OT: NHL expanding by 4 teams!?

[Palatine]

Hartford is the largest city (demo) in the country without a major league sports team. If Hartford had a viable stadium the city would be attractive to many current NHL teams. The city s also growing in population for the first time in decades.

Please, BCU had and has no power at all in the ACC. It does what it is told. They did not block UConn from anything, the trouble was elsewhere.

As far as that other Boston team, the Bruins, or any of the other closely located team like the Rangers, Islanders and Devils, a team in Hartford is a minor plus. It is a cheap away game. It's an easy away game for their fans. It increases interest in hockey and adds TV sets in the the Connecticut market. While none of those is compelling, there is no reason to block a team from moving to Hartford, there is almost no downside and a minor plus.

Bottom line? Build it and they will come....probably.

 

[Husky25]

No one is mistaking themselves into thinking we're an expansion market, we're not. We're a relocation market. I'll have to keep reiterating.

20k don't need to buy season tickets this isn't football (Winnipeg sold 11,000), UConn isn't drawing 12-15k for basketball, more like 10k and 7-10k aren't going to watch baseball either it's more like 5k on average.

Those 90's Whalers posted a .345 winning % from 90-97. And still 13k+ showed up as you say yourself. How's that bad? When they left there was 11,000 ST holders which was at the top of the league. And wasn't CT undergoing a local recession at the time?

Whatever the case, Bettman himself said fans were not the issue with the market, he also said had the salary cap existed in 1995-97 neither one of the Whalers, Nordiques or Jets would have moved. The business model back then for smaller markets was simply unsustainable, that's no longer the case in today's NHL.

They will be back. I don't know if it's going to be 2 or 3 or 5 years from now but they will be.

I love the optimism, Pound. Do I think the NHL will be back? No, I don't think so, but keep fighting the good fight. It doesn't hurt anything. It would be great to the see the Bruins locally again. It's not necessarily tough to get tix to the Garden. They are available, but getting up there is not necessarily easy. I'd support a Hartford team by going to Bruins and select other games.

What I don't understand is why folks are actively fighting against it. If the NHL doesn't come back, life will go on as it is. Status quo. contra positively (...I think), if the NHL comes back and one is not a hockey fan, how does that affect that person's life one iota? If one is a hockey fan, but not a fan of the local team? All the better, IMO. They'll get to go to games when their team comes to town. My other question is why actively lobby against the NHL and for the status quo, when the status quo is the civic equivalent of a toilet a bowl? Willing things to happen and get better does not work. One must take action.

I would prefer a new arena to be built with private dollars, but that is a discussion for another day. Additionally, if a new arena is going to be built downtown anyway (and it may be. The $35 Million is meant to put lipstick on a pig in the meantime), then it should be State of the Art, if not close to it. It's not as if a new arena would be built on spec. There are a number of first class organizations and programs already and will be ready to rent it out. Plus, it is Global Spectrum's job is to book the building on dates not occupied by the corner tenants.

 

[Vowelguy]

What I don't understand is why folks are actively fighting against it. If the NHL doesn't come back, life will go on as it is. Status quo. contra positively (...I think), if the NHL comes back and one is not a hockey fan, how does that affect that person's life one iota? If one is a hockey fan, but not a fan of the local team? All the better, IMO. They'll get to go to games when their team comes to town. My other question is why actively lobby against the NHL and for the status quo, when the status quo is the civic equivalent of a toilet a bowl? Willing things to happen and get better does not work. One must take action.

The pie is only so big. Every dollar spent on NHL hockey is a dollar not available for spending elsewhere in the local economy. Surely at least some of that will negatively impact UConn sports. At a time when the school is trying to convince the P5 that it has deep, moneyed support, anything that would weaken that should be viewed skeptically.

 

[TheDoggPound]

I love the optimism, Pound. Do I think the NHL will be back? No, I don't think so, but keep fighting the good fight. It doesn't hurt anything. It would be great to the see the Bruins locally again. It's not necessarily tough to get tix to the Garden. They are available, but getting up there is not necessarily easy. I'd support a Hartford team by going to Bruins and select other games.

What I don't understand is why folks are actively fighting against it. If the NHL doesn't come back, life will go on as it is. Status quo. contra positively (...I think), if the NHL comes back and one is not a hockey fan, how does that affect that person's life one iota? If one is a hockey fan, but not a fan of the local team? All the better, IMO. They'll get to go to games when their team comes to town. My other question is why actively lobby against the NHL and for the status quo, when the status quo is the civic equivalent of a toilet a bowl? Willing things to happen and get better does not work. One must take action.

I would prefer a new arena to be built with private dollars, but that is a discussion for another day. Additionally, if a new arena is going to be built downtown anyway (and it may be. The $35 Million is meant to put lipstick on a pig in the meantime), then it should be State of the Art, if not close to it. It's not as if a new arena would be built on spec. There are a number of first class organizations and programs already and will be ready to rent it out. Plus, it is Global Spectrum's job is to book the building on dates not occupied by the corner tenants.

Very well put, I don't understand why many here lobby for the status quo either, it truly baffles me. We have a lot of advantages going for us but people tend to dwell on the cons (which are present for any market even a Qc/Seattle). It's sad because we're supposed to be the one's championing our own market yet we continually tear it down worse than those who don't even live here and don't want to see Hartford have a team again. It really makes us look pathetic as a sports market. Suffice to say, the self defeatist attitude and minor league mentality continues to be a mainstay in this state. Even so, I'm going to continue to beat the drum on this subject because I believe in us even if others won't.

 

[TheDoggPound]

The pie is only so big. Every dollar spent on NHL hockey is a dollar not available for spending elsewhere in the local economy. Surely at least some of that will negatively impact UConn sports. At a time when the school is trying to convince the P5 that it has deep, moneyed support, anything that would weaken that should be viewed skeptically.

UConn would probably be in a P5 conference by the time this came about. At least I would hope.

 

[Husky25]

The pie is only so big. Every dollar spent on NHL hockey is a dollar not available for spending elsewhere in the local economy. Surely at least some of that will negatively impact UConn sports. At a time when the school is trying to convince the P5 that it has deep, moneyed support, anything that would weaken that should be viewed skeptically.

Among other things (i.e. effects of a pro frThat presupposes that every portion of the pie is spoken for or that professional hockey is in direct competition with college sports. I don't think it is in either case. 1st UConn hockey is already in the best conference in the country. 2nd, IMO college hockey and pro hockey very much two different games., 3rd College hockey doesn't drive the bus. If the Big Ten came calling, UConn would be taking a step down! If the ACC came calling, hockey doesn't move at all.

 

[Vowelguy]

I didn't say there was 100% overlap, but there definitely is SOME overlap in fanbases.
SOME of the money spent on NHL hockey is surely money not spent on UConn FB/BB/hockey.

 

[TheDoggPound]

Ever heard of the saying "A rising tide lifts all boats"?

 

[Samoo]

Columbus and Carolina identified as 2 other possible relocation candidates per Ken Campbell of THN.

Portland OR may have a say in this as well. They have an existing modern hockey-ready arena with 17,500 capacity for hockey, the Rose Gar...err Moda Center. It is a large Metro area (#24 MSA) with no nearby team. It has a junior hockey team that draws over 7,300 per game and holds the single game record by drawing over 19,000 for a junior hockey game.

If the NHL was smart they would place a team in Seattle and in Portland and have a ready-made rivalry. Unfortunately Paul Allen has a major say in this as owner of the arena and has so far been unmotivated.

 

[Adios]

The NHL is looking to expand it's market. Adding a second team in Toronto is overdue, but I'd prefer Hamilton. The Sabres probably just wouldn't allow Hamilton as much as other cities for now. Hartford won't expand it. But the Whalers logo does expand the clothes lines for the NHL.

I certainly do expect UConn hockey to become popular.

 

[HuskyHawk]

a second team in Toronto seems ridiculous. Why not just maximize the Maple Leafs arena, make it bigger? Who in Toronto is going to root for some second-class team? The Maple Leafs are a way of life in Toronto.

Very true, and it's not like Buffalo is exactly distant.

 

[Vowelguy]

a second team in Toronto seems ridiculous. Why not just maximize the Maple Leafs arena, make it bigger? Who in Toronto is going to root for some second-class team? The Maple Leafs are a way of life in Toronto.

I'm sure the same was said about NY Mets, NY Jets, LA Clippers, LA Angels, etc etc.

 

[John]

I'm sure the same was said about NY Mets, NY Jets, LA Clippers, LA Angels, etc etc.

not a good comparison. The Mets replaced the Dodgers/Giants, so there was already National League ball in NYC. The LA Angels didn't appear out of nowhere, remember that they had long existed as the California Angels. I grant that you might have a point about the Clippers, I don't know enough about the NBA to make a comment on that.

 

[Husky25]

not a good comparison. The Mets replaced the Dodgers/Giants, so there was already National League ball in NYC. The LA Angels didn't appear out of nowhere, remember that they had long existed as the California Angels. I grant that you might have a point about the Clippers, I don't know enough about the NBA to make a comment on that.

The Clippers were in San Diego before LA. Sterling moved them so he didn't have to.

 

[Vowelguy]

not a good comparison.

They are all examples of a new team entering a market with an entrenched leader. All were met with derision at first. And yet they survived.

Another Toronto-area team placed down in Hamilton (~30-45 mins away) would serve a different audience.

 

[Husky25]

They are all examples of a new team entering a market with an entrenched leader. All were met with derision at first. And yet they survived.

Another Toronto-area team placed down in Hamilton (~30-45 mins away) would serve a different audience.

The Clippers survived because Sterling bankrolled them to the minimum and sued the league. They survived in spite of themselves.

 

[Adios]

The NHL is big on gate revenue. A second team in Toronto serves that cause.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

The Clippers were in San Diego before LA. Sterling moved them so he didn't have to.

Wasn't the clippers' franchise in KC or somewhere in the corn belt or Midwest before moving to SD, then LA?

On the Whalers, which now smaller northern CT or western MA corporations would buy the required luxury boxes in a required larger, new arena? Set aside Fairfield County and southern New Haven counties as well, because both are more NY-focused. Unless it's partially an avenue to a new arena for some UCONN hoops and hockey games in Hartford, wheres the legitimate demand and financial support for another NHL experiment?

 

[Adios]

Wasn't the clippers' franchise in KC or somewhere in the corn belt or Midwest before moving to SD, then LA?

The Kings were in KC/Omaha. The Clippers started out as the Buffalo Braves.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

The Kings were in KC/Omaha. The Clippers started out as the Buffalo Braves.

Thanks for the clarification Butch.

 

[upstater]

The Maple Leafs have priced out a horde of fans who instead decide to travel to Buffalo to watch games. When Toronto plays in Buffalo, fans decide it's much cheaper and less of a hassle to drive 1 1/2 hours for a game. And Buffalo, which sells out a huge arena for hockey, is inundated with Maple Leafs fans.

Heck, I bet the same thing happens in Ottawa, which is 3 1/2 hours away.

 

[HuskyDogArt]

http://www.ct.gov/ecd/lib/ecd/dph-population/dph_pop_1997.pdf

1997 population: 3,269,858
2013 population: 3,574,097


That's an increase of 304,239 + the 2014 increase which is about an additional 5,000 more. So we're at 310,000. By 2017 it will be over 325,000.

Now, I guess people don't realize how much income taxes wreck the nonessential spending. I had to cut back spending when .Weicker gave the citizens of Connecticut a screwing. The last few years of the Whalers, I had to cut back on Whalers tickets.
I am a Tampa Bay Lightning ticket holder...but I still have a Whalers shirt I wear to Whalercanes Lightning games.

 

[CTBasketball]

The fans are still there. Not in lower/mid Fairfield county though.

Hamilton will get a team, and Quebec might as well. As much as I want to see the Whalers come back, I find it hard to believe that a new franchise will want to start in Hartford with a run-down 15.5k arena, with the need to build a new arena in the coming years. In conclusion, instead of building minor league baseball stadiums a new arena in downtown Hartford should be seriously proposed.

A new arena in combination with the return of the Whalers will bring back fans. There are a lot of Ranger/Bruin/Islander fans who don't really like them because the Whalers were their original team. I'm one of them, but I'm an Oiler fan!

 

[TheDoggPound]

Has anybody see the prices for the Bruins-Islanders game tonight at Webster Bank Arena?

https://seatgeek.com/bruins-at-isla...ebster-bank-arena-at-harbor-yard/nhl/2188091/

Most expensive game so far in the NHL's entire preseason minus the Maple Leafs games at ACC.