[And ticket sales, which sagged in recent years in the league's oldest and least fan-friendly arena, soared after Pittsburgh won the No. 1 pick Friday in the NHL draft lottery. The Penguins sold scores of season-ticket packages Friday night to fans from 10 states and Canada, even though ticket-buyers had to wait 45 minutes on hold just to get an operator.] We're on Cloud 9, ... This has probably been the (team's) greatest 24-hour period since 1984. |
Having local ownership is a great asset, and we would look very favorably on that. All things equal and if it's a coin toss, we encourage local people to step up and be a part of this. |
I had no thoughts of canceling the game once I heard the explanation. |
I hope none of you expected Mario to own this team forever. He's done more than he should ... and he's teed this up perfectly for the community to jump at a great opportunity for this team to stay here. |
I think the Super Bowl actually helps people understand what a sports team can do for a community in terms of coalescing that community. We hope to be back in your championship in a very short time. So, I think it's helpful. |
I want to create an organization that suits the times. |
I would think players would want to come to a team that's going to win. |
If anyone looks at this at all, they'll see this is about an illegal activity and not a legalized slots parlor. And the NHL's position is very clear. The league is against gambling on hockey. A slots parlor is about a gaming operation involving slots. |
It never was a safety issue. |
It was a very difficult decision. But we both stood back and did what's best for the team. |
It was never a safety issue. |
It would be pretty hard to question 'Why not do this? It's a great opportunity to get a new arena. ... We don't need state money. They can put the state money to other uses. We're offering to build the arena at no cost. |
It's not the first time we've had this problem with Duquesne Light. I don't know if it's the supply coming into the building or a problem with the building itself. I want to find out what's the problem. |
It's pretty obvious that there was a pent-up demand for winning hockey. |
My first thought was that we need a new arena. |