Good morning Toronto Maple Leafs fans!
It's a Friday in August [editor's note: we're not sure how to break the news to Adam that it's still only July] so that means there's probably a lot less of you than usual reading this, but that's ok! It's time for vacations, or switching to a night-based lifestyle to avoid the horrible, horrible, sun.
So, the big on-ice news is Ilya Samsonov filing for arbitration with the team, which we covered yesterday, and today we get some off-ice news with a good old ownership fight!
You can read up on the details over at the Hockey News if you want.
To sum it up nicely:
Bell & Rogers don't like that Larry Tannenbaum is making an end run around their deal that Bell & Rogers get first dibs on any shares that Tannenbaum is going to sell. Tannenbaum isn't selling his shares directly but selling off some of a holding company that happens to own shares of MLSE.
Last month, Tanenbaum informed Rogers and Bell about his intention to generate $400 million through the sale of a 20% portion in Kilmer Sports Inc., a holding company under family control. The buyer for this stake would be the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System pension plan. Kilmer Sports currently possesses a 25% ownership of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), Tanenbaum serving as the chairman. The remaining 75% is evenly divided between Rogers and Bell, who jointly operate a holding company.
This is seen as unfair in their eyes, but it also may cause issues if Tannenbaum goes to directly sell his stakes, which would mean Rogers & Bell would have to match the $8 Billion valuation this current sale prices the company at. To compare, the Ottawa Senators sold for $950 million, and a couple years ago the Pittsburgh Penguins were sold for $900 million.
Do Rogers & Bell not want such a high valuation because they want to sell off some shares to make a bit of extra money? There's nothing better for a team rebranding itself on the ice than some drama off. Go off-season!
Here's some news to talk about.
It's both worked and not worked with one year deals for players.
![](https://theleafsnation.com/_next/image?url=https://publish.theleafsnation.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2023/07/USATSI_20256035-scaled.jpg&w=1200&q=75)
Anze Kopitar is staying in LA for two more years.
![](https://www.sportsnet.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/AnzeKopitar.jpg)
The Red Wings player agreed to end a contract with two more years and $4 million to try and find a better fit on a new team.
![](https://www.tsn.ca/content/dam/tsn/en/home/images/2022/4/5/filip-zadina-1-1781447-1661880601076.jpeg)
RUMBLINGS!
Hearing rumblings of big changes at Rogers Sports & Media this summer, on air and behind the scenes
— Adam Seaborn (@AHBSeaborn) July 6, 2023
Will Ron MacLean finally be shown the door? New panelists next season? Play by play announcers you'll want to listen to? Let's hope so.
Almost a week into free agency and some of the bigger names are still on the market. Patrick Kane, unsigned. Vladimir Tarasenko? Well, he changed agents.
![](https://www.sportsnet.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/tarasenko1280-1040x572.jpg)
Enjoy your day everyone!