Which Teams Would Fold First?

[nomorekids]

If Disney still owned them yeah, but why would the Orange County Billionaire buy a team and fold them a couple months later?

you're indirectly awarding credence to eklund, which is a silly thing to do, to begin with.

you might as well say the tooth fairy told you that six teams would fold.

 

[katodelder]

you're indirectly awarding credence to eklund, which is a silly thing to do, to begin with.

you might as well say the tooth fairy told you that six teams would fold.

believe me i realize the source of this rumour. but it's still interesting to speculate because if the PA keeps stalling on a new deal, threatening to contract six teams may be a useful tool to put pressure on the PA.

we're simply trying to guess which owners would actually be willing to go along with such a tactic. (I could see some owners, like Karmanos, all for such a tactic, but unwilling to put his team where his mouth is)

 

[Boltsfan2029]

The only promotions running during the playoffs were the 200 $8 seats (which has me finding your quote about promotions running during the playoffs false and doubting your credability in talking about the current state of the Lightning).

That's the only one I can think of, as well, and it really shouldn't even be considered a promotion, since it's something the team has done practically since its inception and has vowed to always do, regular season or playoffs, in the hopes that 200 fans who might not be able to afford to attend the games would get a chance to share the excitement that is NHL hockey. I think we just need to make it very clear here that it was only 200 tickets and wasn't something they came up with just for the playoffs. (Matter of fact, it was reported that they took quite a bit of heat for continuing the $8 tickets in the playoffs, but stood up to the league and said there was no way they were going back on their promise to the community to always make that deal available.)

 

[nomorekids]

believe me i realize the source of this rumour. but it's still interesting to speculate because if the PA keeps stalling on a new deal, threatening to contract six teams may be a useful tool to put pressure on the PA.

we're simply trying to guess which owners would actually be willing to go along with such a tactic. (I could see some owners, like Karmanos, all for such a tactic, but unwilling to put his team where his mouth is)

threatening to contract six teams is also a sure-fire way to SERIOUSLY piss off the fans of any team that could possibly be one of the six, depending on the argument:

nashville
edmonton
calgary
ottawa
pittsburgh
tampa bay
florida
atlanta
carolina
phoenix
buffalo
new jersey
NY Islanders

that's almost half the league that one group or another could argue for or against...and as long as the league was threatening to take such a chunk out...they're going to completely lose support and alienate a ton of fans.

 

[katodelder]

threatening to contract six teams is also a sure-fire way to SERIOUSLY piss off the fans of any team that could possibly be one of the six, ...and as long as the league was threatening to take such a chunk out...they're going to completely lose support and alienate a ton of fans.

you're right, but for some reason, fans are behind the owners in this fight. I wouldn't be suprised if the fans of any team threatening contraction would actually be more mad at the players. i know it sounds weird, but whatever the players do, the fans hate them, whatever the owners do (like cancel an entire freakin' season or not agree to revenue sharing) the fans still hate the players.

 

[nomorekids]

threatening to contract six teams is also a sure-fire way to SERIOUSLY piss off the fans of any team that could possibly be one of the six, depending on the argument:

nashville
edmonton
calgary
ottawa
pittsburgh
tampa bay
florida
atlanta
carolina
phoenix
buffalo
new jersey
NY Islanders

that's almost half the league that one group or another could argue for or against...and as long as the league was threatening to take such a chunk out...they're going to completely lose support and alienate a ton of fans.

i forgot columbus, anaheim and LA...so that makes it half the league.


and yes, fans are behind the owners...i'm one of them...but that would quickly change if they started threatening to "fold teams." it's just not realistic.

 

[signalIInoise]

You will never see contraction. That is not a way to increase the value of the remaining teams, which at the end of the day is all the owners care about aside from the initial ego-boost of owning a pro sports team.

If teams contract, it will be a watershed event, and you can expect another x number of teams fold in the aftermath -- and the NHL will forever lose face, value and probably it's future.

A possible, much happier major change would be the NHL partners become much more selective in whom they partner with. I'd love to see some of the more odious and obstructive owners lose their teams, preferrably without moving teams.

 

[DW3]

You can scratch Florida, Nashville, and Columbus of the list. All three of them have some very good youngster ready to go, plus a lot of fan support. Throw in the fact that all 3 were set to make solid runs at the playoffs before the lockout, and those three teams are here to stay.

 

[nomorekids]

You can scratch Florida, Nashville, and Columbus of the list. All three of them have some very good youngster ready to go, plus a lot of fan support. Throw in the fact that all 3 were set to make solid runs at the playoffs before the lockout, and those three teams are here to stay.

no, i agree....i was just making a point. threatening to "fold" teams...would be a PR nightmare.

 

[se7en*]

I'd like to see 34 teams, Houston & the 3 defunct WHA teams, I heard Hartford and Quebec might build new arenas.

 

[Lanny MacDonald*]

The question is: when did you live in Tampa and were you here during the playoffs (where the attendance first came in to question)?

I lived in Tampa right up until the second game of the Flyers series, so I am very aware of what the situation was. Tickets were widely available right up until the finals. I worked for a resort that did a lot of business with the Lightning and they kept us apprised of what of tickets and packages were available game days. That's the information they gave us.

 

[katodelder]

I heard Hartford and Quebec might build new arenas.

gotta a link? Sure they're not building 15,000-minor/junior league arenas like Winnipeg did?

I'd like to see 34 teams, Houston & the 3 defunct WHA teams.

Some rivalries that could be good in a future NHL:

Dallas-Houston
St. Louis-Kansas City
Phoenix-Las Vegas
Colorado-Salt Lake City
Chicago-Milwaukee
Vancouver-Portland/Seattle
Minnesota-Winnipeg
Boston-Hartford
Montreal-Quebec City

 

[Hockeyfan02]

I lived in Tampa right up until the second game of the Flyers series, so I am very aware of what the situation was. Tickets were widely available right up until the finals. I worked for a resort that did a lot of business with the Lightning and they kept us apprised of what of tickets and packages were available game days. That's the information they gave us.

So perhaps you can enlighten us on the "multiple promotions" they ran besides the $8 dollar tickets for 200 people. Because me and Boltsfan2029 both live in the area and did not hear of one besides that. Clearly if they would have wanted to put butts in the seats, they would have advertised this during the playoffs. Were you also able to walk up and pick any section during the playoffs 20 minutes prior to game time like you claim in your post.

 

[Hasbro]

So perhaps you can enlighten us on the "multiple promotions" they ran besides the $8 dollar tickets for 200 people. Because me and Boltsfan2029 both live in the area and did not hear of one besides that. Clearly if they would have wanted to put butts in the seats, they would have advertised this during the playoffs. Were you also able to walk up and pick any section during the playoffs 20 minutes prior to game time like you claim in your post.

Free beer.

 

[Boltsfan2029]

Free beer.

LOL! A very poorly worded promo, but for season tix, not playoff tix...

 

[ATLANTARANGER*]

For the good of the game

"Todays offer is $40m hard cap and 30 franchises, tomorrow's offer is $40m hardcap and 28 franchises".

It'd be a wake call for the NHLPA if the a franchise or two folded. Hopefully it doesn't come to that.

bobby won't agree until there are 24 teams. Enough teams for the talent!

 

[ATLANTARANGER*]

I think you missed some ECHL rivalries!

gotta a link? Sure they're not building 15,000-minor/junior league arenas like Winnipeg did?



Some rivalries that could be good in a future NHL:

Dallas-Houston
St. Louis-Kansas City
Phoenix-Las Vegas
Colorado-Salt Lake City
Chicago-Milwaukee
Vancouver-Portland/Seattle
Minnesota-Winnipeg
Boston-Hartford
Montreal-Quebec City

Why stop at 34, go for 40, let's get some euro teams in the mix!

 

[Icey]

I'll never understand the hate for the Bolts - exciting team to watch that was supported better than many teams in the league.

If I had to pick SIX teams to say goodbye too..

Anahiem, Dallas, Carolina, Nashville, Washington, Buffalo

Anahiem and Buffalo have too many teams geographically close to each other and have faced money problems. Dallas, Nashville and Carolina simply don't care and Washington is a horrible sports city excluding the Red Skins.

Dallas doesn't care??? Of course coming from someone from Edmonton I could understand you wanting to get rid of Dallas because then you could actually advance past the first round of the playoff's, but Dallas is one of the most successful teams both on the ice and off ice. Dallas had the longest sell-out of streak in NHL history broken last season, but then continued to sell-out 98% of their games. Dallas fans are passionate. They love their team and the city of Dallas loves the Stars.

But besides all of that, why would you get rid of one of the few teams that actually makes money for the NHL??

 

[mr gib]

after all this crap they'd better not fold any of them -

 

[snakepliskin]

after all this crap they'd better not fold any of them -

The smaller market teams should be in a stronger position cba wise than they have been for the last 5 or 6 years, IF they hav'nt lost the majority of their fan base throughout this. The main balancing act here is how far can the teams go to get a better cba and still keep their fans. This is a dangerous game but necessary to play for the survival of up to half the teams in the league. Remember 2 individual teams have filed for bankruptcy protection in the last couple of years and neither one of them are located in the south, and corporations do not file bankruptcy papers unless they are in a dire situation, but yet Bob Goodenow and his circle of player reps still do not believe the leagues figures, and they must not believe the Forbes Report figures either to prolong this idiotic fight as long as they have. They should have agreed to the 42.5 mill cap deal that was offered right before the cancellation of the season but instead both sides are now a laughing stock to the rest of the sports world. I fully believe that Bob Goodenow has led his side into a position that is nothing short of embarrassing and the owners will have to find a solution where somehow they get the deal they NEED but allows the players to somehow save face, though i am sure they would just as soon see bob goodenow burn in hell as allow him to save any dignity out of this at all.

 

[mr gib]

The smaller market teams should be in a stronger position cba wise than they have been for the last 5 or 6 years, IF they hav'nt lost the majority of their fan base throughout this. The main balancing act here is how far can the teams go to get a better cba and still keep their fans. This is a dangerous game but necessary to play for the survival of up to half the teams in the league. Remember 2 individual teams have filed for bankruptcy protection in the last couple of years and neither one of them are located in the south, and corporations do not file bankruptcy papers unless they are in a dire situation, but yet Bob Goodenow and his circle of player reps still do not believe the leagues figures, and they must not believe the Forbes Report figures either to prolong this idiotic fight as long as they have. They should have agreed to the 42.5 mill cap deal that was offered right before the cancellation of the season but instead both sides are now a laughing stock to the rest of the sports world. I fully believe that Bob Goodenow has led his side into a position that is nothing short of embarrassing and the owners will have to find a solution where somehow they get the deal they NEED but allows the players to somehow save face, though i am sure they would just as soon see bob goodenow burn in hell as allow him to save any dignity out of this at all.

bobby orr was right - this is a ego driven winner take take all embarrassment -