Pocklington bankruptcy fraud trial moved to August

The trial of former Edmonton Oilers owner Peter Pocklington on charges of bankruptcy fraud has been delayed until Aug. 11.

Pocklington, 67, was arrested at his home near Palm Springs, Calif., in March and chargedwith two counts of bankruptcy fraud for allegedly not disclosing assets to theBankruptcy Court. His trial was scheduled to start on May 5.

However, Judge Virginia A. Phillips granted a request for a delay, which was filed jointly in the United States District Court for the Central District of California by both Pocklington's lawyer and the assistant U.S. Attorney.

According to the request, Pocklington's lawyer has to go through more than 3,000 pages of evidence to prepare for the fraud trial.

His lawyer wants an extra three months to investigate possible defences and "to explore potential plea options with the government," the court documents said.

A government official said Friday, however, that that this wording is standard in these cases, suggesting it doesn't necessarily meanPocklington is consideringa plea bargain.

Pocklington is free on $1 million bail posted by former Oilers coach Glen Sather, who is now the president and general manager of the New York Rangers.

The trial is expected to run three or four days.