Domi, Russian-born Shnaider to buy Leafs?

Interesting news this morning out of Toronto:

"Russian-born billionaire Alex Shnaider, a former Formula One team owner, is looking into a possible purchase deal for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors, the Toronto Star reported Saturday.

The 39-year-old Canadian, whose estimated net worth is 1.8 billion dollars (US), and his friend Tie Domi, have consulted investment bankers on the value of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE), including basketball's Raptors, the iconic hockey Maple Leafs and their home arena.

A spokesperson for Shnaider told the newspaper he has "initial interest" in the conglomerate, which also owns a Major League Soccer club, two condominium towers and a television network devoted solely to the hockey Leafs."

We've seen a lot of billionaires rattle the ownership cage in the past, so I'm always a little skeptical about how much of this a ploy to publicly establish his name in Canada.

Buying hockey's most valuable property would be no easy task. But as any Leaf fan knows, current ownership is there only to make money, and would listen to any serious offer I'm sure.

By the way, Tie Domi sure seems to have a lot of billionaire friends.