So when are you going to change your name?

Bruce Levenson cares. Belkin has been said for years to be a Bruins season ticket holder so it would seem that he likes the sport, but maybe not the Thrashers in particular. The other owners, in my opinion, probably think the Thrashers play “ice soccer” for as little as they pay attention.

Basically the case is over. I think Belkin has a theoretical appeal, but it would just be a waste of time and money to persue it. My understanding is that he cannot get what the original court decision gave him (in error according to an appellate court) – a buy out on his own terms. If Belkin wants bought out, all parties must agree on what has to be done to make that happen.

Overall the Atlanta Spirit are not the worst owners in the NHL, but they’re near the bottom. They’re not exactly geniuses with the Hawks either, but they stumbled into a good GM finally and made some good draft picks and trades. The Hawks are 23rd in NBA salaries, so the Spirit are hardly spending all their money on the Hawks either. They just get more bang for the buck with them. However, their best player laughed off their contract offer to keep him, which was barely a raise over what he’s getting now. He will almost certainly leave as a free agent this summer. The Spirit aren’t the worst owners in the NHL in the same way that Jeffrey Dahmer isn’t the worst serial killer of all time, but he was still pretty bad by anyone’s standards. The only positive I can say about the Spirit is that they honestly are better than Time Warner was.