AEG Talks Hockey Sale

Anschutz Entertainment Group reportedly is in talks with several parties about selling a minority share of the Los Angeles Kings hockey team, in which the company has a majority stake.

AEG President Tim Leiweke confirmed the talks to the Los Angeles Daily News, saying he has spoken to the ownership group of the Boston Celtics NBA team about a "partnership." The group is led by Wycliffe "Wyc" Grousbeck.

"Wyc and I have talked about the Kings, but so have I and a lot of other people," Leiweke told the paper. "There is no deal with myself and Wyc, and there have been a half-dozen people who have been very interested."

In the event a deal is reached, AEG will retain majority ownership of the Kings, which play at AEG-operated Staples Center, and Leiweke would keep the team’s top management position under owners Philip Anschutz and Ed Roski.

Other executives, however, would likely be brought in from the Celtics office to run the Kings, according to the Daily News. It’s not known how much of a share, or price, is being discussed but the newspaper cited a Forbes report estimating the value of the Kings at $209 million.

Anschutz and Roski bought the team out of bankruptcy for a reported $113.5 million in 1995.

The Kings have struggled financially since the purchase, according to the paper. Like most NHL teams, the Kings were hit hard by the 2004-05 strike that forced cancellation of the league’s entire season.