Which city should get a team?

[Drrocket9]

no team in Oakland

San Jose deserves the market. the city built the arena, and laid the foundation for a very good franchise.

San Francisco had two chances, and pooched them both. this is the city that couldnt unravel themselves from all of the political caca that has gone on for years.

The NHL went to Oakland in 1967 because they felt that the Cow Palace was simply not a major league facility for hockey. San Francisco wasnt showing any notion of building a new arena, and Oakland did, so they ended up with the Seals in a situation where the NHL thought Seals fans from the Western League would flock by the thousands to Oakland. most of these geniuses hadnt ever spent any significant time in the city of Oakland. the Seals suffered from an identity crisis from the start. California. Oakland. California. they never got any momentum from the excitement of the major league coming to town.

the Warriors ended up there as well, and around 74 Swig and Franklin Mieuli tried to get an arena built in SF. then mayor Moscone and the city government wouldnt make it happen. Seals ended up in Cleveland and Warriors continue to be arguably the worst franchise in the NBA.

when the NHL made the go round in the late 80s, they still wanted San Francisco, but this city couldnt show any indication that they could get an arena proposal on the ballots that the voters would approve. San Jose did. they clearly deserve the franchise. that is the cities team. the Earthquakes have won 2 MLS cups and their players could get lost in the city. Sabrecats have won some AFL championships, but the Sharks are a huge number one.

that arena also brought the area of downtown back to life, with many new restaurants, clubs, and stores.

i like Winnipeg, and Milwaukee as cities that i would like to see NHL hockey. preferably from re-location only. i say no to expansion.

 

[God Bless Canada]

San Jose deserves the market. the city built the arena, and laid the foundation for a very good franchise.

San Francisco had two chances, and pooched them both. this is the city that couldnt unravel themselves from all of the political caca that has gone on for years.

The NHL went to Oakland in 1967 because they felt that the Cow Palace was simply not a major league facility for hockey. San Francisco wasnt showing any notion of building a new arena, and Oakland did, so they ended up with the Seals in a situation where the NHL thought Seals fans from the Western League would flock by the thousands to Oakland. most of these geniuses hadnt ever spent any significant time in the city of Oakland. the Seals suffered from an identity crisis from the start. California. Oakland. California. they never got any momentum from the excitement of the major league coming to town.

the Warriors ended up there as well, and around 74 Swig and Franklin Mieuli tried to get an arena built in SF. then mayor Moscone and the city government wouldnt make it happen. Seals ended up in Cleveland and Warriors continue to be arguably the worst franchise in the NBA.

when the NHL made the go round in the late 80s, they still wanted San Francisco, but this city couldnt show any indication that they could get an arena proposal on the ballots that the voters would approve. San Jose did. they clearly deserve the franchise. that is the cities team. the Earthquakes have won 2 MLS cups and their players could get lost in the city. Sabrecats have won some AFL championships, but the Sharks are a huge number one.

that arena also brought the area of downtown back to life, with many new restaurants, clubs, and stores.

i like Winnipeg, and Milwaukee as cities that i would like to see NHL hockey. preferably from re-location only. i say no to expansion.

I think the last sentence is something we can all agree with.

 

[mr gib]

winnipeg fer sure

 

[Shane]

I'd like to see Portland and Houston get teams if relocation comes up. No more expansion.

 

[Hockeycanada*]

Okay here were my choices early on in the thread and I would like to elaborate:

Winnipeg: New rink, die hard fans, etc, etc..

Quebec City: Build a new rink and relocate a team here

Hamilton: What is the GTA population? 5-7 million? How many straight sellouts have the Leafs had? The GTA could definitely support another team that is not in America. I would love to see a team here, Toronto and Hamilton would be instant rivals.

Somewhere in Wisconsin: Traditional hockey market, very supportive of college hockey, seems like a fit.

This got me thinking, what about a team in Saskatchewan? Wasn't Saskatoon in the running to get a team in the '80s? A team like the Roughriders could be put either in Regina or Saskatoon. The population of Saskatchewan is on the rise and the economy is doing well, and the team could be like the Green Riders of the NHL. This is just my out in left field idea.

 

[Staalweiser]

If the NHL expands to 32 teams, which I think it will, a team will almost certainly be in Winnipeg. Hartford and Quebec City will be up there, but I have a feeling a city like Kansas City or Houston gets the other franchise.

Just hope the K.C. team isn't called the "Scouts'

 

[puckhead103*]

Winnipeg, Quebec, Cleveland

cleveland is a football town....nobody cares about the NHL in cleveland...

 

[btn]

Toronto should have two teams before any more US cities get one.

 

[Original6]

Portland.. because I saw a piece on the city and their bid for nhl team. No one knows this but they always got teased whether it was from teams going into financial problems then bouncing back, or the nhl forgetting to put them in the ballot for expansion! Portland Predators anyone? (could have been)


Winnipeg had a team that they took for granted and lost em. If you give a kid a new toy he will play with it until he is bored of it, but once someone takes it away they tend to want it back.

 

[Vincent_TheGreat]

Winnipeg or Quebec City!

 

[mr gib]

Toronto should have two teams before any more US cities get one.

well ... hamilton anyway

 

[puckhead103*]

Okay here were my choices early on in the thread and I would like to elaborate:

Winnipeg: New rink, die hard fans, etc, etc..

Quebec City: Build a new rink and relocate a team here

Hamilton: What is the GTA population? 5-7 million? How many straight sellouts have the Leafs had? The GTA could definitely support another team that is not in America. I would love to see a team here, Toronto and Hamilton would be instant rivals.

Somewhere in Wisconsin: Traditional hockey market, very supportive of college hockey, seems like a fit.

This got me thinking, what about a team in Saskatchewan? Wasn't Saskatoon in the running to get a team in the '80s? A team like the Roughriders could be put either in Regina or Saskatoon. The population of Saskatchewan is on the rise and the economy is doing well, and the team could be like the Green Riders of the NHL. This is just my out in left field idea.

that would be cool for saskatoon/regina get a nhl franchise...but there is no political will in that city to get a nhl franchise compared to KC;;;;

 

[Original6]

Hamilton: What is the GTA population? 5-7 million? How many straight sellouts have the Leafs had? The GTA could definitely support another team that is not in America. I would love to see a team here, Toronto and Hamilton would be instant rivals.

They have tried many times. If I recall they outbid ottawa in everyway in '90. The leafs made sure it never happens!

This got me thinking, what about a team in Saskatchewan? Wasn't Saskatoon in the running to get a team in the '80s? A team like the Roughriders could be put either in Regina or Saskatoon. The population of Saskatchewan is on the rise and the economy is doing well, and the team could be like the Green Riders of the NHL. This is just my out in left field idea.

This isn't the CFL where you pay your star players like 200 000. Forget about it.

 

[Westcoasthabsfan]

The PEG.... can certainly support a team now in the new NHL

 

[God Bless Canada]

They have tried many times. If I recall they outbid ottawa in everyway in '90. The leafs made sure it never happens!

Actually, it was Buffalo that blocked the move. The Leafs wouldn't care if Hamilton gets a team. But Buffalo gets a significant number of fans from Hamilton. As long as Buffalo exists, Hamilton will not get a team. The one thing that is correct is Hamilton had a much better and more NHL-ready bid than Ottawa in 1990, but the league went with Ottawa.

I live in Saskatchewan, and I can tell you there's no way this province will get a team in it's current state. The population isn't increasing, it's been stuck at 1 million people since the end of World War II. (Sask had a higher population than Alberta 60 years ago). The economy is growing, but that's only because of the booming oil sector. The only thing a Saskatchewan bid would have going for it with the NHL is the fact that about 95 per cent of the population lives in the southern half of the province, and thus is within a day's drive of Regina or Saskatoon, which are both over 200,000 people. But unless the government gets serious about growing the populaion, and the population reaches 2 million, the odds of seeing Saskatoon or Regina with a team are about as good as Halifax or Anchorage.

I believe St. Louis to Saskatoon was all-but a done deal in 1983. The league kaiboshed the move, knowing Saskatoon would never support a team long-term, and implemented a series of new criteria for any team wishing to relocate.

 

[Original6]

The PEG.... can certainly support a team now in the new NHL

That's what the diehards want you to believe. The fact is, unless some rich billionaire has some attachment to Winnipeg or the jets and wants to buy an NHL team for sale and move em (whats the chances of that?), it aint happening.

They can always root for the manitoba moose.

 

[oli500]

First off there many nhl teams that dont deserve to be here. (Carolina,panthers) just to name a few. Youre question should be who to get rid off.

 

[ALF AmericanLionsFan]

cleveland is a football town....nobody cares about the NHL in cleveland...

I'm from Cleveland and I care

 

[Original6]

First off there many nhl teams that dont deserve to be here. (Carolina,panthers) just to name a few. Youre question should be who to get rid off.

No offense, but why do teams like the hurricanes,in your opinion, don't belong in the NHL? Because they suck? Or because you still think that NHL games are played outdoors?

Kitchener... Small town people... Small time thinking.

 

[GentlemanOfLeisure]

Halifax

 

[Evileye]

No offense, but why do teams like the hurricanes,in your opinion, don't belong in the NHL? Because they suck? Or because you still think that NHL games are played outdoors?

Kitchener... Small town people... Small time thinking.

How about the fact that they didn't sell-out games in the Finals against Detroit?

When they were playing the Leafs in that same playoff year, Leaf fans were able to drive down and buy tickets at the box-office.

This should NEVER happen in a market that properly supports hockey.

The cold hard truth is that in the south any sport that does not involve a ball or a motorized vehicle will not be popular.

 

[CCF]

They have tried many times. If I recall they outbid ottawa in everyway in '90. The leafs made sure it never happens!

Actually, it was Buffalo that blocked the move. The Leafs wouldn't care if Hamilton gets a team. But Buffalo gets a significant number of fans from Hamilton. As long as Buffalo exists, Hamilton will not get a team. The one thing that is correct is Hamilton had a much better and more NHL-ready bid than Ottawa in 1990, but the league went with Ottawa.

I live in Saskatchewan, and I can tell you there's no way this province will get a team in it's current state. The population isn't increasing, it's been stuck at 1 million people since the end of World War II. (Sask had a higher population than Alberta 60 years ago). The economy is growing, but that's only because of the booming oil sector. The only thing a Saskatchewan bid would have going for it with the NHL is the fact that about 95 per cent of the population lives in the southern half of the province, and thus is within a day's drive of Regina or Saskatoon, which are both over 200,000 people. But unless the government gets serious about growing the populaion, and the population reaches 2 million, the odds of seeing Saskatoon or Regina with a team are about as good as Halifax or Anchorage.

I believe St. Louis to Saskatoon was all-but a done deal in 1983. The league kaiboshed the move, knowing Saskatoon would never support a team long-term, and implemented a series of new criteria for any team wishing to relocate.

Sad but true. Saskatchewan doesn't have the necessary corporate sponsors either.

I am another fellow Saskatchewan resident. Sad that a hockey crazed province will never get a team. Saskatchewan produces the most NHL players per capita.

Anyways, no way Alaska can support a team. If Saskatchewan, population 1 million can't than Alaska, population 650,000 can't.

 

[Roke]

That's what the diehards want you to believe. The fact is, unless some rich billionaire has some attachment to Winnipeg or the jets and wants to buy an NHL team for sale and move em (whats the chances of that?), it aint happening.

They can always root for the manitoba moose.

Add to the fact the team would be spending near the cap floor whatever it is, ticket prices would be fairly steep (by Winnipeg standards, at least $30) and the MTS Centre holds under 16000 people and Winnipeg getting a team is a huge longshot.

 

[mr gib]

Add to the fact the team would be spending near the cap floor whatever it is, ticket prices would be fairly steep (by Winnipeg standards, at least $30) and the MTS Centre holds under 16000 people and Winnipeg getting a team is a huge longshot.

the pres of the moose was on the radio here in vancouver and made a good case for the nhl coming back - they're shy some seats but have the boxes - they can do it - the nhl owes them - a longshot for sure but never say never

 

[sandman441]

Anyways, no way Alaska can support a team. If Saskatchewan, population 1 million can't than Alaska, population 650,000 can't.

We get something else nobody else gets and that is checks from the government. I think Alaska can support a franchise could I be wrong yes but with all the factors thrown in (permanent fund plus I am sure the government here would support the team) I think they can support a team.