Deal on sale not likely before lease is signed

While both men said no agreement has been reached, both implied a deal was imminent.

``Hopefully, we can come to some agreement, but it is not done yet,'' Huizenga said. ``We are making progress.''

Said Spano: ``We're talking to Mr. Huizenga. When something is completed, we'll let you know.''

The Panthers would remain in South Florida regardless of who owns them. Huizenga said the deal being discussed would give Spano a controlling 60 percent of the franchise; Huizenga would retain the other 40 percent.

``[The team] will only be sold if it stays here,'' Huizenga said.

It is unlikely any deal will be announced until after the Panthers sign a lease agreement for the $222-million arena planned for Sunrise. The deadline to sign the lease is June 1. Final details of the lease are being worked out.

An agreement signed with Broward County last month obligates the team -- not Huizenga -- to the terms of the arena deal. The Panthers have promised to cover any shortfall in the bed tax that was approved to finance the project.

``[The deal] is complicated because of the lease agreements,'' Huizenga said.

Spano, a Dallas millionaire who made an unsuccessful bid to purchase the NHL's Dallas Stars franchise in December, expressed an interest in purchasing the Panthers in March and has met with Huizenga several times since.

Spano owns the Bison Group, a Dallas-based company that buys heavy aircraft and other equipment and leases it to other companies. He has no ties to South Florida.

The irony of the timing -- the franchise enjoying its finest moment in its history on the ice while its future is being decided off the ice -- was not lost on Panthers President Bill Torrey.

``Unfortunately, we're at a stage where a decision on getting a building built has to be made. If we're going to make a transition, decisions have to be made,'' Torrey said. ``As for the timing, yeah, we're in the playoffs. But rumors have been swirling around this team from Day 1.''

Herald staff writers Karen Rafinski, David J. Neal and Judy Battista contributed to this report.