it’ll blow your mind! How about letting him answer the questions, meet with him in person, have him actually attend the board meeting on Jan 21st and then make your recommendations??? And Terry Jones, please take your lips off the EIG’s ass. This is so blatant and biased. Get off your knees!

I thought this sale would be a slam dunk after Nichols changed his mind to support the new offer in December but this is becoming ridiculous. You have a hometown billionaire who is offering to double your money, put up his own moolah of $100 million to a new arena, is offering to meet individually with each shareholder to answer all questions, and this is still not moving forward??

The EIG should be ASHAMED of themselves and the way they have collectively handled this matter. The press conference from yesterday was just another show of how inept this group really is. Finish the process before you make your recommendations and an ass of yourself. You may have been saviours in 1998 but you are NO LONGER. If you truly are committed to the Oilers, step up, spend to the cap EVERY YEAR, make your employers accountable for their actions (Lowe and MacT), put your own money towards an arena (do not mortgage the Oilers and take on more debt to do so) and stop hiding yourselves. Show yourselves and truly explain your actions. Don’t hid behind “the community” and “saviours from 1998″…..it doesn’t float anymore.

One more: stop portraying Daryl Katz as an evil outsider intent on destroying the world. He is not Dr. Evil.

Also, the Oilers try to remain unbeaten in 2008 tonight in Nashville. Also Sheldon flew back to Edmonton after the game last night to get his shoulder looked at since it was hurting and had been for awhile. He has been icing it between periods. This can’t be good, but probably not as bad as we think. He played the whole game last night so we’ll have to wait and see!