OT: All-Purpose Expos Return Topic (Part II)

BLONG7

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Oct 30, 2002
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Cold March Monday night... Less kids in the stands, too... MLB should not pay attention to that figure at all. Fans have proved over the recent years that they were still loving baseball.
The Jays also struggle with the monday-thursday games also...they seem to be lucky to get 20k fans during the week.
 

bobholly39

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Mar 10, 2013
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So......are the Expos *actually* going to be coming back?

I'll admit that with all the talk surrounding the Nordiques potentially returning with the expansion in recent years and the Coyotes struggles, i actually let myself start to think it could be possible, especially after Winnipeg got their team back, that Quebec city might get a hockey team again one day.

But to me - as far fetched as Nordiques returning seemed, the Expos returning has always seemed like so much more of a long-shot.

I do respect Bronfman a lot but still....is this all just talk and posturing, or do people seriously expect the Expos to return in the next few years?

I'd LOVE it - i just believe it's still a huge long shot, less than 5% certainty, maybe less than 1%. What does everyone else think - is this actually possible/likely?

And don't forget - i'm the glass half-full poster who was saying Habs could still make the playoffs last year when we were over 10 points out of 8th place with 6 team ahead of us near the all star break last year. So i'm usually more of an optimist.
 

BLONG7

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Oct 30, 2002
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So......are the Expos *actually* going to be coming back?

I'll admit that with all the talk surrounding the Nordiques potentially returning with the expansion in recent years and the Coyotes struggles, i actually let myself start to think it could be possible, especially after Winnipeg got their team back, that Quebec city might get a hockey team again one day.

But to me - as far fetched as Nordiques returning seemed, the Expos returning has always seemed like so much more of a long-shot.

I do respect Bronfman a lot but still....is this all just talk and posturing, or do people seriously expect the Expos to return in the next few years?

I'd LOVE it - i just believe it's still a huge long shot, less than 5% certainty, maybe less than 1%. What does everyone else think - is this actually possible/likely?

And don't forget - i'm the glass half-full poster who was saying Habs could still make the playoffs last year when we were over 10 points out of 8th place with 6 team ahead of us near the all star break last year. So i'm usually more of an optimist.
Bronfman seems very confident...almost like he knows something...
 

MTL-rules

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Nov 17, 2006
9,700
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So......are the Expos *actually* going to be coming back?

I'll admit that with all the talk surrounding the Nordiques potentially returning with the expansion in recent years and the Coyotes struggles, i actually let myself start to think it could be possible, especially after Winnipeg got their team back, that Quebec city might get a hockey team again one day.

But to me - as far fetched as Nordiques returning seemed, the Expos returning has always seemed like so much more of a long-shot.

I do respect Bronfman a lot but still....is this all just talk and posturing, or do people seriously expect the Expos to return in the next few years?

I'd LOVE it - i just believe it's still a huge long shot, less than 5% certainty, maybe less than 1%. What does everyone else think - is this actually possible/likely?

And don't forget - i'm the glass half-full poster who was saying Habs could still make the playoffs last year when we were over 10 points out of 8th place with 6 team ahead of us near the all star break last year. So i'm usually more of an optimist.
Huge difference is Bettman never said he'd like Quebec to get a NHL team while Manfred is pretty clear about his love with Mtl.

Also, Montreal is a new big market for MLB, while Quebec city brings nothing new to the NHL (unlike Vegas and Seattle).

Chances are much more likely the Expos returning than the Nordiques (who's chances are almost none).

We'll see what the future holds... I just hope the gvt won't dish out millions in public money for a stadium (what a waste of $ the QC's beluga).
 

bobholly39

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Mar 10, 2013
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Huge difference is Bettman never said he'd like Quebec to get a NHL team while Manfred is pretty clear about his love with Mtl.

Also, Montreal is a new big market for MLB, while Quebec city brings nothing new to the NHL (unlike Vegas and Seattle).

Chances are much more likely the Expos returning than the Nordiques (who's chances are almost none).

We'll see what the future holds... I just hope the gvt won't dish out millions in public money for a stadium (what a waste of $ the QC's beluga).

The NHL salary cap is around....70M$ or so?

You see the salaries in baseball, with players signing contracts for close to half a billion lol. It just seems like so much money. I know Montreal is a pretty big/successful city overall - but i don't see how we'd be able to compete with that.

I just took a quick look at the 2019 payroll per team. League average is 130M$ - Boston is top at 225M$. There are some lower teams (Tampa, Pittsburgh) who are right around 60M. Most of the teams near the bottom of the payroll scale though are teams that were near bottom of standings last year.

It's a lot of money - can Montreal support that? The idea would be to get a team and try to be successful, not aim for the absolute basement to be on life support and then lose the team again in a few years. We'd have to be able to go above ~130M$ yearly payroll i think if we wanted to compete.
 

1909

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Jul 6, 2016
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The NHL salary cap is around....70M$ or so?

You see the salaries in baseball, with players signing contracts for close to half a billion lol. It just seems like so much money. I know Montreal is a pretty big/successful city overall - but i don't see how we'd be able to compete with that.

I just took a quick look at the 2019 payroll per team. League average is 130M$ - Boston is top at 225M$. There are some lower teams (Tampa, Pittsburgh) who are right around 60M. Most of the teams near the bottom of the payroll scale though are teams that were near bottom of standings last year.

It's a lot of money - can Montreal support that? The idea would be to get a team and try to be successful, not aim for the absolute basement to be on life support and then lose the team again in a few years. We'd have to be able to go above ~130M$ yearly payroll i think if we wanted to compete.

Encouraging (and paying to see) a team over 81 regular season games is a long haul... And I don't think fans in Montreal and area can do that.
 

MTL-rules

Registered User
Nov 17, 2006
9,700
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The NHL salary cap is around....70M$ or so?

You see the salaries in baseball, with players signing contracts for close to half a billion lol. It just seems like so much money. I know Montreal is a pretty big/successful city overall - but i don't see how we'd be able to compete with that.

I just took a quick look at the 2019 payroll per team. League average is 130M$ - Boston is top at 225M$. There are some lower teams (Tampa, Pittsburgh) who are right around 60M. Most of the teams near the bottom of the payroll scale though are teams that were near bottom of standings last year.

It's a lot of money - can Montreal support that? The idea would be to get a team and try to be successful, not aim for the absolute basement to be on life support and then lose the team again in a few years. We'd have to be able to go above ~130M$ yearly payroll i think if we wanted to compete.
There was an article explaining the 210 millions each team is getting from revenu sharing... that goes a long way... but who can compete money wise with NY, LA, BOS... only in the NHL welfare system irrelevant markets like Tampa Bay can get better players than huge market...

Both economic plans make billions to owners... one just favors the developping markets while the other the cash cows... sucks that Montreal is a huge market of the wrong sport...
 

Habs Halifax

Loyal Habs Fan
Jul 11, 2016
68,166
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East Coast
So......are the Expos *actually* going to be coming back?

I'll admit that with all the talk surrounding the Nordiques potentially returning with the expansion in recent years and the Coyotes struggles, i actually let myself start to think it could be possible, especially after Winnipeg got their team back, that Quebec city might get a hockey team again one day.

But to me - as far fetched as Nordiques returning seemed, the Expos returning has always seemed like so much more of a long-shot.

I do respect Bronfman a lot but still....is this all just talk and posturing, or do people seriously expect the Expos to return in the next few years?

I'd LOVE it - i just believe it's still a huge long shot, less than 5% certainty, maybe less than 1%. What does everyone else think - is this actually possible/likely?

And don't forget - i'm the glass half-full poster who was saying Habs could still make the playoffs last year when we were over 10 points out of 8th place with 6 team ahead of us near the all star break last year. So i'm usually more of an optimist.

Think about about timing of when Quebec build their arena and when the Jets got their team back... CAD vs USD was almost on par

Quebec should allow the pipeline to go through Quebec to Saint John NB so our we can sell refine our Oil and sell it at a higher profit margin. Might help our CAD and it makes more economic sense to bring the Expos back? :sarcasm:
 

mikelvl

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Aug 6, 2009
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Chiming in from Boston but hoping for the return of the Expos. MLB Commissioner Manfred has gone out of his way to give his support for the return of baseball to Montreal. That is huge. Baseball wants to expand to 32 teams. I believe that will occur within five to ten years. So Montreal could have up to four different scenarios to get back into the league (Oakland, Tampa, two expansion teams). I would bet that baseball wants one team East and one team West. Montreal and Portland, Oregon or Vegas . I sincerely think it's going to happen.

The big issue with the Nordiques is Jeremy Jacobs. He steers the NHL bus and what he says, goes. Houston will get the next NHL team, either by expansion or relocation. Bettman has said in the past that he would like to 'right a wrong' in Quebec and Winnipeg. And Bill Daly has said that he would imagine QC would be back at some point. That probably drove QC to build the arena. But as long as Jacobs is in charge of the owners, won't happen. The Expos don't have that problem so far as I can see.

Good luck and best wishes (from a Bruins fan at that!:))
 
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HuGo Sham

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Apr 7, 2010
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Chiming in from Boston but hoping for the return of the Expos. MLB Commissioner Manfred has gone out of his way to give his support for the return of baseball to Montreal. That is huge. Baseball wants to expand to 32 teams. I believe that will occur within five to ten years. So Montreal could have up to four different scenarios to get back into the league (Oakland, Tampa, two expansion teams). I would bet that baseball wants one team East and one team West. Montreal and Portland, Oregon or Vegas . I sincerely think it's going to happen.

The big issue with the Nordiques is Jeremy Jacobs. He steers the NHL bus and what he says, goes. Houston will get the next NHL team, either by expansion or relocation. Bettman has said in the past that he would like to 'right a wrong' in Quebec and Winnipeg. And Bill Daly has said that he would imagine QC would be back at some point. That probably drove QC to build the arena. But as long as Jacobs is in charge of the owners, won't happen. The Expos don't have that problem so far as I can see.

Good luck and best wishes (from a Bruins fan at that!:))
jacobs is an idiot but that's not the reason. montreal is the largest metro area left in north America without a baseball team. the team should never have left, and i partially blame american media actually for the whole 'montreal is not a baseball' city. imagine if we applied this 'logic 'to all the heavy losing franchises like the pirates, rays, A's, reds etc--even the braves (of late) and hockey teams like fla, az, carolina, etc...? none of these American franchise in various sports would deserve a team. bug selig is a f***ing prick and any spos revival was grifted by loria and samson...montreal could easily support an MLB franchise in griffintown and 2 million per year would be easily attainable. the nordiques story is different. QC is the size of winnipeg
 
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HuGo Sham

MR. CLEAN-up ©Runner77
Apr 7, 2010
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Think about about timing of when Quebec build their arena and when the Jets got their team back... CAD vs USD was almost on par

Quebec should allow the pipeline to go through Quebec to Saint John NB so our we can sell refine our Oil and sell it at a higher profit margin. Might help our CAD and it makes more economic sense to bring the Expos back? :sarcasm:
this is an often forgotten point - the dollar was on par...today winnipeg wouldn't get a team
 
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kgboomer

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Nov 12, 2014
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this is an often forgotten point - the dollar was on par...today winnipeg wouldn't get a team
I'm pretty sure they would. The day David Thomson wanted a team in Winnipeg, he was going to eventually get it. He's around the 25th richest in the world worth 35B or so, no other owner in the NHL is closed of that. The Jets franchise is on solid ground just because of him.
 
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Burke the Legend

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Huge difference is Bettman never said he'd like Quebec to get a NHL team while Manfred is pretty clear about his love with Mtl.

Also, Montreal is a new big market for MLB, while Quebec city brings nothing new to the NHL (unlike Vegas and Seattle).

Chances are much more likely the Expos returning than the Nordiques (who's chances are almost none).

We'll see what the future holds... I just hope the gvt won't dish out millions in public money for a stadium (what a waste of $ the QC's beluga).

Yes Manfred has repeatedly said Montreal is basically the front runner for relocation or expansion. Their first priority is to resolve the Oakland (resolved) and Tampa (not resolved - looking bad for Tampa) stadium situations, where Montreal is on deck as the place to move, and then after that expansion is going to go forward.

Bettman has never said anything this precise about Quebec City's prospects.
 
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Runner77

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The NHL salary cap is around....70M$ or so?

You see the salaries in baseball, with players signing contracts for close to half a billion lol. It just seems like so much money. I know Montreal is a pretty big/successful city overall - but i don't see how we'd be able to compete with that.

I just took a quick look at the 2019 payroll per team. League average is 130M$ - Boston is top at 225M$. There are some lower teams (Tampa, Pittsburgh) who are right around 60M. Most of the teams near the bottom of the payroll scale though are teams that were near bottom of standings last year.

It's a lot of money - can Montreal support that? The idea would be to get a team and try to be successful, not aim for the absolute basement to be on life support and then lose the team again in a few years. We'd have to be able to go above ~130M$ yearly payroll i think if we wanted to compete.

You can’t just look at what Trout and Harper got as salaries. These types of salaries are rare. I heard this morning on 690 that the average MLB salary has gone lower for the 2nd consecutive year.
 

Skip Bayless

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Aug 28, 2014
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You can’t just look at what Trout and Harper got as salaries. These types of salaries are rare. I heard this morning on 690 that the average MLB salary has gone lower for the 2nd consecutive year.
The owners are holding out on FAs, forcing them to sign for less. I think Trout deserved to be the highest paid player, but what Harper and Machado got is ridiculous.

Besides if we get the rays, were getting one of the best bang for your buck pro rosters and prospect pools in MLB. That will be by far the achilles heel of the expos, we wont be able to compete with the sox and yanks in terms of salaries.
 

bobholly39

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Mar 10, 2013
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You can’t just look at what Trout and Harper got as salaries. These types of salaries are rare. I heard this morning on 690 that the average MLB salary has gone lower for the 2nd consecutive year.

Well, it depends.

John Tavares and Steven Stamkos were 2 of the biggest UFA's in NHL history the past couple of years - and habs were fully in on them. Obviously neither player ended up here (Tavares didn't even consider us) - but financially we were going to be able to offer something as competitive as anyone.

If we can't do the same in the MLB - that's going to be kind of lame. I don't want to never be able to compete for top free agents.

Also - I get that those salaries are rare - but the yearly payroll is still really, really high. Even if it may have gone down slightly year to year it's about double that of the NHL. And to compete you usually want to be in the upper half.
 

kgboomer

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Nov 12, 2014
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The owners are holding out on FAs, forcing them to sign for less. I think Trout deserved to be the highest paid player, but what Harper and Machado got is ridiculous.

It's deeper than that, it's pretty much all advanced analytics right now. The way the game is played and what a player is worth and for how long. An agent like Scott Boras hates it, but that's is what is running the game. Here is an article explaining it:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...usiness/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.1b6d4bc75a1f

And more than that, owners are seeing what the Cubs, Indians and Astros did. They sold their big players and rebuilt their teams with some of the lowest payroll in the league. All 3 went to the World Series with the Cubs and Astros winning it.
 

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