Nike is close to completing a deal to sell Nike Bauer to a financial buyer from outside the industry,  according to Canada's Globe and Mail newspaper.

Sources familiar with the bidding process told the newspaper that the steep price tag for the subsidiary, which is expected to be in the $250-million range (U.S.), drove off other hockey manufacturers. That left two undisclosed financial buyers at the table, one Canadian and the other American.


Two industry players, Easton-Bell Sports and Mission-Itech, left the room when the price climbed north of $200-million, an insider said.


Nike Bauer spokesman Steven Jones told the Globe and Mail, “I cannot comment on the sale status other than it is progressing and there has been a tremendous amount of interest from several different entities.”