OT: Around Hockey and the NHL

[Hockeyville USA]

I'm not reading all that much into it (it's marketing), and every action happening is rational, but it's the context.

There's nothing imminent with an expansion, but Houston is pretty clearly very high on the NHL's wishlist, and the 'Texas' push gets approved by the Stars leadership.

If anything, I think it's confusing that they're doing that when they also have the Texas Stars in Austin.

No one, in the macro grand scheme of things, cares about the A and tweets about it, so it's pretty obvious that #TexasHockey is for Dallas becaue they're trying to increase scope/fanbase outside of DFW

 

[Felonious Python]

No one, in the macro grand scheme of things, cares about the A and tweets about it, so it's pretty obvious that #TexasHockey is for Dallas becaue they're trying to increase scope/fanbase outside of DFW

On Twitter, #TexasHockey, when both teams are also called the Stars, could get confusing.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

On Twitter, #TexasHockey, when both teams are also called the Stars, could get confusing.

Not really, no one in the mainstream tweets about the A. Official hashtags are only a big thing for major pro teams, minor pro teams rarely have them.

 

[Felonious Python]

The MIT Sloan Sports Conference is happening today and tomorrow. schedule



These events will be uploaded to YouTube individually over the next few weeks.

 

[Felonious Python]

I disagree that the NHL is kind of maxed out.
Utah, Atlanta, Kansas City, Houston, San Diego, Charlotte, Portland, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Indianapolis, Austin, and Cleveland all seem to make sense as NHL locations.

Toronto, Minneapolis, Boston, and Chicago could all probably sustain second teams. Although, it wouldn't grow the popularity of the game that much.

 

[These Are The Days]

I'm not reading all that much into it (it's marketing), and every action happening is rational, but it's the context.

There's nothing imminent with an expansion, but Houston is pretty clearly very high on the NHL's wishlist, and the 'Texas' push gets approved by the Stars leadership.

If anything, I think it's confusing that they're doing that when they also have the Texas Stars in Austin.

They're gonna rebrand to the Texas Texans I just know it

 

[Crunchrulz]

I disagree that the NHL is kind of maxed out.
Utah, Atlanta, Kansas City, Houston, San Diego, Charlotte, Portland, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Indianapolis, Austin, and Cleveland all seem to make sense as NHL locations.

Toronto, Minneapolis, Boston, and Chicago could all probably sustain second teams. Although, it wouldn't grow the popularity of the game that much.

Several of those cities have tried and failed to support an NHL franchise at least once.
If expansion and/or movement is the answer, it should be to a new location rather than taking yet another chance at a failed host or adding a second franchise to an existing city.

 

[aylib]

MacDermid going to NJ; Rempe-response?

 

[Bartleby]

I disagree that the NHL is kind of maxed out.
Utah, Atlanta, Kansas City, Houston, San Diego, Charlotte, Portland, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Indianapolis, Austin, and Cleveland all seem to make sense as NHL locations.

Toronto, Minneapolis, Boston, and Chicago could all probably sustain second teams. Although, it wouldn't grow the popularity of the game that much.

Aside from the inevitably reduced quality of the product on the ice, the other problem with adding more teams is that it would be just too god damn hard to win a championship and rightly or wrongly, in the NHL, its all about the Cup. I think it would ultimately create a lot of discouragement. I don't know what the answer is, maybe some kind of European soccer style relegation system would have to be considered.

 

[Felonious Python]

Aside from the inevitably reduced quality of the product on the ice, the other problem with adding more teams is that it would be just too god damn hard to win a championship and rightly or wrongly, in the NHL, its all about the Cup. I think it would ultimately create a lot of discouragement. I don't know what the answer is, maybe some kind of European soccer style relegation system would have to be considered.

Relegation can be financially devastating for the teams it happens to. It'll probably never happen here.

It also turns people into fans of their team, and not the league, which the NHL wouldn't like. Geography would be a hurdle as well.

I'm also not saying to expand/relocate everywhere, seemingly all at once. These places need an arena and the team owner to make it worthwhile. It's a gradual process.

Relocation is inevitable over a long enough period of time. Cities fortunes rise and fall. Buffalo is the 52nd largest metro, and only has one Fortune 500 company headquarters there. Charlotte has seven.

In 1950, Phoenix had a metro population of 220k. Now it has 4.7 million. https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/23099/phoenix/population

Not every place will change as drastically as Phoenix, but past failures are pretty much irrelevant at a certain point.


Relocation is also why I'm a bit more certain of the appeal of second teams in the same city (although I personally would prefer they didn't). Why put a team in Hamilton or Milwaukee in the first place if the population, corporate support, and franchise value is just better in the neighboring city? It's Hotelling's law for hockey teams.

 

[Hoek]

Owners aren't gonna pay $500+ million for a team that could become a minor league team after one bad year.

 

[Felonious Python]

Owners aren't gonna pay $500+ million for a team that could become a minor league team after one bad year.

Relegation came out of finding a way to organize teams that already existed. A new team would probably start in a lower league and have to earn their way up.

It'd be such a non-starter for the NHL. If anyone has watched 'Sunderland 'Til I Die' on Netflix, they go over the realities of relegation and promotion. Huge staff layoffs, having to sell players, etc. It'd be mess.

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[Felonious Python]

4. One source suggested current valuations of an AHL franchise to be closer to the $16-17 million range, with the expectation that by the time the NHL expansion occurs that a 33rd - and even 34th - AHL expansion franchise could have AHL expansion fees approaching $20 million.

6. Where would a potential Carolina AHL expansion franchise play if they eventually do buy their way in?

I'd keep an eye on Baltimore.

I've heard from a few AHL sources that Carolina was seriously looking into the prospects of Baltimore over the summer.

I looked a bit into Baltimore like a week ago. I felt it would be a good AHL or ECHL market.

Baltimore has the Milwaukee issue. It's the literal Baltimore phenomenon. (possible team name?)

Why not just be another DC team, at least in name? They'd have to pay the Caps extra to expand anyway.

They can get courted by VA, MD, and DC to build their arena, and there's the corporate support.

Baltimore's reputation is in the mud. They might as well take the flexibility of being another DC team.

9. So where do the Chicago Wolves and Carolina Hurricanes stand right now?

"Everyone is trying to find a way for [Carolina and Chicago] to be affiliated. Not looking good now. Tomorrow might be different," one trusted AHL source told InsideAHLHockey.com back in February.

In reaching out to sources around Carolina and Chicago this week, I'm told that the two sides are at least back at the proverbial table and conversing again about what a potential future affiliation might look like. I'm hearing there might be discussion, but there's still "a large barrier" between the two sides.

The Wolves and Hurricanes don't really have many options. It's either continue to go on their separate ways - Chicago with an independent team full of AHL contracted players, and Carolina spreading their prospects across the AHL and overseas - or find some sort of common ground and work together in the future.

STL-Chicago Wolves and CAR-Springfield Thunderbirds seems like the most logical affiliate swap.

 

[TheDaysOf 04]

Son of Chris Dingman

 

[Felonious Python]

27-28 is the earliest they could start.

If Utah gets in first, that's a pretty rapid clip of new teams. The timeline might be something like we wait until summer to find out what's up with Arizona, and then right after the NHL starts accepting expansion bids (Utah).

 

[Felonious Python]

I can't believe we let this guy go.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

Red Wings are so weird: look like a Cup contender one month and back to top lottery contender at times.

 

[Outl4w]

Red Wings are so weird: look like a Cup contender one month and back to top lottery contender at times.

So do we.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

So do we.

We've been more thoroughly meh

 

[Felonious Python]

 

[aylib]

Looks like Rag$ goon Rempe might be suspended by the time they play us Thursday.