How many teams will be lost?

[SENSible1*]

No teams will fold. Even if it takes three years for the players to come to their senses and fire their incompetent leader.

 

[bleedgreen]

why does everyone assume the canes? they had awesome attendance after the cup run. i dont think they are as bad off as everyone assumes. its not fair to say they dont have fans because no one stuck around when they tanked the next two seasons - that would happen in any market from boston to vancouver to montreal.

 

[EricBowser]

If the league does not get a salary cap, I believe six teams will be gone.

Anaheim, Atlanta, Carolina, Florida, Nashville, and San Jose

 

[GKJ]

The Toronto area could probably support two teams!

Then you can convince the Maple Leafs brass to let a team move into Toronto.

 

[CREW99AW]

If the league does not get a salary cap, I believe six teams will be gone.

Anaheim, Atlanta, Carolina, Florida, Nashville, and San Jose

then you don't believe the comments that have come out of Calgary and Edmonton,that those teams can't survive without a cap?

and I thought SJ drew well and had strong ownership,why are they a question mark?

 

[Clash*]

Sounds like more of the typical "hockey doesn't belong in the sun" crap. Aside from Pittsburgh who would probably be a solid franchise with a new arena, not one team from the north was mentioned. Fact, the Florida franchise owes no money to anyone. The team was paid for in cash. They thought of takin a loan out for the lockout, but decided not to. They manage their arena, and have money rollin in hand over foot with sponsorship deals for high end resturaunts or clubs bein added to the arena. They have just about every major concert or other event happening in their building. The team is losin at least $10 mil less a season with a lockout. With a new CBA, the team should not have to sell off high end players due to not bein able to afford them any longer. I'm sure many of the other southern teams have the same type of deals in their respective areas. San Jose as someone mentioned, from what I remember has one of the most diehard and consistent drawing fanbases in the league. Atlanta and Nashville are still fresh franchises with some of the best young talent around. Carolina may be the only franchise in trouble, but even then I doubt it.

A worst case scenario would see maybe two teams move, and not until two or three seasons after the lockout ends. No one will move due to the lockout, as they all will see how the new system will work before givin up on the market

 

[nomorekids]

then you don't believe the comments that have come out of Calgary and Edmonton,that those teams can't survive without a cap?

and I thought SJ drew well and had strong ownership,why are they a question mark?

agreed. i think edmonton and calgary would be in just as much trouble if not more than some of those teams, and that san jose is definitely out of place in that list.

 

[Go Flames Go*]

^^ Our Flames are not in trouble as much as Edmonton or other clubs are. We at least field a consistent and rather high payroll for a small market team. Edmonton is real poor they have more owners then players, they are gonna be big trouble if the greed of the players is not killed. San Jose lost 6 million last year. With a cap we can field a more competitve team and keep most of our good players and great player. Our building will eventually start to sell out more, and the revenue sharing and playoff apperances will make us more money. Even when we had the **** years people went to games not in huge numbers but over 13,000 a game while in Edmonton people just stopped going. I don't know what that save the Flames crap was back in 2000, people where going to games.

 

[se7en*]

I like how some Flames fans think they are exempt from the situation Edmonton suffers - that's fine, keep deluding yourselves. I don't care who blinks first, kiss both teams goodbye if a good deal isn't worked out. I think Flamers of all people should know one year of bad attendance doesn't eqaute bad fanbase, especially when our Coliseum was undergoing renovations, not to mention the Oilers have never tarped seats over for years when the fans didn't seem to be interested. Nice to see Flames fans still have a little-brother complex towards the evil Oilers though. So go sell crazy someplace else.

 

[nomorekids]

last year was the ONLY year in the past ten that the flames made money, and a finals appearance will do that. the flames...like all the other small market teams...were losing a heap of money before that.

 

[mzon]

I'd like to see at least four teams disappear one way or another. Carolina, Anaheim, and Florida would be a good start. As for a fourth, I'm on the fence between Atlanta and Nashville. One question: how hard is it to fold a franchise in the NHL? Does anyone here know the details of what the bylaws require? A simple majority vote of the other owners? A buyout of some sort? If someone in NHL management finally decides to say "enough is enough, we need to contract", those owners on the potential hit list will start kicking and screaming. I can't remember the last time any team in the NHL, NBA, NFL or MLB simply folded, vanished completely, instead of moving or merging.

Have you been eating Pejorative Slur sandwiches? You want NHL teams to start dying off? Do any of you *******s calling for contraction and buyouts of teams have any idea what that would do to the NHL?

 

[Boilers*]

last year was the ONLY year in the past ten that the flames made money, and a finals appearance will do that. the flames...like all the other small market teams...were losing a heap of money before that.

Alberta teams would still outlast Nashville by a far cry to say otherwise is pure stupidity.

 

[Bring Back Bucky]

Have you been eating retrard sandwiches? You want NHL teams to start dying off? Do any of you *******s calling for contraction and buyouts of teams have any idea what that would do to the NHL?

What's a "retrard sandwich"???

 

[mzon]

Alberta teams would still outlast Nashville by a far cry to say otherwise is pure stupidity.

Thanks for playing. It is always nice when people make statements and then defended them with facts. Do you care to elaborate on your brilliant insight with the rest of us? BTW Alberta supports hockey better than Nashville and Nashville is not a hockey market have already been used. Please give us something new to chew on. As I recall it was Buffalo and Ottawa who were most recently saved from bankruptcy.

 

[4:20]

Last week Howie Meeker was interviewed on the local CBC radio morning show, and he said that one reason he was not very optimistic that the lockout would end this season was that he believed that certain owners would be very happy if the lockout lasted one or two years and the league lost four to six teams.

As far as I can remember he didn't really expand or go into details but it was an interesting comment that I have not heard anywhere else so I thought I would pass it on.

 

[mzon]

What's a "Pejorative Slur sandwich"???

Go rent "Beatiful Girls." Great movie.

 

[nomorekids]

Alberta teams would still outlast Nashville by a far cry to say otherwise is pure stupidity.

think what you like. being wrong has never stopped you before.

 

[Boilers*]

Thanks for playing. It is always nice when people make statements and then defended them with facts. Do you care to elaborate on your brilliant insight with the rest of us? BTW Alberta supports hockey better than Nashville and Nashville is not a hockey market have already been used. Please give us something new to chew on. As I recall it was Buffalo and Ottawa who were most recently saved from bankruptcy.

Alrighty let's see here where to begin. Ottawa and Buffalo were saved from bancruptcy I'm absolutley thrilled that you can read however has nothing to do with the two teams I've mentioned does it? Are they in Alberta or Tennesee?Nope. Thanks pal really relevant.

Yes we do support hockey better up here pretty plain to see really 13,000 season tickets regulary sold .

Let's quote the Tenneseean shall we?
The Predators haven't found much to be positive about on the ticket-sales front in recent years, but the franchise appears to have received a boost from its first playoff appearance.

Predators President Jack Diller said earlier this week that season-ticket renewals are running at about 80%, 10% ahead of last year at this time and higher than any figure since the team's second season.

''That still means one out of every five isn't renewing for whatever reasons,'' Diller said. ''But the good news is that new season-ticket sales are about double last year's, so we'll not only make up for the renewals, but finally turn the corner and start building our base back up again. We'll go into next season with more season-ticket holders than this year.''

The Predators played to three sellout home crowds in the playoffs, with revenue at such contests generally estimated anywhere from $400,000 to $1 million per game. But Diller said the atmosphere in those games against Detroit may be just as important in the long run.

''We'd always talked about playoff hockey and how crazy it was,'' Diller said. ''But the ability to deliver on it was something special. If I could bottle that Easter Sunday game and the Tuesday game after it, I'd sip on it all summer.

''We always had a question as to how long the effect would last. But we're pleased to still be seeing the impact on ticket sales even 30 days after the season.''

Diller also said the Predators made budget for the first time since the franchise's second season, though that's not necessarily as impressive as it first sounds.

''The good news is that we made budget,'' he said, ''but the bad news is that the budget still called for us losing a lot of money. What we were able to accomplish is not exceeding that".

Yay they made budget, but most fans won't be back after the lockout whereas Alberta fans will definitley be back.

 

[Boilers*]

think what you like. being wrong has never stopped you before.

Wrong about what prey tell? What you know about Alberta ? Zero. Which is your teams chances of seeing a playoff spot if Nashville was in our division. See ya later homeboy.

 

[Morbo]

ever heard about the 24% rollback ?

What? The rollback makes your payroll LOWER, doesn't it? We're talking about the salary floor.

Nashville would have to spend $12 million more on payroll(without the 24% reduction) than they did last year to reach Bettman's $34 million minimum. A few other teams have to spend 9 million more. Atlanta has to spend 7 more.

How are they going to swing that??

 

[mzon]

Yay they made budget, but most fans won't be back after the lockout whereas Alberta fans will definitley be back.

I have a hard time believing that all Canadian hockey fans are so desperate for NHL hockey that the lockout will not hurt ticket sales. With a few exceptions (Yankees or Red Sox) it took baseball years to recover from their work stoppage. Who knows maybe, Nashville has ownership that is willing to develop the market and suffer through some lean years. People like yourself want to write teams off before they even have a chance to sprout roots. Ironically enough these are usually the same people crying for teams to return to failed markets.

 

[Boilers*]

I have a hard time believing that all Canadian hockey fans are so desperate for NHL hockey that the lockout will not hurt ticket sales. With a few exceptions (Yankees or Red Sox) it took baseball years to recover from their work stoppage. Who knows maybe, Nashville has ownership that is willing to develop the market and suffer through some lean years. People like yourself want to write teams off before they even have a chance to sprout roots. Ironically enough these are usually the same people crying for teams to return to failed markets.

No it says in the article that things are looking up for Nashville but even making budget says they're going to lose a pile of cash. For certain we're going to lose fans especially now that the RR's are here at a value-added price,I'm just saying that when operations continue we're in a market that isn't divided by Nascar,Football,Basketball and the like. We've got one show and it's hockey. The rebound effect will have a good showing of fans in about 3 years time maybe less if we have a good run or it's proven that they can compete on a nightly basis. I don't want to see any team lose or relocate their franchise however I'm adamantly secure that it won't be our club.

 

[pacde]

I have a hard time believing that all Canadian hockey fans are so desperate for NHL hockey that the lockout will not hurt ticket sales. With a few exceptions (Yankees or Red Sox) it took baseball years to recover from their work stoppage. Who knows maybe, Nashville has ownership that is willing to develop the market and suffer through some lean years. People like yourself want to write teams off before they even have a chance to sprout roots. Ironically enough these are usually the same people crying for teams to return to failed markets.

I dont think the lockout will affect hockey support in Western Canada too much. Its not that we are desperate, its because its our tradition. Its part of our culture, we have been watching NHL hockey since we can remember and many of our parents before us. One labour dispute might affect it somewhat, but I would be shocked if half a season isnt enough to bring everyone back (and possibly more).

 

[Beukeboom Fan]

No it says in the article that things are looking up for Nashville but even making budget says they're going to lose a pile of cash. For certain we're going to lose fans especially now that the RR's are here at a value-added price,I'm just saying that when operations continue we're in a market that isn't divided by Nascar,Football,Basketball and the like. We've got one show and it's hockey. The rebound effect will have a good showing of fans in about 3 years time maybe less if we have a good run or it's proven that they can compete on a nightly basis. I don't want to see any team lose or relocate their franchise however I'm adamantly secure that it won't be our club.

One thing to remember though is that hockey is still in a growth phase in many of the markets we're talking about (NASH, CLM, ATL, FLA, TB, CAR). You don't have fans in those markets who were going to games with their dads 25 years ago, who are now taking their kids to the games. I really think that it'll just take time to grow those franchises fanbases into "self-sufficient" status.

 

[nomorekids]

See, my point is...without living in one of these markets, it's hard to really see how the people are. The majority of the people that flooded into the GEC are fairweather fans. They are the same people that are abandoning the hallowed Titans, abandoned the Commodores..abandon any losing team. Nashville LOVES a winner...and the important thing is that these people are so borderline with hockey...the lockout isn't going to push them away. The diehards in Nashville...this may be hard to believe to someone who hasn't been there...but we love the Preds JUST as much as any fan loves their team...in Canada or the States. Look at how knowledgeable most of the preds posters on this board are. We've dedicated ourselves to the game, and most of us come from hockey backgrounds. We...like you...are angry over this lockout..but we'll be back. The fringe fans have no emotional tie to the lockout...so if the Preds come back...and surge back into the playoffs...guess what...TSN will once again talk about how happy\surprised they are to see the GEC rocking so hard. That's the nature of Nashville fans...as long as you're winning...they'll pack the building. When you sink...they'll scatter...and wait for you to come back. The lockout isn't going to drive fans away in these markets quite like you'd think. There was even an article recently about just that...it's some of the real hockey enthusiasts who are getting a bad taste in their mouth with the NHL because of all this nonsense. Time will tell, though.