Top 4 Cities NHL Needs To Expand/Move Teams

Last week I talked about how it was a good thing that the Atlanta Thrashers were moving to Winnipeg. At the time the deal was not finalized but now we have official word that the Atlanta franchise is packing up and moving north. To the cold, very cold north.

My argument about the team moving centered not around Atlanta having bad fans. They had bad management, not bad fans. But rather the fact the NHL needs to focus more on promoting the game in areas that will support it rather than forcing it in areas that are not ready.

The Southern expansion will happen. Give it time. It’s not going to happen in a few years and Atlanta was just not ready. Again. They lost a team in the 70′s to Calgary and that worked out alright and I believe the move to Winnipeg will as well.

A lot has changed in Winnipeg over the years. The Canadian dollar, for one, is not as weak as it was back in the mid 90s. Also, the city has a new (yet small) arena and is backed by one of the richest people in the country so I really believe it will be a success.

With that in mind I wanted to go over a few more moves that I believe the NHL needs to address. Most people hate the term expansion as the NHL has focused on Southern markets recently. Let’s take a look at some other areas that could use a team.

4) Quebec City

The most obvious choice for most fans is moving a team back, or expanding back, into the Quebec market which lost their Nordiques to Denver in the 90s. After the move we all know that the Nordiques went on to a couple of Stanley Cups which left the bitter taste in fans mouths that much worse.

BACKGROUND: Like Winnipeg in the 90s, the city of Quebec lost a team to a U.S. city. Similar situations include economic and a new arena. Currently, the city is pushing to build the arena it needs for an NHL team even though there is no committed team in the near future.

WHY THIS IS A GOOD IDEA: Even though the NHL turns their back on Canadian teams (bad for American TV ratings and interest, in their opinion), the fact is the NHL should expand to markets where the game is popular at the same rate they expand into new markets. Quebec can support a team more and there’s little doubt about that.

Quebec is an area that is unique enough it wouldn’t leach off rival teams like Montreal or Boston for those teams to push to block an expansion or move. Those areas are unique to their teams and Quebec would be as well as the French speaking area of Eastern Canada is known for being a tad set apart from the rest of the country.

Plus, with the resurgence of retro jerseys you know this classic would lead the NHL is sales:

POTENTIAL PROBLEMS: Gary Bettman is no doubt shivering at the thought of a Winnipeg/Ottawa Stanley Cup and pondering how low the TV ratings would be. Game 1 turned out good but the fear still hangs out there for Bettman.

The biggest problem lies in the arena.  The city is scheduled to build a new arena but might find trouble with legislation that would block the construction and/or funding.  Without an arena, a team would obviously not pick up and move based on a possibility.

RELOCATION OR EXPANSION: Quebec would be a perfect city for a move like Phoenix or Florida.

3) Houston

Expanding into the warm, Southern climates seems like part of the problem but Houston might be the exception.  One of the biggest issues with how the NHL expanded is that essentially they threw expansion at the wall to see what would stick.

The wise expansion of the MLS soccer league shows that setting up teams in random areas is not that great.  Setting up a new and growing sport in an area and then adding nearby teams to fuel rivalries helps out a lot.  The Dallas Stars are struggling a bit as the team looks for owners and star Brad Richards looks to leave the team due to this fact.

Having a nearby rival would help gain interest in the team as Dallas ranked #23 out of the 30 teams last year in attendance.

BACKGROUND: Houston, Texas is the fourth largest city in the United States. They have a successful minor league team with the Aeros and it is biggest markets in the U.S. without an NHL team.  Houston did have a stint as the home of the WHL team by the same name in the 70s that featured this.

Yeah, this actually happened. The Howes all played together as the legend Gordie led the way. Of course Gordie was 175 years old when the picture was taken….

WHY THIS IS A GOOD IDEA: The Dallas Stars are the only team in the area and the basis of the NHL Southern Expansion is to kick-start the game with a new generation of fans who will play the game as well as attend games. Having a team in Houston gives Dallas a rival, something I think they lack a bit with the nearest rival really being Colorado.

POTENTIAL PROBLEMS: The Southern expansion by the NHL is a mixed bag. Teams have struggled at the gate in areas like Nashville, Atlanta and Phoenix. So Houston is ripe for a misfire.  Putting a team in Houston would require finding the perfect set of owners who know how to run a team, something that has proven difficult over the years.

RELOCATION OR EXPANSION: Expansion most likely.  This gives the NHL a chance to pick the right owners and make sure a Phoenix-like debacle doesn’t happen again.

2) Toronto

Recent studies have shown that the Toronto market can handle another NHL team.   We all know the Maple Leafs would fight it like they did the Hamilton team idea but in the end the rivalry would be an instant success an help the team.

I think it would also help the team kick it into gear.

The Leafs haven’t won a Cup since the time Rock Hudson was still an important actor and it’s easy to argue they need a bit of motivation.

Leafs fans are some of the best and most devoted and having a winning team in this city is instant gold for the league and team.

BACKGROUND: It’s been brought up in the past before but not taken too serious.  Now’s the time.   Despite the Leafs fighting the idea another team would fuel both franchises with competition between fans.  The city is hockey crazy and has the facilities and financing to make it happen.

WHY THIS IS A GOOD IDEA: Simply because Toronto is a huge city mad with hockey fans.  There are only a few cities that can hold two teams and this is one of them.  The Leafs ranked #5 in attendance last year and had bad team and they haven’t won a cup in over 40 years.

Imagine what a winning franchise would do in this town?

POTENTIAL PROBLEMS: The biggest concern is the Maple Leaf organization that has already fought teams moving into nearby Hamilton, Ontario.  They don’t want to share their market and may not want to share their arena.  Building a new arena is a long shot but really the only option as the Leafs and various concerts use the current Leafs home,the Air Canada Centre.

RELOCATION OR EXPANSION: Expansion.  The NHL can easily raise a lot of money from expansion fees and generate interest in the team with a timed campaign to expand into the city.  Plus, the Leafs might agree if the team gets to start from scratch and won’t be competitive at first.

1) Seattle AND Portland

Seattle has been named before in expansion and has been on the short list a few times.  Portland is a new market but has been very successful with their minor league team, the Winter Hawks.

And, little known fact, the city of Seattle has already host the Stanley Cup.  The Seattle Metropolitans defeated Montreal in 1917 for the Cup and the year before the Canadians won it by beating the Portland Rosebuds!  Hockey has been in the area, let’s bring it back.

3 Cup Finals were played in the Pacific Northwest

WHY THIS IS A GOOD IDEA: It’s really a no-brainer that Seattle should have a team. The instant rivalry with Vancouver would easily become the hottest ticket in the Northwest.

That’s also why I have added the Portland team. Yep. I believe the NHL should focus on areas where they can develop rivalries and Portland is often overlooked.  Having the three teams battle it out has helped the MLS which expanded into the markets which has been a success so far.

There are already successful teams in the area in terms of the minor leagues. The Portland Winter Hawks average 8500 fans in 1997 when the team was winning and for most of the 90s the attendance was between 5,000-8,000.

Billionaire Paul Allen already owns the Portland Trail Blazers who play at the Portland Rose Garden and getting him involved would be a huge coup.  The Winter Hawks play select games at the Rose Garden already so getting a pro team is not out of the question.

POTENTIAL PROBLEMS: The city of Seattle lost their NBA team to Oklahoma over a very public and heated issue centered around an arena.  The old arena was not good enough and literally falling apart but the two sides couldn’t come to terms.

This could be a problem....

Seattle has been in the running before and is a huge market but without an arena it’s just not gonna happen and the city won’t build one just to build one. They will need to know an NHL and probably an NBA team will fill it before giving the go ahead.

Portland is a huge market but still smaller and less traditional sports market compared to Vancouver and Seattle.  Could the city generate enough buzz to support ticket sales?

RELOCATION OR EXPANSION: Both. Help relocate a team like Columbus or Florida, or Dallas if that all falls through, to Portland where the facilities exist to support a team right now.

Give the go ahead for an expansion in Seattle and get the new arena built.  By then the Portland/Vancouver rivalry should be nice and heated allowing for a fun love/hate triangle between the region.

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