Tom Hicks has twice denied reports that he's selling the Dallas Stars -- in May of last year, when he first acknowledged that he was considering putting the Texas Rangers on the market, then again in October, when a report surfaced in the Globe and Main that lenders wanted him to offload the hockey team after the Rangers deal was done. Said Hicks in the fall, "The Rangers process, however that comes out, will take care of [Hicks Sports Group]'s needs. The Stars are not part of that. They are not for sale."
The Hockey News begs to differ:
Despite selling the Texas Rangers for more than $500 million recently, Stars owner Tom Hicks' financial troubles have not subsided and the CIT Group, to whom Hicks has defaulted on loans, is forcing Hicks to sell the NHL team.Early this morning I asked Lisa LeMaster, Hicks's spokesperson, to comment on the report. I will update when she responds.
To that end, the Stars have hired an investment advisor to put the team on the market. The starting asking price is believed to be more than $300 million.
Update at 1:06 p.m.: Still no word from the Hicks camp, but Richard Durrett at ESPNDallas spoke with Stars president Jeff Cogen, who ...
... said Thursday the club has had "seasonal cash flow needs," but he doesn't know if Hicks Sports Group has hired an investment adviser to put the club on the market ... Cogen confirmed that the Stars have had struggles since they were separated financially from the Texas Rangers.Update at 1:34 p.m.: As you'll see in the HSG statement above, yes, Hicks is looking for investors or someone interested in buying a majority share of the team.
