from Matthew Gutierrez of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette,

One investment bank manager likens sports teams to a painting or sculpture. When the economy is strong, well-known pieces sell for a lot of money.

“Teams are like pieces of art,” said Fred Rock, managing director of Focus Investment Banking in Pittsburgh. “They’re special, there’s not a lot of them, and people want them.”

In the case of the Pittsburgh Penguins hockey team, what’s special is that the Pens made their Stanley Cup run while the team is up for sale. It’s so rare that even experts can’t recall the last time a team — in any of the Big Four sports — began exploring options for a sale, then went on to win the championship.

But what experts do know is a team’s market value increases after winning the sport’s top prize. The Penguins could be worth as much as $700 million, according to one industry observer.

continued