Well, hang on here just a minute BP. Atlanta made (and still does to this day insofar as Im concerned) all kinds of sense. You had media mogul Ted Turner joining the club, Atlanta one of the premier cities in the US in terms of corporate heft, weight & influence, one of the most important cities in the country, massive population, TV audience etc etc etc. Strategically located. The Capital of the South. Makes/made sense on every level.
Remember the original Flames? Just a throw in & add on as the Omni had just opened and the NHL in adding the Islanders in order to block the WHA out of New York needed another team to balance conferences? Well, despite all the guffaws, hootin & hollerin that they were doomed to fail, quite the reverse. People embraced the franchise. Rinks started getting built. If not for the then owners real estate meltdown, the shady dealings of Nelson Skalbania in snatching the team north & west to Calgary despite a solid local offer from investors including actor Glenn Frord, they'd still be there. And as for the "epic failure" of the Thrashers, well, you try building a following with Don Waddell at the helm. A decade of incompetence, no playoffs, total losers, cant keep talent, ASG deliberately sabotaging the franchise. Forget it. Game over. What a waste.
As for Hamilton, wasnt ever going to happen, not with the Leafs some 45 clicks due east & Buffalo southwest. Ron Joyce refused to pay the $50M Fee (Esposito did, nevermind his backers were the Japanese Yakuza). Said he'd only pay $25M. League tells him its non negotiable so just dont bother at all then. Joyce makes it appear he & Hamilton have been victimized. To this day he claims such. Revisionist. Also says he's glad he didnt get in because "it'll never work in Hamilton". I dont think that guy has a clue, and I dont like his donuts much either. Then in the "how not to go about winning friends & gaining influence" book of life, along comes Rim Jim Balsillie. Poisons the well further. Not just once, three times in a row (Pittsburgh, Nashville, Phoenix). "Lied to Mario". Got Eugene Melnyk so worked up he was frothing at the mouth in an interview explaining why Balsillie was rejected as a potential owner.
so....Nascar in New York City?.... Im likin that concept Phil. Manhattan specifically. Can you imagine? Like the Macys Day Parade meets Times Square on New Years Eve... on Red Bull, Vodka & Steroids. Do it right & proper though.... like Jason Stratham in Death Race.... New Yorkers, heck, the World would just love that.... Bring it.