Richard Rodier, Balsillie's lawyer, provided ESPN.com's Scott Burnside with e-mail correspondence between Rodier and Leipold over the past few months. These e-mails suggest Bettman actively interfered with the Predators sale by enforcing a 'cease and desist' order on Leipold's negotiations with Balsillie. This brash move by Rodier is surely a response to the recent meeting held between Bettman, Leipold, and the new Nashville local owners bid to buy the Predators.
Tempers must be flaring because name calling has begun. Leipold is quoted as calling Rodier a "rogue lawyer". Who knows where this drama will take us? One thing seems certain -- Balsillie's NHL team in Hamilton will not come via the Predators, nor will it happen under Bettman's rule, unless of course, Bettman is taken to court (or there is an uprising among the board of governers).
If these allegations are true, I say Bettman's penalty should be public humiliation. Setting up a pillory in Hamilton's Gore Park might be fitting. Get your rotten tomatoes ready!
For more on a movement to get Bettman fired, check out www.firebettman.com.
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