Is ’93 Too Soon for Hockey? : NHL: Apparent lack of progress between Disney, Ogden companies jeopardizes Anaheim team’s start date.

An apparent lack of progress in negotiations between the Walt Disney and Ogden Entertainment companies on an Anaheim Arena lease has jeopardized the Disney expansion hockey team’s chances of beginning NHL play this fall.

Just 2 1/2 weeks before Anaheim must inform the NHL of its intentions, a source familiar with lease negotiations has gone as far as to say that talks have broken down between the two parties and that the team would not start play until the 1994-95 season.

But several Anaheim Arena officials and Anaheim’s city manager refuted those claims, insisting negotiations are ongoing, and arena officials say that October, 1993, is still the target start-up date for the team.

“I would think if there was a problem, (Ogden officials in New York) would have contacted me, and that’s not the case,” said Brad Mayne, Anaheim Arena general manager who is employed by Ogden, the managing general partner of the arena. “Everyone is still working toward making this happen for 1993.”

Added Anaheim City Manager James D. Ruth: “Those rumors (about negotiations between Disney and Ogden breaking off) are absolutely not true.”

However, while virtually all indications in recent weeks have pointed toward a 1993 debut for the Anaheim franchise, there seems to be increasing doubt whether Disney will have a team in place by October.

“I’ve heard that was a problem,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said Thursday of Anaheim’s lease negotiations. “The deadline (for them to notify us whether or not they’re playing) is March 1 because we have to make a schedule. My guess is I won’t hear from them (definitively) by then.”

John Nicoletti, Anaheim Arena marketing director, said substantial progress has been made bringing Disney and Ogden together, “but whether we’re able to put it together for 1993 is still a question,” he said.

“I don’t have a feeling one way or another, because negotiations have been extremely quiet. But I’ve learned to expect the unexpected. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone said tomorrow we’re a go for 1993, and I wouldn’t be surprised if someone said we’re putting it on hold until 1994.”

Tony Tavares, an arena management specialist who is expected to be named team president and has been consulting Disney during lease negotiations, declined comment, as did Disney company officials in Burbank.

Ruth, the Anaheim city manager, said a 1993 entrance for Anaheim into the NHL is still possible, “but it’s going to be difficult . . . we’re approaching that point of no return soon,” he said. “It will be ’94 if we don’t get (the deal) done pretty quickly.”

Mayne, who has been busy throughout the negotiation process reviewing contract proposals and advising top Ogden officials in New York, said he has not received any correspondence from either side since Monday, and Nicoletti said there have been periods during the past two months when Disney and Ogden haven’t talked.

“That’s a stage we’re in now, but that doesn’t mean negotiations have broken off,” Nicoletti said. “The closer we get to the deadline, the more (serious) these periods of inactivity become. As far as I know, we’re in a lull period, where everyone takes a deep breath and asks, ‘Where are we?’ ”

Nicoletti would not discuss the specifics of Anaheim’s lease negotiations, but professional franchises and facility operators typically bargain over items such as revenues from luxury boxes and preferred seating plans, advertising and sponsorship inside the building and concessions and parking.

“Disney is an organization that likes to have control over situations,” Nicoletti said. “We both entered into negotiations not knowing much about each other. We each have our own ideas about contracts, and trying to bring this together has been the challenge. That’s what we’re going through now.”

A 1993 start for Anaheim would seem to benefit virtually all parties involved. The NHL would be richer--Disney would pay the league $25 million in franchise fees--as would Los Angeles Kings owner Bruce McNall, who would receive a $25-million indemnity fee from Disney because he owns the NHL territorial rights for Southern California.

The hockey team would be assured of starting with a quality goaltender because of liberal expansion draft guidelines, in which existing NHL teams are allowed to protect only one goalie, and it would have one of the top five picks in what NHL experts are calling one of the deepest and most talented entry drafts in years.

The Anaheim Arena would have a major professional tenant, thus reducing by $1 million a year the liability the City of Anaheim would have to Ogden if the arena shows budget shortfalls. And hockey fans are expected to pump about $7.5 million into the area’s economy.

The team--and arena--would also maintain the momentum it has had since Disney’s December announcement. The list of those interested in hockey season tickets has now grown to 9,000.

“Everyone wants the team to start in 1993--it would be good for the arena, Disney, the city, the NHL and hockey in general,” Nicoletti said. “We’d be extremely unfortunate if we were not able to make a deal for the 1993-94 season.”

Staff writers Lisa Dillman and Matt Lait contributed to this story.