Teams we have seen the last of

[futurcorerock]

Starsdude..........

This is a very good topic of discussion..........here is my list of teams with a one-way ticket to the Scrap heap:

Columbus Bluejackets (When the baseball strike was over it took a while for the fans to come back to the ballparks....and they finally did in places where the sport mattered like New York, Boston and St.Louis...but they didnt in places like Montreal and Toronto...same thing will happen with NHL...once the League resumes play the fans will come back again to the rinks in Montreal and Toronto...but NOT in places like Columbus Ohio)

Cheers!

monkey_00

The hell are you talking about? -- They've had little turnover on PSL seats, and they were one of the few franchises that made money. In the winter, there is NO competition from any other major leagues, just Buckeye Basketball.

Aside from that, your analysis clued me in to your ignorance... a slam on country music? Go sit in the corner and think about what you've said.

 

[HockeyCritter]

Fix the on ice product and the rest will take care of itself.


Oh, and I disagree with the "watered down" talent argument. While there are more teams there are more venues that produced quality players. The influx of talented Europeans as well improvement in college programs is more than enough to offset 200+ rosters spots created by the last round of expansion. Factor in better-conditioned and prepared athletes and the quality level as a whole has improved over the past 10-15 years.

 

[rwilson99]

Then you also add a European Super League (NHL Division) with teams in the following 8 markets:

Stockholm
Helsinki
Moscow
Prague
Zurich
Milan
Berlin
Slovakia

Your Euro-Superleague would be bankrupt before the travel agency got paid.

 

[HockeyCritter]

Hasn't Europe been trying to get a soccer super league off the ground for the past few seasons? I don’t see how it would succeed in hockey when it hasn’t worked for soccer (arguably the most popular sport in the world).

 

[Hoek]

Hasn't Europe been trying to get a soccer super league off the ground for the past few seasons? I don’t see how it would succeed in hockey when it hasn’t worked for soccer (arguably the most popular sport in the world).

Exactly my point when that rumor came out a day ago.

P.S. Contract every team except for the Tampa Bay Lightning. We could have two All-Star teams playing each other every night. No talent dilution and guaranteed profit from all the hockey tourists. That's right your NHL franchise sucks, go home and cry over spilt milk. We are doing things my way

 

[Titanium]

There has been talk over here about a Super League, but there are various reasons for it never being more thhan a pipe dream! If there was a genuine concerted effort, it might happen!

Hasn't the NBA been talking about a proposed expansion into Europe?

 

[guinness]

I know what, if you want contraction, and to keep it fair, put 30 numbered balls in a drum, each number representing a team. Which ever number is drawn, gets contracted.

Seriously, the league should downsize, to improve the play and talent pool, but the league and owners have gotten themselves in this mess. The only contraction I see happening is through teams folding (which could happen).

 

[mzon]

The only contraction I see happening is through teams folding (which could happen).

So why didn't the NHL let Ottawa and Buffallo fold?

 

[rekrul]

I know what, if you want contraction, and to keep it fair, put 30 numbered balls in a drum, each number representing a team. Which ever number is drawn, gets contracted

I have a better idea give us a REAL battle, lets take the teams in trouble and face them off in 7 game series of elimination, as in ELIMINATION. loser of each seires has to contract into the new 22 team NHL. You want excitement see how player go at it with their JOBS on the line!!!

 

[Poignant Discussion*]

Carolina, florida for sure

Pitt atlanta Ducks Isles all possible

I would get rid of the 6 teams that brought in the smallest amount of revenue in a 3 year period.

Any team that can not bring in 60 Million in revenue, does not deserve a team period. No matter if they are located in Canada or Cambodia


Buffalo avg 51 million
Carolina avg 52 million
Pittsburgh avg 52 million (plus problems on 2 other occasions)
Anaheim avg 54 million
Edmonton avg 55 million
Nashville 57 million
Phoenix 57 million
Atlanta 59 million

6 of these 8 teams would be gone in my league. I might save Pittsburgh and Edmonton because of past history and because the Pens are getting a new building. But the rest can leave and in 5 years most people would not even remember.

Contraction is a dirty word, a word that hurts fans of certain teams. But a team has got to have some sort of revenue stream to even make a hard cap work.

a 40 million dollar cap with a 32 million dollar floor would kill this elite bunch of 8.

 

[X0ssbar]

This contraction discussion isn't just a beaten horse anymore - its a beaten zoo.

Contraction will not happen. As some posters have already mentioned teams may fold or move but to purposly contract a franchise is far more complicated than what gets tossed around on these boards.

 

[KallioWeHardlyKnewYe]

More Canadian teams? More high-tax, unequal-dollar-value, suckin-on-the-NHL's-Canadian-welfare-program-teat organizations? Heck, contract the six that are there! They're carried by the American franchises that make up the diference in the exchange rate! Countries that don't have money equal to the dollar should not have franchises! Simple.

Besides, making the NHL an all-USA league will kill the xenophobic excuse of Americans to avoid hockey because its Canadian. It can be all USA and we'll eat it up! Like baseball and apple pie!

Marinate on that.

 

[MagnusJondus]

Including Pitt shows an enormous ignorance about hockey. The Pens were in the top 3rd of the NHL in attendence for the last 10 years up to last year despite having among the highest ticket prices in the NHL. They are in the top 5 local TV hockey markets in the US. There is not a chance of them contracting or moving with a new arena and probably a 50/50 of them staying even without one.

Good post, arnie. If I rip you when you don't make sense, I must acknowledge you when you provide an insightful post.

Its only fair.

 

[kerrly]

More Canadian teams? More high-tax, unequal-dollar-value, suckin-on-the-NHL's-Canadian-welfare-program-teat organizations? Heck, contract the six that are there! They're carried by the American franchises that make up the diference in the exchange rate! Countries that don't have money equal to the dollar should not have franchises! Simple.

Besides, making the NHL an all-USA league will kill the xenophobic excuse of Americans to avoid hockey because its Canadian. It can be all USA and we'll eat it up! Like baseball and apple pie!

Marinate on that.

Most idiotic, pointless, opinion formed post I have seen yet. Nice try, that won't get you much respect around here.

 

[NYIsles1*]

The Isles have a television contract that pays them about 300m that runs until 2030, which will likely be the most valuable of all the teams by the time this lockout ends, Forbes estimated the deal at 17m a season.

Before the owner increased prices twenty five percent going into 2003-04 they filled about ninety percent of the building on avg and still had a respectable avg last year after the increase.

They have leases with Nassau and Smg that run until 2015. Even with the absurd prices still got a ninety percent renewal and 1500 new full season ticket subscriptions just for the owners playoff plan last spring.

The Isles sold out for fourteen straight years when they were a championship team so their market works. After six years of missing the playoffs with pathetic ownerhip the fans came back and sold out 20 of 40 games in 2001-2002.

 

[jerseydevil]

The Isles have a television contract that pays them about 300m that runs until 2030, which will likely be the most valuable of all the teams by the time this lockout ends, Forbes estimated the deal at 17m a season.

Before the owner increased prices twenty five percent going into 2003-04 they filled about ninety percent of the building on avg and still had a respectable avg last year after the increase.

They have leases with Nassau and Smg that run until 2015. Even with the absurd prices still got a ninety percent renewal and 1500 new full season ticket subscriptions just for the owners playoff plan last spring.

The Isles sold out for fourteen straight years when they were a championship team so their market works. After six years of missing the playoffs with pathetic ownerhip the fans came back and sold out 20 of 40 games in 2001-2002.

Isles have a good fan base. They fall under the " awful arena, bad management, poor media coverage" reasons for only getting 14000 a night. I still like the coliseum because it is small but the amenities for the prices are pretty awful.

 

[Hockeyfan02]

I don't see this thread lasting to long. Anytime someone suggest eliminating teams people get very defensive.

People dont get defensive, we just try to correct the ignorance of some of the reasons why our teams should get contracted. Usually it's a baseless argument with no to little reasearch done on the topic with someone determining on a map where hockey should be played in their opinion. Add in a few incorrect generalizations about the area and you have yourself a pro-contraction post.

 

[Ol' Dirty Chinaman*]

My hope is the NHL becomes a league where small market teams can be comfortable sustained on a 30m-35m payroll and be competitive enough to win a championship.

I would rather see more small market teams where the population knows the sport, snow occurs yearly, the majority of the people can skate, lack of other major sports, and most importantly, the fans are rabid and zealous about hockey. If I had my way, I'd move the some teams like Florida, Anaheim, Carolina, Atlanta and Phoenix to places up north like Winnipeg, Quebec Cty, Portland, Des Moines, and Boise for example.

The southern states dont' care about hockey. That itself is more harmful to me than having more small market teams in the league.

 

[KallioWeHardlyKnewYe]

Most idiotic, pointless, opinion formed post I have seen yet. Nice try, that won't get you much respect around here.

is your sarcasm meter busted? are you smiley-blind?

my post was about as informed as any post wanting to throw teams like columbus and san jose off the boat.

 

[Poignant Discussion*]

My hope is the NHL becomes a league where small market teams can be comfortable sustained on a 30m-35m payroll and be competitive enough to win a championship.

I would rather see more small market teams where the population knows the sport, snow occurs yearly, the majority of the people can skate, lack of other major sports, and most importantly, the fans are rabid and zealous about hockey. If I had my way, I'd move the some teams like Florida, Anaheim, Carolina, Atlanta and Phoenix to places up north like Winnipeg, Quebec Cty, Portland, Des Moines, and Boise for example.

The southern states dont' care about hockey. That itself is more harmful to me than having more small market teams in the league.

When a team (Carolina) makes 16 million in gate for a whole year. In a gate driven league. There is no way to make money with a 30m-35m payroll.

 

[kerrly]

is your sarcasm meter busted? are you smiley-blind?

my post was about as informed as any post wanting to throw teams like columbus and san jose off the boat.

Sorry, I missed that. Its easy to get thrown off on a day like this. Nice sarcasm though, and it fits perfectly now of course.

 

[KallioWeHardlyKnewYe]

Sorry, I missed that. Its easy to get thrown off on a day like this. Nice sarcasm though, and it fits perfectly now of course.

you fell into my evil trap. muuuuuuaaaaaahhhhhhh!

i was hoping it was absurd enough to make sense.

 

[dBoon]

Heck I'm pretty sure that the Twin Cities could host two teams.

MMMMMM, Minneapolis vs. St.Paul - that would be one hell of a rivalry.

 

[krandor]

The southern states dont' care about hockey. That itself is more harmful to me than having more small market teams in the league.

You just need to work on growing the market in the South in those areas that may not be doing well. There are a lot of ECHL teams in the South that are doing quite well. The Thrashers quite often get more people to come to games then the Hawks do and the new ownership of the Thrashers seem interested in improving the marketing of the team.

If hockey teams are only going to be in the north and in traditional hockey markets, then don't complain when there are no national TV deals and the national media decides to continue to ignore hockey because putting teams only in the north would say that hockey wants to be regional and not national. If you want national exposure of hockey then other markets beyond the traditional markets need to be grown, not contracted.

 

[Double-Shift Lasse]

How dare you hijack a perfectly legitimate "let's-get-rid-of-all-the-teams-I-don't-like" thread with your Anti-Canadian sentiment masqerading as sarcasm!!!!!

*insert appropriate smiley here*