NHL in Seattle?

[Pinkfloyd]

mm if Phoenix goes to Seattle... then I bet it'll be Vancouver to the Pacific and not Colorado. That said... they still need an arena.

And... some history for you: They had the failed 76 expansion team... but the lesser known story is there bid for a team in the early 90s. Key Arena was a perfect place for hockey... could seat 15K with no obstructions at one point. Then, when they were a lock for an expansion team, one of the partners walked into the BoG meeting, withdraw the application and proceeded to renovate Key Arena to be NBA only. Hmm, maybe third time will be the charm... Here's a pic of the Arena with a ice sheet back in the 70's to prove my point about the renovation, and notice the lack of ANY obstructions:

They'd probably just move Phoenix/Seattle to the NW and Colorado to the Pacific. Less travel overall.

 

[Dowisetrepla]

The redesign of the Key really damaged its potential to host NHL hockey with the loss of all the seats. It could probably do as a "temp" place for 1-2 years as a new arena is built. The Eastside suburbs, in particular Bellevue, would probably make the most sense for a new arena.

 

[Melrose Munch]

A arena in Bellvue or Tacoma would be good.

 

[MoreOrr]

If the Coyotes were to be moved to Seattle for the 2012-13 Season... In that case, you'd almost have to put Vancouver in the Pacific Division, because then there would in fact be 5 PTZ teams.

Divisions could be something like this:
PACIFIC
Vancouver, Seattle, San Jose, Los Angeles, Anaheim

NORTHWEST
Edmonton, Calgary, Colorado, Winnipeg, Minnesota

CENTRAL
Dallas, St. Louis, Chicago, Detroit, Columbus

SOUTHEAST
Nashville, Tampa Bay, Florida, Carolina, Washington

Other two Divisions stay the same.

It shoots down my hoped mixed East-West, North-South Conferences idea, but the alignment above would likely be the case.

Absolutely marvelous for the League if it could land Seattle; marvelous for the League, and great for fixing some alignment woes.

 

[Dowisetrepla]

They might be able to use the Tacoma Dome as a "temp" arena as well. They used to have minor league hockey there. I have no idea what sort of capacity it would have.

re realignment, I'm pretty sure they'd want to keep all the Western Canada teams in the same division. If Seattle got a team, it might make sense to put them in the NW with the other Canadian teams, move COL to the SW, MINN to the MW, and presumably NASH would switch conferences and go to the SE.

 

[Fish on The Sand]

They might be able to use the Tacoma Dome as a "temp" arena as well. They used to have minor league hockey there. I have no idea what sort of capacity it would have.

re realignment, I'm pretty sure they'd want to keep all the Western Canada teams in the same division. If Seattle got a team, it might make sense to put them in the NW with the other Canadian teams, move COL to the SW, MINN to the MW, and presumably NASH would switch conferences and go to the SE.

putting all the canadian teams in the same division is just plain dumb. The northwest division is horrendously laid out.

 

[Shrimper]

Seattle's KING5 TV quotes NHL deputy commish Bill Daly saying league has talked with Seattle group interested in bringing hockey to town.

Interesting.

 

[MoreOrr]

Perhaps I'm ridiculous, but what the heck...

The League has decided to look for outs if Phoenix falls through,... Seattle is truly the most appealing option, though there's the arena situation... Anyway, they find a group in Seattle who are willing to step and take a team (relocated, 2012-33 Season). The essentially tells the group that it'll give them until 2015 to see if they can get something going for a new arena. Between now and 2015, the League sees if perhaps Paul Allen can be swayed to take a team there in Portland, either through Expansion or Relocation. Perhaps Allen has already voiced the possibility privately to the League (though not right for now, but for that 2015 date, with the hope that the economy may pick up a bit by then). Then there is still Kansas City, which, if the NBA has taken up residency there, is still another possible out. Either way, the League thinks that by 2015 it could have its presence in either Seattle or Portland or both (and if not then KC), with almost certainly another team in Quebec City.

How's that for a tale?

And realizing that if they become really desperate then there's always Hamilton, or even perhaps Houston.

 

[SoCalShark]

They might be able to use the Tacoma Dome as a "temp" arena as well. They used to have minor league hockey there. I have no idea what sort of capacity it would have.

re realignment, I'm pretty sure they'd want to keep all the Western Canada teams in the same division. If Seattle got a team, it might make sense to put them in the NW with the other Canadian teams, move COL to the SW, MINN to the MW, and presumably NASH would switch conferences and go to the SE.

Tacoma Dome might be more viable than the KeyArena according to wikipedia. KeyArena is only listed as 11k for hockey while the Tacoma Dome is 17K. Honestly, the Rose Garden (Portland) is really the best venue for NHL hockey at 18K in the Pacific NW. Paul Allen went through a bankruptcy in 2004 but repurchased the arena in 2007 so he is unlikely part of this Seattle mystery group.

It might be down to Quebecor (Quebec City) and this mystery group from Seattle to land the Coyotes, if a local ownership group is not found.

 

[MoreOrr]

Tacoma Dome might be more viable than the KeyArena according to wikipedia. KeyArena is only listed as 11k for hockey while the Tacoma Dome is 17K. Honestly, the Rose Garden (Portland) is really the best venue for NHL hockey at 18K in the Pacific NW. Paul Allen went through a bankruptcy in 2004 but repurchased the arena in 2007 so he is unlikely part of this Seattle mystery group.

It might be down to Quebecor (Quebec City) and this mystery group from Seattle to land the Coyotes, if a local ownership group is not found.

I seriously don't think the League is going to want to relocate two teams in a row from US cities to Canadian cities. It would give too strong an impression that hockey is failing in the US. Quebec City is almost certainly get a team, I think, but either in a possible later relocation or an Expansion that might take place possibly around 2015/16.

 

[Melrose Munch]

So the League is begging Seattle.

LOL.

But they would be a better market than anything right now. And it would get Vancouver out from the Northwest.

 

[Melrose Munch]

I seriously don't think the League is going to want to relocate two teams in a row from US cities to Canadian cities. It would give too strong an impression that hockey is failing in the US. Quebec City is almost certainly get a team, I think, but either in a possible later relocation or an Expansion that might take place possibly around 2015/16.

MO we are past the point of bad pr this from franchise movement.

 

[MoreOrr]

MO we are past the point of bad pr this from franchise movement.

I think you got it right in your short comment above this one. They may not be "begging" but I think they've begun actively shopping around for alternative out options. The League doesn't want to be stuck with having to turn to another Canadian city if another relocation is needed.

And truly I think it's about frigin time. Don't wait for people to come to them, if there's a big prize city out there, like Seattle should be considered to be, then the League should actively be showing interest. Get in there before the NBA wises up and returns.

Eventually somehow a new arena will get built there.

 

[Melrose Munch]

I think you got it right in your short comment above this one. They may not be "begging" but I think they've begun actively shopping around for alternative out options. The League doesn't want to be stuck with having to turn to another Canadian city if another relocation is needed.

And truly I think it's about frigin time. Don't wait for people to come to them, if there's a big prize city out there, like Seattle should be considered to be, then the League should actively be showing interest. Get in there before the NBA wises up and returns.

Eventually somehow a new arena will get built there.

Seattle could handle all 4 easily with 4 million people and the Corporate support is on par with much larger cities. The NHL needs to get there first IMO for like you said the NBA does. The NHL would get in the consciousness there before the NBA again and maybe even force the NBA to beg Seattle to let them back too once a new arena is built, especially after all this tiny markets failing.

I have to agree about Canada. I would love for QC to get a team back, even more the some other cities, but 2 north relocations in 2 years would be a disaster.

 

[StickShift]

In article Matthew Sekeres wrote for the Globe and Mail, he made an interesting point about Canucks ownership supporting a Seattle franchise:

The Aquilini family, which owns the Canucks, has long hoped that Seattle would get an NHL franchise, and create a natural geographic rival for their team. The Canucks borrow rivals around the Western Conference - right now it is the Chicago Blackhawks, in previous years it has been the Calgary Flames - but their fans cannot readily access another NHL market by car.

The reason why this is interesting is because it seems every time that the Seattle market is considered, it is suggested that they would be encroaching upon Vancouver's territorial rights.

Last I heard, Bellevue, a city at the edge of Seattle's metro, was scoping out building a major league arena.

 

[Pinkfloyd]

Interesting.

The talks could've simply and likely went, "Get an arena and we'll talk."

 

[crobro]

what are the odds that former canucks owner john mcgaw is behind this idea for a team in seattle.

 

[Awesome Sauce]

Found a blog post on the Seattle P-I website from February, 2011 talking about the possibility of building an NBA/NHL arena in Bellevue

http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlesports/2011/02/23/would-tax-extension-secretly-fund-bellevue-nba-arena-publicola/

Without a massive KeyArena renovation, Bellevue has been seen as the most logical place for a new entertainment complex with an NBA- and NHL-ready arena at its heart. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is thought to be interested in bringing an NBA team to the area, but without a suitable building in Seattle, the league would be hesitant to allow the move. If Ballmer is considering a new facility, he might prefer an Eastside option.

 

[Killion]

what are the odds that former canucks owner john mcgaw is behind this idea for a team in seattle.

That would be John McCaw Jr.. Its' hard to say. He's a bit of an enigma. I suppose anythings possible however I would have to think its unlikely. He stepped in up here in Vancouver when Arthur Griffiths stretched himself thin with the building of the Rogers Arena, acquired the Grizzlies etc. The impression most got was that he didnt particularly relish ownership (nor the limelight that comes with). Still, Seattle is his hometown.......

 

[karnige]

The arena in Seattle is specifically modified so it can only support basketball.

yeah i saw a supersonics game there. soooo small.

 

[Awesome Sauce]

That would be John McCaw Jr.. Its' hard to say. He's a bit of an enigma. I suppose anythings possible however I would have to think its unlikely. He stepped in up here in Vancouver when Arthur Griffiths stretched himself thin with the building of the Rogers Arena, acquired the Grizzlies etc. The impression most got was that he didnt particularly relish ownership (nor the limelight that comes with). Still, Seattle is his hometown.......

I remember when I was a kid, the local news in Vancouver did a tongue-in-cheek segment on called "Who is John McCaw". As it happened, Wayne Cox (the weatherman) was doing his report from the park down the street from our house, so my 8 year old self went down with my older sister and we told Wayne I was John McCaw. Needless to say, I got my 15 minutes of fame on the local news thanks to him. But yeah, the McCaw years were not exactly a bright spot in the Canucks' franchise history, but he might be a better owner for a local team?

 

[Bear of Bad News]

Doctor No can explain more.

I get too angry to discuss it rationally.

The Sonicsgate folks do a very nice job explaining what the hell happened - here is a link to the two-minute trailer:

http://sonicsgate.org/trailer/

Which may induce you to watch the entire two-hour movie (also available for free on the same website). What happened to the Sonics was a crime as far as I'm concerned.

 

[No Fun Shogun]

I get too angry to discuss it rationally.

The Sonicsgate folks do a very nice job explaining what the hell happened - here is a link to the two-minute trailer:

http://sonicsgate.org/trailer/

Which may induce you to watch the entire two-hour movie (also available for free on the same website). What happened to the Sonics was a crime as far as I'm concerned.

Agreed. It actually was insanely well done, I was thoroughly impressed by it.

They have the whole thing conveniently in a single YouTube video, too:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9Dp20ydm1E

Definitely worth a watch, even if you have to watch it in segments.

The end result left me with a bad impression of not only the NBA and the Thunder ownership, but of the City of Seattle especially. Not the people, mind you... the government. They just muddled around and did jack to stop the move and accepted a few scraps from the NBA and then acted like they had accomplished a huge triumph in doing so.

 

[Killion]

But yeah, the McCaw years were not exactly a bright spot in the Canucks' franchise history, but he might be a better owner for a local team?

Ya, McCaw always appeared to be in Vancouver only grudgingly, not like he was having a very good time of it. He showed up for a lot of the Grizzlies games, more so than the Canucks, and looked at it all really as just an investment to sell once the waters had calmed somewhat. Frankly, Id be very surprised, hometown Seattle or not to see him wanting to re-invest in the NBA let alone the NHL. The taxpayers in King County & Seattle have zero appetite to be dishing out for an arena let alone giving subsidies or breaks on taxes etc to another pro sports team.

And who doesnt like Awesome Sauce?. BBQ or otherwise. Gotta have it.

 

[dronald]

Video with Daly's comments... 18 hours old so maybe I'm late but I didn't see anything posted on the first or last page.

http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/27694626/29586494