Jim Balsillie, former CEO of Waterloo, Ont.-based Research In Motion, is buying the Nashville Predators. Let's follow the logic.
Balsillie loves hockey and loves the Waterloo area. He has an out in Nashville if the attendance doesn't average 14,000 next season. Craig Leipold, the man selling the franchise to Balsillie, has clearly stated that hockey doesn't sell in Nashville. Balsillie will move the franchise out of Nashville.
Meanwhile, the Cambridge Times reports that Research in Motion "purchased a 25.7-acre parcel of land from Mattamy (Galt) Ltd. for $3.7 million through a numbered Ontario company. The land purchased by RIM sits between Pinebush Road and Saginaw Parkway, west of Townline Road and east of Bishop Street."
Let's recap. Balsillie, a rich guy who loves hockey and the Waterloo area, owns a failed franchise and will likely move it as soon as possible. RIM just bought a chunk of land off the 401 in Cambridge, very close to Waterloo, in an area just outside the sphere of influence the Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres have.
Is a third team headed for Ontario? My Spidey-senses say yes.
