Hi, this is Fred Wallace with ” Off the Wire ”
In 1953 August Anheuser Busch convinced the board of the World’s Largest brewery to purchase the St Louis Cardinals of the National League.
And while the beer taps flowed across America and around the World, the Cardinals did precious little on the ball field until 1964 when they beat the Yankees for the World Series.
Reportedly, it always rankled Busch when friends and enemies alike would wonder aloud, ‘ how can you be such a great businessman, yet have such an unsuccessful ball club ? ‘
I thought of Busch last week when Forbes Magazine released their annual financial rating of the NHL’s 30 teams.
Number 1 is the New York Rangers franchise with an upgraded building plus two successive lengthy playoff runs in the past two post seasons.
Number two were the Montreal Canadiens.
While I’m not as adept with a buck as the people at Forbes that surprised me.
And in at # 3 were the perennial leaders since 2004, the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Poor on-ice results and the halting of Toronto’s 13-year sellout streak at the Air Canada Centre were factors.
So to recap financially, according to Forbes Magazine;
# 1 the Rangers, non winners of the Stanley Cup since 1994.
# 2 the Canadiens who have not won the Cup since 1993.
And # 3, the Leafs who last won the Stanley Cup in……..
Like Auggie Busch with the Cardinals in the 50’s and 60’s, it proves you don’t have to win championships to turn a healthy profit.
I’m Fred Wallace