I is for investment, that they think they will keep!

Attention Class, pay attention now, today we're going to discuss how your investments can provide for your retirement, or as Kenny Rogers might put it, you have to know when to hold em, know when to fold em, know when to walk away and know when to run...

The Ontario Teachers have reviewed the ABC's and 1,2,3's of their investment in Maple Leaf Sports And Entertainment and in the end have decided that they will not longer put their shares in the sports and entertainment company up for sale.

The drama of putting those shares (80 percent of MLSE)  up for bid, kind of came to a crest last week when a Rhode Island based investment firm kicked some tires and floated the name of hockey icon Wayne Gretzky as a potential front man for their interest. Subsequently going silent and off then off the path of purchase for those shares.

With that sales lead coming to an end, as things turned out, the teachers pension fund decided that perhaps holding onto their shares of the NHL's most valued property might be a wise move after all.

Not to mention the bad public relations potential,  should the province's teachers actually have decided to sell off their majority shares in an iconic Canadian sports franchise to American interests.

Beyond the cultural significance of their shares, considering the rather successful nature of the one ice project at the moment, the Teachers' fund perhaps feel as though the cash return can only grow as the Leafs continue to find that the upper reaches of the NHL standings are to their liking.

Indeed, it marks the first time in a very long time that the value of the franchise and the points in the standings have both been found at the top of the NHL lists, something that might even make it as a lesson plan for economics classes in high schools across Ontario.

While it appears that they may revisit the sales option in the future, for the time being the teachers fund, as nameless and faceless as they are will continue to hold the majority of the shares in MLSE.

Any questions students, if not, then class dismissed!


Globe and Mail-- What's next for MLSE?
Globe and Mail-- Potential MLSE suitors also courted Wayne Gtetzky
Globe and Mail-- MLSE unlikely to end up in hands of U. S. Equity fund
National Post-- MLSE no longer for sale: Teachers' Pension Plan
National Post-- Leafs would be a different team with Gretzky
Toronto Star-- The Leafs are not for sale... for now
Toronto Sun-- Timeline on the Teachers' non-sale of MLSE
CBC Sports-- Leafs majority owner keeps its stake in company
Sportnset-- Not For Sale
TSN-- Ontario Teachers' pension plan to keep MLSE after review

Most recent HockeyNation article on Leafs ownership issues.