The plaintiff alleged breach of a verbal and written agreement for arena ice time required to operate a junior hockey team and related programs.
The court found that a binding verbal contract for ice rentals for a mini-camp, summer program, and winter league had been formed and later confirmed in writing, and that the defendant breached the agreement by refusing to provide the ice time after external pressure from hockey organizations.
However, the plaintiff’s claim for substantial lost profits from the hockey enterprise and associated European tours was rejected as speculative due to lack of expert evidence, comparable data, or reliable business projections.
Applying principles of remoteness, proof of damages, and mitigation, the court held the plaintiff failed to establish loss of future profits on a balance of probabilities.
The court awarded only proven start-up expenses and nominal damages for breach.
