jwr38 said:
Pittsburgh for one has one of the better attendance figures, and only needs a new building which they are getting.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/attendance
Thanks for playing.
Now here is why I selected the teams, the cities, and the movement choices.
My top six choices for contraction or relocation.
1. Carolina... second worst attendence. Just not a hockey market any way you wish to look at it. Not a natural rival for anyone and likely never will be. Its a great college town and should be able to draw fans, but for some reason the sport just doesn't catch on in the area. The NHL can do better with this franchise.
2. Nashville... third worst attendence. Same reasons as Carolina. The NHL can do much better than having a team in Nashville.
3. Anaheim... eighth worst attendence. Should be a natural rival for Los Angeles, but that hasn't developed. They are Disney on ice and no one takes them seriously. They have an awesome arena to play in, but can't draw flies. There has to be more than a great arena and a funky name to having a sports team.
4. Phoenix... this is painful to say, but my hometown does not deserve a team. The support is minimal and the apathy towards it is huge. The new arena is in the worst spot possible and the support will continue to dwindle IMO. Worst draw on the road in the league. They are the natural rival to no one and beyonf the population and great golfing offer nothing to the NHL.
5. Pittsburgh... worst attendence in the league. They need a new building and Pittsburgh is iffy on whether they get it or not (is it confirmed they are defintiely getting a new arena?). They are not really a big rival for anyone, nor a natural rival. Pittsburgh is blah IMO and outside of Mario Lemieux is a blip.
6. Buffalo... I really like Buffalo, but they never have been a strong franchise. I think that this is a situation where the suport is from outside the metro area more than it is from within the metro area. I think that a move across the lake would a be a good thing for this franchise all around.
My top six cities for consideration for expansion or relocation.
1. Portland... is a hockey market, has a great building and an owner with deep pockets looking for the right opportunity. Has some built in regional rivalries that would add some excitment to the game.
2. Seattle... another hockey market with the same great things Portland has to offer.
3. Houston... a proven hockey market who could really take off with the bitter rivalry between Dallas and Houston.
4. Winnipeg... a hockey market with built in rivals all over the place.
5. Hamilton... see Winnipeg.
6. Kansas City... not a hockey market, which is a huge strike against it. Having said that, the potential is there to exploit some natural rivalries that could assist at the gate and make this a strong franchise.
Finally, the New NHL, one that cuts down on travel for most teams and would leverage the regaional rivalies and get some honest to goodness hate going on again.
Western Conference
Los Angeles, San Jose, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Minnesota, Colorado, Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, Columbus
Eastern Conference
Philadelphia, New Jersey, NY Islanders, NY Rangers, Boston, Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Hamilton, Tampa, Miami, Washington, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston
See, there is some method behind the ideas and not just eliminating a team because of some dreamed up bias.