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How Bad of an Owner is James Dolan? SI says not as bad as some

Good Afternoon -
 
SI.com has decided to identify who they believe to be the best and worst owners in the four major team sports. The criteria used to evaluate owners included:

 

  • Team's success or failure on the field.
  • Willingness to spend money to improve the team.
  • Stability and capabilities of the front office and management.
  • Amenities at the team's venue.
  • Club's culture and interactivity with fans.
The press release regarding their findings has been placed below this e-mail as well as the link to the story. If you would like to speak with anyone from SI to discuss the findings in this package, please feel free to contact me via e-mail.
 
Many Thanks,
Ryan 
   Now first off, it should be noted that James Dolan was listed as one of the worst NBA owners. My thought on this is, if he's such a horrible Knicks owner, how is he not an equally bad Rangers owner? He essentially has done the same thing for both teams, the only difference being the New York Knicks do not have Henrik Lundqvist to carry them into the playoffs and make them appear to be a legitimate team. It feels like it took a decade of losing and a sexual assault charge for Dolan to finally boot Isaiah Thomas. Not a good omen for Rangers fans. If Wade Redden hasn't gotten Glen Sather fired, I can't even begin to think how long it will take Dolan to realize he needs to be canned, even though fans and media agree that he is the root of the RAngers problems.

Dolan simply does not have any invested interest in his teams, he's disconnected. On any given night he probably could not tell you whether the Rangers won or lost. He also probably couldn't name more than 70% of the players on his roster. People can say what they want about George Steinbrenner, but wouldn't you rather have an a-hole owner who is willing to do anything to bring home a championship than a guy who seemingly could care less?

Here's my response.
Hey Ryan,

Thanks for the e-mail.

I have to say that I'm pretty shocked that James Dolan (NY Rangers) wasn't listed in the top 5 of the worst NHL owners. If he's listed as one of the worst owners in the NBA, how is he not listed as one of the worst owners in the NHL? Dolan has allowed GM Glen Sather to destroy the make up of the team and  furthermore, he can care less whether or not the Rangers win a Cup. All he cares about is if there are butts in the seats and with the loyal fan base the Rangers have, he has nothing to worry about in that department. Dolan is perfectly content with sitting back and allowing Sather to put together a mediocre team that will just be good enough to make the playoffs and keep fans interested, but nowhere near the level they would need to be to win. All he cares about is attendance and revenue. 

Rangers fans deserve better.

-Ryan McFadden

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Dolan didn’t even make the bottom 5, wow. Thanks to this article, I now understand why the Leafs site is called Pension Plan Puppets. I honestly never knew.

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by Jim Schmiedeberg on May 14, 2009 9:04 AM EDT reply actions   0 recs

I wonder if SI was just trying to avoid repeating itself

They certainly are critical of Dolan and his effect on the Rangers.

For NBA owners he was ranked the second worst. They said the following:

Subterfuging two of the most storied franchises in pro sports at once takes hard work, but Dolan has managed both. The business tycoon took a controlling stake in Cablevision in 1999, and immediately both of his marquee sports properties — the Knicks and the NHL’s Rangers — tailspun into the most futile eras of their respective histories.

by XLII on May 14, 2009 10:10 AM EDT reply actions   0 recs

i actually agree with SI.

SI’s analysis is pretty good here. i mean i’d take dolan over the leafs owners any given day. (i lived in Toronto for two years and have the ultimate respect for leafs fans baring with this BS of a franchise they have up there). there’s no doubt wang has done worse than dolan with the isles. nashville’s probably not going to last much longer. i would place dolan in the bottom 10 but i think if you examine the criteria that was used to determine the standings -

* Team’s success or failure on the field.
* Willingness to spend money to improve the team.
* Stability and capabilities of the front office and management.
* Amenities at the team’s venue.
* Club’s culture and interactivity with fans.

the rangers have been more successful, spent more money, have great amenities, and have definitely put alot of effort into continuing the great culture of hockey in the big apple (when i say that i mean $$$ put into advertising and giving back to the community of rangers fans). you could argue that the management has not been stable, but i think finger should be pointed at sather rather than dolan. all in all, to be fair, i think my beloved knicks have suffered alot more than our rangers during dolan’s reign, so SI’s assessment is right on the money as far as i’m concerned .

by #17ToTheRafters on May 14, 2009 11:20 AM EDT reply actions   0 recs

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