The agreement, which gives Hulsizer an option to buy the arena after five years, covers the remaining 23 years of the 30-year lease signed with then-owner Jerry Moyes.
Moyes took the team into bankruptcy without notifying the league and intended to sell it to Canadian billionaire James Balsillie, who would move the franchise to Hamilton. But a bankruptcy judge eventually threw out Balsillie's bid because the NHL opposed moving the team and refused to accept the Canadian as an owner.
The team has not made a profit since moving from Winnipeg in 1996 and is expected to lose at least $25 million this season. The 40-year-old Hulsizer, who played hockey at Amherst and co-owns with his wife an investment firm, has said he expects to lose money on the team for several more years.
"It will take some time to turn this around," he said. "It will not happen in the short term. We're looking 10, 15 years possibly, I don't know. We hope the economy will start to turn around, and the Coyotes can win."
Many Hamiltonians are angry that the NHL would rather lose money for the next 10-15 years in a US based market, than take a chance on a hockey hungry town like Hamilton.
What do you think?
Relocate the Florida Panthers to Copps Coliseum!
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