Amidst speculation the NHL and Players Association were headed towards an impasse in their negotiations, Bobby Hull resurfaced from the fitness equipment informmercials and announced late in the '03 season the World Hockey Association was coming back from the grave, with him as league president.
May, 2005
An un-named major financial contributor to proposed Bobby Hull Invitational tournament has pulled out. WHA officials tried to put the sponsor's concerns about poor image perception of hockey in general and previous exhibition games, but to no avail. "We were unable to retain them as a funding source. We are however currently very close to replacing them with another source of capital and hope to be able to announce this within a week," the official report stated. A new tentative start date was scheduled for the first week of June, 2005. An undisclosed TV contract was announced for the tournament, if and when it's played. April, 2005
The partnerships between the WHA and both Phil Esposito and Henry Paul were both terminated by the league. Reports that Esposito met with a potential franchise owner and told him he was thinking of starting his own league were addressed. "We would have preferred that this stay a private matter between two groups but when we saw the news articles we had no choice but tell our side of the story. We are sorry for this embarrassing situation for all," the league's statement said. An undisclosed, "Major deal with an equipment manufacturer, a big name that will be providing gear for the WHA for a long time," was revealed, stating details would be announced within a few weeks. April, 2005
The partnerships between the WHA and both Phil Esposito and Henry Paul were both terminated by the league. Reports that Esposito met with a potential franchise owner and told him he was thinking of starting his own league led to his dismissal. "We would have preferred that this stay a private matter between two groups but when we saw the news articles we had no choice but tell our side of the story. We are sorry for this embarrassing situation for all," the league's statement said.April, 2005
The partnerships between the WHA and both Phil Esposito and Henry Paul were both terminated by the league. Reports that Esposito met with a potential franchise owner and told him he was thinking of starting his own league led to his dismissal. "We would have preferred that this stay a private matter between two groups but when we saw the news articles we had no choice but tell our side of the story. We are sorry for this embarrassing situation for all," the league's statement said.
