For many people, the best part about watching hockey is the fights. For those fight-lovers, there's some rumbling between the Rangers and the National Hockey League that could interest you. Back in September, Madison Square Garden sued the NHL for antitrust violations, claiming the league monopolized team promotions via the Rangers' website.
Court papers filed yesterday included a letter from NHL commissioner Gary Bettman that asked the court to rule that the Rangers were in violation of league rules when they took it to court. Bettman claimed that breaking these rules could lead to disciplinary action, including terminating membership in the league. In order to terminate the Rangers, or force Cablevision to sell the team, 3/4 of league members would need to approve of the measure. Even if Bettman could garner the support of 75% of owners, forcing Cablevision out of team ownership would take years.
This does bring up an interesting question though, does the the NBA have a similar ability to terminate ownership?
Photo of NHL commissioner Gary Bettman by AP/Stephen Chernin
