TAMPA, FLA – Multiple media sources reported Thursday afternoon that a tentative agreement between OK Hockey, which owns the Tampa Bay Lightning, and Boston hedge fund manager Jeffrey Vinik has been reached, meaning that the team could be in new hands by as early as the weekend. Vinik, Lightning co-owner Oren Koules and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman have been meeting in New York this week in order to hammer out a deal that will transfer ownership of the financially-troubled franchise. Also involved in the talks was Tom Wilson, C.E.O. of Palace Sports and Entertainment, the previous owners who had assisted OK Hockey with its financing of the purchase of the team in 2008 and are still owed money from the deal. Both the St. Petersburg Times and The Hockey News reported in their online editions that the negotiations are in the “final stages”. THN had reported over the weekend that the sale price was expected to be in the neighborhood of $170 million but speculation on Thursday indicated that number could be much less. Vinik is reportedly self-financing the purchase, making the franchise a sole proprietorship, leaving Koules, co-owner Len Barrie and the rest of OK Hockey’s limited partners out in the cold. The sale comes at a crucial time as Vinik, per the agreement, will assume control of the players’ payroll for the month of February. Both SportsBusiness Daily and the Calgary Sun have reported in recent weeks that the team took an advance on revenue sharing from the league to meet January’s payroll commitments. It was also reported that OK Hockey took an advance from SunSports, its television partner, last April to meet payroll. THN also reported that Vinik, who is know for his bare-bones approach to financial affairs, was contemplating paring down the payroll by dealing team captain Vincent Lecavalier, whose 11-year, $85 million contract carries with it a $7.72 million hit to the team’s salary cap and $10 million in real payments per year. Vinik has since backed off that plan, noting that there could be a large backlash from the already dwindling fan base. Speculation on the cost of the sale range from between $100 million and $170 million. Unconfirmed reports said that Vinik had wanted a price below the $170 million mark because of his decision to keep Lecavalier. Commissioner Bettman was reportedly seeking a commitment from Vinik to keep Lecavalier for at least three years in exchange for a reduced selling price. OK Hockey had purchased the team, its lease with the St. Pete Times Forum and 5.5 acres of land adjacent to the Forum from Palace Sports for $200 million. According to Forbes magazine, the franchise was valued at $200 million a year ago. The 50-year old Vinik owns Vinik Asset Management, a private hedge fund based in Boston. He started VAK after resigning from Fidelity Magellan Fund in 1996 following a dumping of some $10 billion worth of technology stocks in order to move clients’ money into cash and bonds. The tech stocks, which included Nokia and Cisco Systems among others, went on to soar, causing Vinik to resign in disgrace over his decision. Reportedly one of Boston’s wealthiest people with a net worth of over $500 million, Vinik also owns a minority stake in the Boston Red Sox that he purchased from co-owner John Henry in 2002. A graduate of Duke University, he donated $5 million to Duke’s Pratt School of Engineering in 2005. He also has a professorship endowment in his name at the university.
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