Nanaimo Clippers up for sale over pandemic concerns
Posted February 28, 2021 12:45 pm.
Last Updated February 28, 2021 2:07 pm.
NANAIMO (NEWS 1130) – The owner of the BC Hockey League’s Nanaimo Clippers has announced his intention of selling the franchise because he doesn’t see a path forward during the pandemic.
After owning the team for about four seasons, Wes Mussio says he can’t wait around any longer for games to return as usual or continue pouring money into the team.
“I was thinking that there might be another group that would be interested in taking over, instead of me throwing hundreds of thousands of dollars towards the team in losses every few months now,” he tells NEWS 1130.
While insisting he isn’t critical of the health measures needed to place safely, he says he doesn’t see another option after contributing his time and money over the years.
“We work within the bounds of rules and regulations and it’s whether or not those rules and regulations are sufficient to allow a viable business, and in this case, at least personally for the Nanaimo Clippers, it just not viable to proceed forward,” he says, noting the province hasn’t provided any financial support to the league.
Mussio took to Facebook to detail his decision, writing “Nanaimo needs an ownership group who can wait out the PHOs.”
“Time to pass the torch on the Nanaimo Clippers Junior A ice hockey teams. With games suspended for 1 year now and Dr. Bonnie Henry giving the league no indication of any starting up this year, I see no path forward to any full return to normal hockey, even in 2021-2022. The NDP has offered zero financial support to the suffering teams of the BCHL or for that matter, any hope of a full return to hockey for year(s). So it is time for me to stop my huge personal and financial contribution to BC Hockey and I will be selling the team effective immediately,” he writes in the post.
He includes his email for “serious inquiries.”
He admits it isn’t a lucrative endeavour, and the idea to give up the team wasn’t one that came quickly or easily.
“I did decide, you know, I’ve waited a year, where we haven’t had a meaningful game. I promised my family to look at it after a year and it looks like it’s not going ahead, then we were going to divest the team,” he explains.
Chris Wahl, host for NEWS 1130’s sister station Sportsnet 650, says the league moved to a “pay-to-play” model during the pandemic, but games haven’t been held in months.
“At the end of the day, it’s a ticket-driven league. The league generates money by having people in the seats, watching the games and, you know, as long as they’re not able to do that, it’s certainly an issue financially,” he explains.
Mussio estimates about 75 per cent of revenue comes from ticket sales.
Wahl says the league deserves some credit for trying to make the losses as small as they can, but it hasn’t received the financial help it asked for from the province.
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There have been pushes for the province to allow for junior hockey to resume, including a petition started by a former Canuck, but Wahl notes public pressure likely won’t sway the decision of health officials in this case.
“When you look at it from the bigger provincial picture too, hockey is just a drop in the bucket. in terms of amateur sports in terms of, you know, the priorities that the province has in place,” he says.
NEWS 1130 has reached out to the BC Hockey League, but a representative said the league isn’t commenting until after the province responds about whether or not play will resume.
