Surprise surprise, the NHL and one of it's teams are at odds over how to interrupt a provision regarding a team's relocation.
As I'm sure you're all aware, there is quite the battle going on between the NHL and Blackberry boss Jim Balsillie in regards to purchasing and moving the Phoenix Coyotes.
This is Balsillie's third attempt to buy and move a team to Canada (he previously failed with the Nashville Predators and the Pittsburgh Penguins). Big Jim wants to purchase the Coyotes and move them to Hamilton, which would be in the Toronto Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres territory. His Scott Walker approach of ignoring the rules and sucker punching franchises and the league with his bids have not endeared him to other league owners.
In an effort to turn talk away from the fact that they haven't wont a Cup since the 1800s, The Maple Leafs have publicly taken a strong stance saying the provision states that a unanimous vote of approval is needed for a team to be relocated, while the NHL claims that only a majority vote is required to move a team.
The NHL claims that the "territorial veto rights provision in Article 4.3 of the NHL Constitution is no longer operative."
Gary Bettman seems to believe that teams have the right to veto when another team plays games in its territory, but not when a team is relocated.
Obviously a relocation of the Coyotes to Hamilton could potentially affect revenue and ticket sales for the Maples Leafs and Sabres (although some argue that the Toronto fan base would be dedicated enough and spend enough to support two teams in the same region).
Regardless of who is right, the chances of the Coyotes staying in Phoenix seem to be slim, and mercifully the plug looks to get pulled soon.
You can read more on Toronto's stance here
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