The Expansion Debate

[vcx*]

Winnipeg
Quebec City
Houston
Portland
Kansas City
Hartford
Salt Lake City
Oklahoma City
Seattle
Halifax
.

I see it this way:

Seattle - Sonics, then you have the seahawks not to mention the mariners, hockey would never get the attention it deserves if it expanded to Seattle, what are the attendance stats for the Silvertips or whatever?

Oklahoma City - that was funny, now seriously...

Hartford - how do the wolfpack do there? If they are filling near capacity then maybe they can come back there, maybe.

Winnipeg - bluebomers and the rest are hockey clubs that do well, other than the fact that the arena is small and people seem to ***** and whine about the population and fan support, this team should be back i don't really see any reason why it shouldn't. The same reasons against it can go for the same reasons why there are NHL clubs in Columbus, Nashville and Atlanta, hockey can do well in Winnipeg.

Quebec City - the whole french thing, it annoys me but whatever, not even sure about what the attendance was for the nordiques, if it was solid then who knows, maybe it can work there.

Houston - Texans, Astros and the Rockets are the major 3, yes Dallas did it successfully but hey, not everything works that smoothly in a market like Texas.

Portland - no, just no. such a garbage city, AHL is enough (sorry if i offend any portlant people).

Kansas City - did hockey ever catch on when they had a team? Is it even remotely popular there?

If the NHL ever expands, to say 2 teams in 2 years and another two teams two years after that, each team should be 1 canadian and 1 american. The best hockey market has 6 teams, thats not right.

 

[Hawker14]

Who????

Orca Bay (owner of GM Place and the Canucks) keeps its financial information private.

i expected you, as a lawyer, to be more researched in your opinion. to ask that question causes disappointment to me. however, i'll let it slide since, well, i no longer need to argue in support of winnipeg's nhl aspirations. the money men stepping up will have that task !!!

 

[Wetcoaster]

i expected you, as a lawyer, to be more researched in your opinion. to ask that question causes disappointment to me. however, i'll let it slide since, well, i no longer need to argue in support of winnipeg's nhl aspirations. the money men stepping up will have that task !!!

Can you translate that into English?

 

[Hawker14]

Can you translate that into English?

it is english.

 

[Wetcoaster]

it is english.

Coherent English.

 

[Hawker14]

haha, so funny.

 

[Wetcoaster]

haha, so funny.

It was not so intended. I have no idea what you were trying to convey.

 

[Tb0ne]

I would hope that atleast part of those expansion fees go towards growing the game of hockey internationally, especially in countries where there is room for growth. Such a move, would only improve the product of NHL hockey in the long run.

 

[BTV]

Portland - no, just no. such a garbage city, AHL is enough (sorry if i offend any portlant people).

I think you're mixing up the two Portlands. There is no AHL team in Portland, Oregon. The AHL Portland Pirates are in Portland, Maine.

Which Portland are you calling a "garbage city?"

 

[dulzhok]

I think you're mixing up the two Portlands. There is no AHL team in Portland, Oregon. The AHL Portland Pirates are in Portland, Maine.

Which Portland are you calling a "garbage city?"

While portland, ME certainly couldn't handle an NHL team, it's no 'garbage city.' It's consistently ranked as one of the best places to live in the US.

 

[TomWaits]

I hope they do expand 10 teams - I can just hear the announcemnt

"starting in net for your Winnipeg Warriors - #31 on his back but #1 in your heart..... TomWaits"

Hey I'll sign for the league min of $450,000!



TomWaits

 

[BTV]

While portland, ME certainly couldn't handle an NHL team, it's no 'garbage city.' It's consistently ranked as one of the best places to live in the US.

Amen. That's why I'm not sure what this "garbage city" stuff is based on...

 

[Wetcoaster]

Amen. That's why I'm not sure what this "garbage city" stuff is based on...

And this from a poster with Q team named the Lewiston Maineiacs????

 

[Emerald City Bruin]

I see it this way:

Seattle - Sonics, then you have the seahawks not to mention the mariners, hockey would never get the attention it deserves if it expanded to Seattle, what are the attendance stats for the Silvertips or whatever?

How dare you!

 

[BTV]

And this from a poster with Q team named the Lewiston Maineiacs????

Not sure I see the relevance...

 

[GKJ]

Oklahoma City - that was funny, now seriously...


Houston - Texans, Astros and the Rockets are the major 3, yes Dallas did it successfully but hey, not everything works that smoothly in a market like Texas.


Kansas City - did hockey ever catch on when they had a team? Is it even remotely popular there?

don't be so overzealous to dismiss any cities with new arenas capable of supporting a major sports team. You say it won't work in Seattle and Houston because of the 3 other teams they have, well Oklahoma City would be the only sport in town (should the Hornets not stay there)

 

[Hasbro]

I see it this way:

Seattle - Sonics, then you have the seahawks not to mention the mariners, hockey would never get the attention it deserves if it expanded to Seattle, what are the attendance stats for the Silvertips or whatever?

Well I think it's arena and territorial issues more than anything

Oklahoma City - that was funny, now seriously...

New arena, fierce dedication to minor league hockey, strong showing to the last expansion, a strong showing for the itenerant Hornets, big fish in a small pond and nearby Tulsa to helpout in market size

Hartford - how do the wolfpack do there? If they are filling near capacity then maybe they can come back there, maybe.

Not like there was a fair shake from Karmanos

Winnipeg - bluebomers and the rest are hockey clubs that do well, other than the fact that the arena is small and people seem to ***** and whine about the population and fan support, this team should be back i don't really see any reason why it shouldn't. The same reasons against it can go for the same reasons why there are NHL clubs in Columbus, Nashville and Atlanta, hockey can do well in Winnipeg.

Except flashier candidates would obscure it.

Quebec City - the whole french thing, it annoys me but whatever, not even sure about what the attendance was for the nordiques, if it was solid then who knows, maybe it can work there.

Houston - Texans, Astros and the Rockets are the major 3, yes Dallas did it successfully but hey, not everything works that smoothly in a market like Texas.

Aeros did pretty good

Portland - no, just no. such a garbage city, AHL is enough (sorry if i offend any portlant people).

I think you have the wrong Portland

Kansas City - did hockey ever catch on when they had a team? Is it even remotely popular there?

Two years with an incompitant team during an unstable period for the sport and the team hasn't drawn all that well in its subsequent homes. The NHL seems to work better on second chances.

If the NHL ever expands, to say 2 teams in 2 years and another two teams two years after that, each team should be 1 canadian and 1 american. The best hockey market has 6 teams, thats not right.

Unfortunately right and wrong aren't the biggest concern.

 

[hockydude5000]

I still think Winnipeg (which has the demand) and Kansas City (which has the flashy arena) will get the franchises. Think of it: it will fit well with the rest of the system, and will create new rivalries. Here's my divisions:

EHC South:
Florida
Carolina
Atlanta
Tampa Bay

EHC Mid-Atlantic:
Washington
Philadelphia
NY Rangers
Boston

EHC East:
Buffalo
Pittsburgh
NY Islanders
New Jersey

EHC North:
Detroit
Ottawa
Toronto
Montreal

WHA Central:
Columbus
Chicago
St. Louis
Kansas City

WHA North:
Minnesota
Winnipeg
Calgary
Edmonton

WHA West:
Nashville
Colorado
Phoenix
Anaheim

WHA Pacific:
Dallas
Los Angeles
San Jose
Vancouver

 

[Tawnos]

LOL, all other debate aside... putting the Rangers in a seperate division from the Devils, Isles and Flyers is insanity.

 

[hockydude5000]

LOL, all other debate aside... putting the Rangers in a seperate division from the Devils, Isles and Flyers is insanity.

Uh, I kept the rivalry between the Rangers and the Flyers. Plus, business-wise, if three teams are in three different divisions, it would create new rivalries and would give people a reason to choose between a Rangers, Devils, and Islanders. Plus, the rivalry would still be there: there would still be four different games between these rivals. It would keep a rivalry and create new ones. Splitting the Devils, Isles, and the Rangers isn't such a bad idea.

 

[Bucky_Hoyt]

As I said before, I do not see expansion coming any time for Hockey. But then again this is 2006 and who knows what could happen in 20 or 30 or even 40 years. I do see, though, that expansion has severely slowed down in all the big four sports over the last 5 years -- almost to a grinding hault -- save the Texans and Bobcats.

Maybe one day, when I am a grandfather, we might see a 32 team NHL but right now the league needs to do so much work just to get sustainability out of its current 30 teams. Honestly, I do not think these 30 teams are going to be all in the same cities in even the next 10 years. I do not think there will be MASS relocation but possibly 1-4 teams will move in the next generation. And that's natural for the big four. Teams move. Where they go will ultimately depend on where owners are willing to invest.

 

[CF]

How dare you!

 

[DownFromNJ]

Uh, I kept the rivalry between the Rangers and the Flyers. Plus, business-wise, if three teams are in three different divisions, it would create new rivalries and would give people a reason to choose between a Rangers, Devils, and Islanders. Plus, the rivalry would still be there: there would still be four different games between these rivals. It would keep a rivalry and create new ones. Splitting the Devils, Isles, and the Rangers isn't such a bad idea.

Seriously dude, those four teams will forever be together in a rival-filled division. The geographic locations of the teams are closer than any other 4 teams in the league.

 

[RTWAP*]

EHC South:
Florida
Carolina
Atlanta
Tampa Bay

EHC Mid-Atlantic:
Washington
New Jersey
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh

EHC East:
Buffalo
NY Islanders
NY Rangers
Boston

EHC North:
Detroit
Ottawa
Toronto
Montreal

WHA Central:
Columbus
Chicago
St. Louis
Kansas City

WHA North:
Minnesota
Winnipeg
Calgary
Edmonton

WHA West:
Nashville
Colorado
Phoenix
Anaheim

WHA Pacific:
Dallas
Los Angeles
San Jose
Vancouver

Fix it.

 

[MuzikMachine]

Seattle - Sonics, then you have the seahawks not to mention the mariners, hockey would never get the attention it deserves if it expanded to Seattle, what are the attendance stats for the Silvertips or whatever?

Ok, first off there are 2 WHL teams in the Seattle area, the Seattle Thunderbirds and the Everett Silvertips.

I couldn’t find current official attendance figures, so I did a little number crunching…

Everett Silvertips (2003-04)
- 230,000 fans (as reported)
- capacity is 8,500 (as reported)
- works out avg. of 6,389 fans per game – 75.2% capacity

http://www.everetteventscenter.com/MainArena.ashx?p=2

Seattle Thunderbirds (season unknown, but info © 2006)
- 175,000 fans (as reported)
- capacity is 6,324
- works out avg. of 4,861 fans per game – 76.7% capacity

http://www.downtownseattle.com/content/businesses/Arts.cfm

Note
Key Arena has a curtain over the upper bowl, so full capacity for hockey is 15,177, meaning that the Thunderbirds only are at 32.0% capacity.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KeyArena