W. Graeme Roustan, the former Governor and a financial contributor to the CWHL, made an offer to assume control of the league.
Roustan announced the offer in a press release Friday.
Roustan’s offer, according to a letter sent to the current CWHL Board Thursday, detailed a plan that involved “replacing all of you [the board] as Directors/Members and bring in my own team of Directors/Members with the intent of carrying on the CWHL next season and beyond. Please respond by Friday, April 5, 2019 at noon EST.”
As of noon on April 5, CWHL Chair Laurel Walzak and Vice Chair Art Marnnarn had not responded to Roustan’s offer, according to Roustan’s release.
Earlier this year, Sportsnet’s Kristina Rutherford detailed Roustan’s involvement with the league in her Big Read examining the state of women’s hockey.
“…one of the CWHL’s key financial contributors, venture capitalist W. Graeme Roustan, who pulled his support after league finances weren’t provided to him upon request,” Rutherford wrote. “In his resignation letter, Roustan wrote that (former CWHL commissioner Brenda Andress) told him he was the ‘single biggest financial and other contributor to the CWHL since its formation.'”
Earlier Friday, Rutherford also reported that the NHL donated $100,000 to the CWHL in an effort to ensure players are paid what is owed to them.
Player salaries in the CWHL ranged from $2,000 to $10,000 last season. The NHL’s donation should guarantee players are paid their full stipend and bonuses, Rutherford added.
At this time, the CWHL could not confirm “if they ended the year short on money” as they are in the midst of reconciling their finances, according the The Athletic’s Hailey Salvian.
News of Roustan’s offer and the NHL stepping in with financial aid comes after the CWHL announced it would cease operations May 1 due to the business model being “economically unsustainable“.
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