Tom Stillman Signs Purchase Agreement
Last night Blues fans were on the edges of their seats as the boys in blue slid by the Edmonton Oilers in a 1-0 shutout victory. This morning Blues fans have yet another reason to be on the edge of their seats as reports are flying that Tom Stillman has signed a purchase agreement to purchase theSt. Louis Blues franchise along with AHL farm team the Peoria Rivermen. The agreement would also send a majority ownership of the Peabody Opera House into Stillman’s fold.
The deal is rumored to be in the 130-135 million dollar range which is somewhat less then the team was valued at this past year by Forbes. The team came in at #27 at 157 million dollars in value so Stillman and his associates are getting some what of a discount on the sale if the figures hold true. Forbes.com is reporting the total investment to aquire the Blues is closer to 185 million dollars. At this point the details are not available and wont be set in stone unitl the deal is in ink.
Tom Stillman’s group has been said to include the following investors:
- John Danforth former US Senator and father-in-law of Stillman.
- CEO of Meritz Inc. Steve Meritz
- CEO of Luxco Donn Lux
- The Taylor Family which owns Enterprise Holdings
- Tom Stillman, CEO of Summit Distributing Co. and curret minority owner, will look to keep the Blues right here at home. It has been said time and time again Stillman is very prominent at Blues games and has nothing but good and encouraging things for coaches and players anytime he has the opportunity to converse with them.
To have a fan of the game let alone a huge Blues fan as your owner will only allow Blues GM Doug Armstrong the ability to keep this team at the top of competition. Army will hopefully be given an opportunity to spend the kind of money that will be required to keep the Blues at or near the top of the league. Wjetjer or not Stillman’s group can offer that type of support remains to be seen.
It has been to many long years since the Blues have had an ownership group that had the potential stability that this group can put forth. What will life be like around St. Louis with a team that has has ownership stability and renewed financial security?
I can assure you that the coming weeks will be tense ones as fans wait for an official decision and finalization of a deal. Stay tuned for the latest news regarding the Sale of the Blues and what it means looking forward for the team and its fans.
