Clarity coming to Alouettes' ownership picture, president Boivin says
"I continue to be hopeful ... we'll get something done (with new ownership) soon, hopefully in the next month," Patrick Boivin says.
Herb Zurkowsky, Montreal Gazette October 7, 2019
The atmosphere was electric at Molson Stadium Saturday night, thousands of people simultaneously turning their cellphones on, shining their lights as the Alouettes defeated Calgary, clinching a playoff berth for the first time since 2014. That engagement and emotion hasn’t been seen lately.
But with a new week also comes the reality that much remains uncertain, unstable and still to be determined with this Canadian Football League team. Will a new ownership group ever emerge? Will interim head coach Khari Jones be signed to a new deal? Will there be a team moving forward or will the Als’ eight remaining partners — the league’s other franchises — eventually grow tired of footing the bill?
“It’s clear to everyone. Not only does the business community at large, but specific individuals in Montreal and outside, want this team to stay in Montreal. To me, that’s the reassuring thing that ultimately presents the opportunity to go forward,” Als president Patrick Boivin told the Montreal Gazette on Monday in a wide-ranging interview.
Boivin is convinced the Als will remain in the city next season and beyond, but quickly added that’s his opinion. “I continue to be hopeful … we’ll get something done (with new ownership) soon, hopefully in the next month, if not before the end of the year so we can start fresh.”
Sources continue to indicate brothers Jeffrey and Peter Lenkov — originally from Laval but now living in Los Angeles — remain the front-runners. But another theory recently raised has Pierre Boivin, Patrick’s father, and Claridge, the Montreal private investment firm of which he’s president and CEO, perhaps kicking the tires, especially after Stephen Bronfman last week said the Als could potentially play in a proposed baseball stadium. Bronfman repeatedly has told the Gazette he’s not interested in owning the Als but would lend some assistance, if necessary, to prevent the team from relocating or folding.
The Als’ president claimed he has no knowledge of his father’s potential interest. “We certainly talk, but there has to be a wall on a number of things,” he said.
The Lenkov brothers, meanwhile, have attended two Alouettes games this season and were expected last Saturday. While they have told people they believe they’re close to acquiring the team, they didn’t want to travel to Montreal until the deal’s closed and decided to change their plans at the last minute.
“I’ve met them,” said Boivin, who had them seated in the owner’s box on July 20 against Edmonton. “They’re emotional and enthusiastic about the possibility. I know they’re still interested, much like another couple of groups.”
Boivin said he has daily conversations with either CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie, league officials, potential owners or lawyers. He believes the delay in selling the team comes from the various groups attempting to determine what precisely they’re inheriting and what the future looks like. According to a source, potential owners have been told to budget for losses of $7 million in 2020.
“I’m not the seller, but to a degree, I’m selling the team, still pitching the opportunity that’s available,” Boivin explained. “So many groups have done a lot of work. Now it’s fine-tuning and getting some clarity. Whether the season needs to end to topple over and become clear, it’s hard to pronounce myself on timelines.”
While the Als have been surprisingly successful on the field, there is no certainty that Jones, a potential coach of the year candidate, will return. Assistant general manager Joe Mack, who took over when Kavis Reed was fired in July, has stated he doesn’t expect to return. And only one player, backup quarterback Matthew Shiltz, has been re-signed.
While Boivin said he has the authority to extend Jones’s contract, along with his assistants, he said that decision should be left to the new GM. And he doesn’t want to put pressure or expectations on whomever will occupy that role.
“At some point, we need to make decisions. We can’t sit in this limbo,” Boivin acknowledged. “But you also do things in the right order. New owners come in and name a GM — that’s the biggest chair that sits empty. I do realize time’s against us. At some point decisions need to be made. I still think we have a bit of runway.
“It’s just a question of time, but at some point the team and business must evolve. We’re talking the next four to eight weeks.”
Boivin won’t say anything further on Reed’s firing, except that it wasn’t a football-related decision. To a degree, he added, that has manifested itself in the Als’ 8-6 record; Reed painstakingly having built this team over three seasons.
While the Als are averaging 17,637 spectators, Boivin admitted between 2,000 and 6,000 tickets have been given away for each game, to fill the stadium and improve the atmosphere. The team has about 8,500 season-ticket holders.
“If we were selling them we wouldn’t be giving them away,” he said.
The Als will probably host a semifinal playoff game, Nov. 10, to be played at Molson Stadium. They would have to win their remaining four games, combined with Hamilton losing its last three, to finish first and host the division final, which could be played at Olympic Stadium, Boivin added.
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