RE: NHL looking for expansion candidates officially now?
My thoughts:
1.) The NHL is going to expand. This has been the worst kept secret in sports for about 2-3 years now. It is going to happen and it won't take too long. In fact, I predict that the NHL will announce its new expansion teams before the NFL announces which of its teams are moving to Los Angeles.
2.) When the NHL does expand, they are going to go with Las Vegas as team No. 31 and Seattle as team No. 32. It is basically a done deal. This is all mostly a kabuki dance, IMHO. The rest of the groups are all competing for relocated teams, IMHO.
3.) What is further complicating this issue is that the teams they adopt almost certainly must be West of the Mississippi. That basically all but eliminates (for now, at least) Quebec City and Toronto even though those two cities would be infinitely better hosts than any of the other cities on the list.
4.) The reason why it is going to be two Western teams is because there is no chance on this earth that either EST teams Detroit or Columbus would ever agree to go back to the Western Conference. They like having most of their games in the same time zone as their home city - it means vastly increased television ratings and stronger rivalries - and will definitely fight hard to preserve that status. In fact, if the NHL tried to move them unilaterally, I think it would end up in federal court - that's how strongly those franchises feel about that issue.
5.) The NHL's infamous "sunbelt expansion," which absolutely was executed horrendously - too many teams too quickly - is overstated in its disastrous outcome. The truth is those cities are held to a much higher standard than their Northern counterparts. I live in Pittsburgh and guess what? When the Penguins were horrible for a long time, the city lost interest in the Penguins. The same was true in Chicago. In the mid-2000s, I was in Chicago for business and went to the United Center for a Blackhawks game. The Hawks are an Original Six team with a great history but they were down at the time and had been down for quite sometime. Guess what I experienced? A completely dead, half-empty building with no atmosphere whatsoever. It was shocking and a vast departure from what it is like now at the Madhouse on Madison when the Blackhawks are the class of the league.
That doesn't mean that the fans here, or in Chicago, are fair weather - or any more fair weather than anywhere else. It also doesn't mean that people here, of Chicago, don't like/care about hockey. It means the local team has to give the locals a reason to get into it. If the local team loses for a prolonged stretch then of course people are going to find better uses for their money. That's just human nature/common sense.
For some reason teams in places like Pittsburgh and Chicago, when the local team stinks and people stay away, we get a pass. In places like Miami and Phoenix, when the local team stinks and people stay away, others use that as "proof" people in warmer climates simply don't like hockey and couldn't possib;ly understand it like people do who live in colder climates.
It is complete nonsense but for some reason that is the prevailing logic in many, many circles.
Look at the sunbelt cities where hockey has clearly worked: Anaheim, Tampa, Raleigh, Dallas. Tell me, what do all of those cities have in common besides being warmer than Minneapolis? They have all won the Stanley Cup, that's what. I have a feeling that if Columbus were to win a Cup that city would go gaga for NHL hockey just like every other city does when its team is fortunate enough to lift the most famous trophy in American sports.
6.) With some major exceptions, the NHL will not/should not expand to any city that already has an NBA team. It makes no sense to put a second winter sport team in a city that already has a winter sports team. There simply isn't enough money to go around.
7.) I hated seeing the Whalers leave Hartford. I had a hockey game as a kid and when you scored, it played the Brass Bonanza. Awesome memories. Also, that was one of the best sweaters (not jerseys, sweaters) in NHL history.
I always hoped the Devils would end up in Hartford. Three teams in metro NYC is one too many and the Devils basically have no fan base whatsoever. When they were winning cups, they would hold their "championship parade" around the parking lot of their arena. How pathetic is that?
I actually like their new arena a lot but Newark makes Detroit look like Mayberry. Holy hell is that place dangerous feeling! Also, in the two times I've been to the new arena, it was almost half-filled with opposing fans. That is not good.
BTW, two years ago, I was in downtown Hartford for a wedding there and it is no shangri la either. I don't mean that disrespectfully but if you are going to be the "Green Bay of the NHL" you need to make it quaint and fun, not dangerous and dilapidated.
For nostalgic reasons I'd love to see the return of the Whale but I'm not sure if the corporate support/wherewithal is there. I think the collapse of the insurance industry is what chased the Whalers south and I'm not sure anything has changed (for the better) on that front?
8.) The city of Glendale, Arizona recently voted to void its leasing agreement with the Coyotes. That is definitely a major development and is probably what is forcing the NHL's hand to some extent. They now likely need THREE Western teams. If anyone from Kansas City steps forward with a legitimate proposal, they could easily land a team.
9.) If the Milwaukee Bucks can't finalize their arena deal and the team moves to Seattle or someplace else, they too would make a GREAT expansion candidate. Personally, I think Las Vegas would be a much better NBA city than an NHL city and I also believe that Milwaukee would be a significantly better NHL city than NBA town.
10.) If the NHL expands to Toronto, which I do not foresee, it will be to the Northern suburb of Markham, ONT, not Hamilton. Bauer is to hockey what Nike is to football/basketball. The president of Bauer is spearheading Markham's efforts. That is not an incidental consideration. It would be like Phil Knight spearheading Los Angeles' NFL expansion efforts.
11.) My only concern with Seattle is the arena's location. This applies to the Markham effort as well. I strongly favor the downtown location much more than any suburban location. I believe that a major component of Arizona's struggles and Florida's struggles relate to their remote location of their arenas relative to their population centers. If you are already trying to cultivate a new fan base, it makes no sense to have half your fans have to travel twice as far as their work commute. If I were the NHL, any arena deal that is not downtown would be a non-starter.
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NHL looking for expansion candidates officially now?
