NHL: No sale, and conference-finals aftermath

Since the question/topic comes up from time to time, some folks might be interested to know that Kings owner Philip Anschutz and his wife, Nancy, attended last night’s game. I’m not sure if this is commonly known or not, but Mrs. Anschutz is an intense Kings fan. She was probably surprised and displeased to read, the other day, the New York Post report — through unnamed sources — that both the Kings and New Jersey Devils are for sale. It made for an intriguing headline on the eve of the Stanley Cup Finals, but on the Kings’ end, the story was dismissed by governor Tim Leiweke and by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman. The exact same report surfaced early last year, was similarly denied, and nothing ever came of it. Here’s what Bettman told reporters yesterday, when asked during his general pre-Finals news conference…

BETTMAN: “It never ceases to amaze me when a newspaper writes a story and the principals involved absolutely deny it, and they could be the only source. But The Post was told by Tim Leiweke, and by us, that the story was categorically untrue, the Kings were not for sale. But they said they had their own sources and they decided to go with the story anyway. OK, the story is not true. If anybody here is from The Post, I apologize if I offend you, but the story is not true.’’

On the subject of league communication, ESPN.com’s Pierre LeBrun reported yesterday that the league will not discipline any of the Phoenix Coyotes for their actions and words in the immediate aftermath of the Western Conference Finals, but that the league didn’t appreciate what the Coyotes did, and let them know. Full details are available by clicking here.