Could The Jets Return Next Year?

[RGM81]

Quebec and Winnipeg will get teams when two three things happen:

1. They get NHL calibre arenas
2. The NHL decides they want to expand
3. Someone has $250-$300 million to pony up for an expansion team



Bettman is not keeping teams out of those cities because he's got some wild anti-Canadian bias. Teams will not re-locate to Canada because despite the single franchise immediately becoming healthier, it hurts every single one of the other 29 teams.

Quebec's already got 1 and 3 in place: http://www.montrealgazette.com/sport...170/story.html

The deal gives Quebecor management and naming rights to the city's future arena for a 25-year period.
The company will invest between $110 and $200 million in the project, depending on whether the city lands an NHL franchise.
In the absence of a professional team, the company will contribute $33 million for the naming rights, while this amount will rise to $63.5 million if an NHL franchise signs on.
On top of that, Quebecor will pay the city between $3.15 and $5 million annually for the right to manage the building. The company will also give the city 10 or 15 per cent of profits from the facility, depending again on the NHL scenario.
Mayor Regis Labeaume announced last month the city and the province of Quebec will split the cost of building the 18,000-seat arena by 2015.

If Gary sees the green that Peledeau's got available to throw at the effort to bring back the Nordiques, they'll get #2 in pretty short order.

[sholi2000]

Why couldn't TSN wait to make up this story in July like last season.

They can kiss my butt. If Winnipeg gets their team back, I'll write about it. I'm tired writing the same old comments every single year.

"save our jets"

I want my tax receipt!

For shame Bob, TSN is using you.

EDIT for Link- The Gazette

OK it is fun to read these stories, and laugh at teams like Atlanta and Phoenix. Reminds me of the nights I spent in the barn with 4000 + people, wondering what was wrong with the fans in Winterpeg.

[dtab316]

All good points but Atlanta gets almost no exposure on NBC so i don't think it would weaken the tv deal that much. They are a market that doesn't care about hockey.

It's not the fact that Atlanta gets no exposure on NBC. It's the fact that Atlanta is a VERY large television market. The only other market that's larger with no NHL team is Houston.

I've stated this time and time again on this board. Atlanta is NOT a pro sports city. If the Thrashers were to move (Okay, I'm being pessamistic.) who would notice? The 5,000 or so fans? Local television? Local media? It's not like when the Jets or Nords moved. Hell, it's not even like when the Whalers moved. At least there were FANS that were hurt the most.

[dtab316]

Quebec and Winnipeg will get teams when two three things happen:

1. They get NHL calibre arenas
2. The NHL decides they want to expand
3. Someone has $250-$300 million to pony up for an expansion team



Bettman is not keeping teams out of those cities because he's got some wild anti-Canadian bias. Teams will not re-locate to Canada because despite the single franchise immediately becoming healthier, it hurts every single one of the other 29 teams.

Finally! FINALLY! Someone sees the light! But please don't blame Bettman. Remember, he is only a puppet. Gary Bettman works for the Board of Governors. It is the NHL THEMSELVES that are keeping teams for relocating to Canada.

[centrehice]

Why couldn't TSN wait to make up this story in July like last season.

They can kiss my butt. If Winnipeg gets their team back, I'll write about it. I'm tired writing the same old comments every single year.

"save our jets"

I want my tax receipt!

For shame Bob, TSN is using you.

EDIT for Link- The Gazette

OK it is fun to read these stories, and laugh at teams like Atlanta and Phoenix. Reminds me of the nights I spent in the barn with 4000 + people, wondering what was wrong with the fans in Winterpeg.

.................................................. ...................................

There were never 4,000 fans. I was a coporate season's ticket holder in Wpg. for the last 8 seasons they were there. The season ticket base was a solid 11,000 to 12,000 per year, in an arena that held 15,000.

Garbage spewed by Central Ontario know-it-alls should not be given much countenance.

[RGM81]

I'm not sure what that has to do with Shane, who lives in Manitoba.

[30ranfordfan]

And for the record - No, it was never an issue of fan support in either of Winnipeg or Quebec that forced the teams to relocate. The fans (almost) always supported those teams.

They left becuase the teams were bleeding money (due in large part to a 65 cent dollar), the owners couldn't deal with the losses anymore, and there was nobody willing to buy the teams and keep them in town.

Personally, I have no doubt that Quebec City, Winnipeg, Toronto #2, Hamilton, Kitchener, and Toronto #3 could all out sell / out merchandise teams like Atlanta, Phoenix, Carolina, Nashville, etc, etc, etc.

How many people you can put in the building has very little to do with the NHL's willingness to re-locate a team.

The NHL is sucking it up, and dealing with 'failing' markets, becuase they're trying to build a property that is actually sellable to the major US TV Networks. Adding more Canadian teams will not help achieve that goal.

*IF* a team moves, watch for Kansas City to be the destination. They've got the rink, and the rink is owned by AEG. The 'A' in AEG is Philip Anschutz... who also owns the Kings, and is one of the more powerful voices on the NHL Board of Governers. The NHL will move to stick a team into his empty building.... and sell that team for half of what a Canadian would buy it for.

I still say expansion is the only way another Canadian team comes along. Any you don't lose any American markets, and while Winnipeg doesn't make any TV deals better - the 10 (or so) million that new owner would put into the pocket of every single NHL owner, would quickly subdue any of the concerns around going back to small market Canada.


I'm sorry if I'm coming across as that guy who's bashing on other Canadian cities. I'm really not trying to do that, and I have no doubt that the fan support is there. I just believe that the NHL is a business. It's run like a business. The Board of Governers will do whatever they can to protect their interests, and I just don't see how taking a team from Atlanta to Winnipeg does anything but hurt their interests.

[Wickabee]

I still don't see how keeping a team with no fans can work on any level. NBC doesn't seem to care about the Thrashers and neither does Atlanta themselves. Maybe if the NHL tried to work a deal with Turner? Who knows.
You are right about Kansas City, though. That's probably a much more likely destination than either Winnipeg or QC. Is that the only American market in the running for a franchise, though? Could a city like Portland or Seattle work?

[sholi2000]

Centrehice I guess you missed a few games then.



During the first period of this Hawks game. I was sitting in this section all by myself. The Sun photographer yelled out to the fans 15 rows behind me to come down for a snap shot of the fans. (how many fans in that picture, now imagine all over the arena) and this is 8 rows from the glass behind the goalie.

I'm the guy in the middle (wearing a huskies hat) to the left of the yawning fan.

The only time I ever saw that arena full was during the playoffs, when the Habs, Bruins, Leafs and superstars came.

I went from the time I was posted to Winnipeg (Lest we Forget), I went to every game I could, and always laughed at the fan base.

There might be numbers to prove that 10-12K season tickets were sold, but I hardly ever saw them.

Attendance for a few good years, but missing the last poor years

[30ranfordfan]

It's not about which specific teams the TV networks like (otherwise every game would be Pittbsburgh vs Washington), it's about building a market.

There are 5.5 million people in Atlanta. While a very small percentage of them may ever go see a Thrashers game, I'll be that most are aware that the Thrashers exists, and the random sports fan may be a little inclined to stop on a hockey game as they're channel surfing on a Saturday afternoon in January. By having a team in Atlanta, the people of Atlanta are aware that hockey exists.

But even more importantly, there is the USA as an entire country. The NHL has worked its tail off over the last two decades to become part of the national sports sceen. Without having teams in major markets, its creates the perception that the NHL is a bush league. Put more teams into small market Canadian cities, that most people south of North Dakota have never heard of? Just adds to the sterotype that this is some game played by a bunch of maple syrup lovers to the north.

As for NBC (or any TV network for that matter) not caring.... that's not true. They care about ratings. They care about a product they can sell. The Thrashers are perrenial losers, and will (likely) never have a true national following (like the Rangers, Bruins, Red Wings, Flyers, Pens, etc). So of course they don't seem to care.

But it's becuase the team performs poorly. If the Thrashers had a Superstar whose name was easily pronouncible (i.e. he's from this side of the Atlantic) and had a good team, NBC would be all over them.

Atlanta vs Los Angeles. That's a finals you could sell in America. Los Angeles vs Winnipeg? Dead. Nobody who wasn't already a Kings fan would tune in.

As for the fans not caring, it's well documented that Atlanta is very apathetic when it comes to their sports teams. They're interested in winners, and nothing else. Even if you win your division 10 years in a row.... if you keep tanking in the playoffs, they'll stop caring about winning regular seasons (ask the Braves).

Atlanta has never won a playoff game. Yes, that's the team's own fault.... but check what attendance was like for the couple of playoff games (and late regular season games that year) the one season they did make it?

And really, for how bad that team has been, can you blame anyone for not wanting to go? In every single Canadian market not called Toronto..... the same thing has happened. If the team plays poorly for a long stretch of time, tickets magically stop getting sold. Edmonton , Calgary, Vancouver, Ottawa, and even Montreal..... they've all gone through stretches where sellouts were not even close.

If I were a betting on it, Kansas City... becuase of the arena.... is the next US market to get a team. Houston would be the one the NHL would most likely want to move next, becuase it's the largest city they're not already in. Portland or Seattle might work, I honestly don't know. Las Vegas has been talked about (largest USA city not to have any major pro sports team), talk of going back to Hartford too.

I still don't see how keeping a team with no fans can work on any level. NBC doesn't seem to care about the Thrashers and neither does Atlanta themselves. Maybe if the NHL tried to work a deal with Turner? Who knows.
You are right about Kansas City, though. That's probably a much more likely destination than either Winnipeg or QC. Is that the only American market in the running for a franchise, though? Could a city like Portland or Seattle work?