Potential National Hockey League expansion
Encyclopedia
The National Hockey League
(NHL) has undergone several rounds of expansion and other organizational changes
during its nearly 100-year history
to reach its current number of thirty teams: twenty-three in the United States
, and seven in Canada
. A number of potential owners have sought a franchise for other cities, but as of April 2010, the NHL has repeatedly asserted that is not planning any expansion or franchise moves. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman
recently stated "we're not planning on relocating. We're not planning on expanding. Anyone who wants a franchise really is out of luck for the foreseeable future. [...] If at some point we're in the business of relocating or expanding, we're going to open it up because the number of people and the number of places that want franchises is a fairly lengthy list. " The league made an exception in the case of Winnipeg
, Manitoba
with Bettman repeatedly having stated a desire to return to the city; the Atlanta Thrashers
relocated to Winnipeg
for the 2011–12 NHL season.
The potential of adding a seventh franchise in Canada had been an ongoing source of controversy for the NHL in recent years as numerous groups proposed expanding the league into a new Canadian city, or purchasing a struggling American franchise and relocating it north; to a certain extent, these issues continue even after the awarding of a seventh franchise to Winnipeg. Quebec City
, Quebec
and the Golden Horseshoe
area of Southern Ontario
are most frequently proposed as locations for new Canadian teams, as was Winnipeg prior to the announced relocation of the Thrashers. Canadian businessman Jim Balsillie
has made several significant attempts to bring a team to Hamilton
, including a $242.5 million offer in 2009 to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes
, immediately after the team filed for bankruptcy protection. Balsillie's efforts have been resisted by the NHL during commissioner Gary Bettman
's tenure. Balsillie's latest efforts include a public relations campaign based around Canadian nationalist
feelings and the perception that the NHL is "anti-Canadian".
's rejected bid for one of six new franchises added in 1967
outraged Canadians, who felt they had been "sold out". Prime Minister
Lester B. Pearson
stated that "the NHL decision to expand only in the U.S. impinges on the sacred principles of all Canadians."
Three years later, the Vancouver Canucks
joined as the league's third Canadian franchise.
The 1979 defeat by a single vote of a merger agreement
between the NHL and the rival World Hockey Association
that would have resulted in three WHA franchises join the NHL led to a mass boycott of Molson
products across Canada. In a second vote, the Montreal Canadiens
, owned by Molson, reversed their position, allowing the Edmonton Oilers
, Quebec Nordiques
and Winnipeg Jets to join the NHL for the 1979–80 NHL season. The Calgary Flames
became Canada's seventh franchise in 1980, relocated from Atlanta.
The 1990s saw considerable upheaval amongst Canadian franchises. In 1992, the NHL returned to Ottawa
, while a potential expansion into Hamilton failed. However, the declining value of the Canadian dollar
at that time, coupled with rapidly escalating salaries, placed hardships on Canadian franchises.
As a result, the Nordiques and Jets left Canada, becoming the Colorado Avalanche
in 1995 and the Phoenix Coyotes
in 1996 respectively. Fears persisted up to the 2004–05 NHL lockout that the Flames, Oilers, and Senators could follow suit. The financial fortunes of Canada's teams rebounded following the lockout: Canada's six franchises represented one-third of NHL revenues in 2006–07, primarily on the back of the surging value of the Canadian dollar.
In May 2011, True North Sports and Entertainment, an ownership group with the support of billionaire David Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet
, purchased the Atlanta Thrashers
with the intention to move the team to Winnipeg
, Manitoba
. The relocation marks the first franchise relocation since 1997 and the first new Canadian franchise since the Ottawa Senators entered the league in 1992. At the 2011 NHL Entry Draft
, it was announced that the team would be named the Jets
.
has repeatedly argued in favour of bringing a new team to Canada. In early 2008, he described the Canadian market to The Palm Beach Post
: "The six Canadian franchises do so well, they pack the buildings, get great TV, great revenue streams. If you put another team up there, be it in Nova Scotia
or Hamilton, it would be more of the same."
Prime Minister
Stephen Harper
has also spoken in favor of another team in Canada, stating he has spoken with NHL owners in the past about bringing a new team to southern Ontario.
A study published in April 2011 by the University of Toronto
's Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation
concluded that Canada can support 12 NHL teams, double the amount it had at the time of the study.
attempted to lure the Colorado Rockies
to Hamilton in 1980, an effort that ended when he lost his re-election bid.
Hamilton was also a candidate for expansion in 1991, being one of favorites, but it lost out to the Ottawa Senators
and Tampa Bay Lightning
. Hamilton's bid group attempted to negotiate the $50 million expansion fee; a condition the NHL rejected. While it was speculated that the Toronto Maple Leafs
and Buffalo Sabres
did not want an NHL team in Hamilton due to territorial competition, former league president Gil Stein has denied that was the case.
Research In Motion
founder and co-CEO Jim Balsillie
has made numerous attempts to purchase an existing NHL team with the purpose of bringing it to Southern Ontario. He signed an agreement in principle to purchase the Pittsburgh Penguins
for US$
175 million on October 5, 2006.
Penguins' majority owner Mario Lemieux
agreed to the sale after struggling to gain support from local governments to build a new arena. Balsillie's purchase agreement offered to help finance a new arena, but also contained a stated intention to relocate the team to Hamilton
or Kitchener
-Waterloo
if no deal on a new arena could be reached.
Balsillie later retracted his bid, claiming that the NHL had placed conditions on the sale that he was not comfortable with, including a commitment to keep the team in Pittsburgh under any circumstances.
Balsillie then reached an agreement to purchase the Nashville Predators
for $238 million on May 24, 2007, and began a season ticket campaign in Hamilton a week later intended to prove that the city was capable of hosting an NHL team. Thousands of fans purchased tickets, however the sale again fell through a month later when Predators owner Craig Leipold
opted to terminate the agreement.
The Predators were later sold to a group of ten investors, led by Nashville businessman David Freeman, who promised to keep the team in Nashville.
Leipold accepted $40 million less from Freeman's group than Balsillie offered, and later ended up as the majority owner of the Minnesota Wild
.
During the 2008–2009 NHL season, the future of the Phoenix Coyotes
was on shaky ground as the team expected to lose as much as $45 million, and the league had to step in to assist with paying the team's bills. Coyotes' managing partner Jerry Moyes
filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in early May 2009, and immediately afterwards, an offer by Balsillie to purchase the team was made public.
The NHL challenged the Coyotes' ability to file for bankruptcy, claiming that as a result of the financial support the league had been offering the franchise, the league itself is in control of the team, and that Moyes did not have authority to act as he did.
Balsillie's launched a public relations campaign aiming at igniting Canadian nationalistic
feelings and the perception that Bettman has an anti-Canadian agenda, including a website. His bid to purchase the Coyotes failed as the bankruptcy judge ruled his offer did not meet the NHL's rules on relocation.
The Hamilton Spectator
reported on May 9 that a Vancouver-based group led by Tom Gaglardi
was planning to make a bid to purchase the Atlanta Thrashers
and relocate the team to Hamilton in time for the 2010–11 NHL season
. This never materialized, and the idea was eventually rendered moot by the Thrashers' sale and relocation to Winnipeg.
Under NHL rules, an expansion or relocation of a team to Hamilton could potentially be blocked by the Buffalo Sabres
, because Copps Coliseum
, the likely venue for a Hamilton NHL team, is located less than 50 miles from the Sabres' home arena. Roughly 15% of the Sabres' business comes from residents of the area of Ontario between Hamilton and Buffalo, and the Sabres could require "an enormous indemnification payment" to allow an additional team to be established within a 50-mile radius.
A preseason NHL game was played in Hamilton between the Sabres and the Ottawa Senators
on September 28, 2010 as part of the Kraft Hockeyville promotion, as a result of the city winning a fan vote. The game was hosted at the much smaller J. L. Grightmire Arena in the Dundas
region of the city and not at the Copps Coliseum.
An unnamed bidder made a bid for the Sabres in February 2011, offering $259,000,000 for the team to move it out of Buffalo, which would either mean the team itself would relocate to Hamilton or it would clear the way for another team to make such a move. The bid was rejected in favor of an offer from Terrence Pegula
, who planned to keep the team in Buffalo.
A popular choice for a new Hamilton team is the Tigers, the name of an NHL team in the 1920s. However, that name is very similar to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
football team, whose name is derived from a Hamilton Tigers football team. While two professional teams sharing names is not unheard of in professional sports, any Hamilton franchise would need to seek permission from the Tiger-Cats to use the Tigers name to avoid any trademark disputes.
In April 2009, a group of businessmen met with NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly
to discuss the possibility of bringing a second NHL franchise into the Toronto area, most likely in Vaughan
, Ontario
. Despite the talks, Daly reportedly stated the NHL is "not currently considering expansion nor do we have any intention or desire to relocate an existing franchise."
In June 2009, a group headed by Andrew Lopez and Herbert Carnegie
proposed a $1 billion plan for a second Toronto team, called the Legacy, to begin play no earlier than 2012. The group announced a plan for a 30,000 seat arena, with 15,000 for tickets of a price of $50 or less. The arena would be situated in Downsview Park
in the north of the city. Twenty-five percent of net profits would be given to charity.
, the president of the KHL
, Russia's professional hockey league, has stated his intention to purchase an NHL team and move it to Quebec City
, saying that it is "strange" there is no NHL team there. Medvedev said he shelved plans to buy a North American team after NHL representatives told him that the league would never allow a Russian
to own one of its clubs.
Quebec City mayor Regis Labeaume, on October 10, 2009 talked with NHL officials, regarding the return of the Nordiques. Bettman said this in October, 2009, that he would consider Quebec City as a possible home to an NHL team if it followed through on plans to build a top arena
and if a team were for sale. In May 2011 Labeume stated that Pierre Karl Peladeau
, the president and CEO of Quebecor Inc., is currently in talks with the NHL regarding a franchise in Quebec City. There also exist plans for a new 18,000-seat arena in Quebec City, the Vidéotron Amphitheatre
, that is set to begin construction by no later than 2013 and be ready for use by the 2015 season.
An exhibition game is scheduled for the 2011–12 NHL season for the Colisée Pepsi. The Montreal Canadiens
will host the Tampa Bay Lightning
in Quebec.
in Saskatoon
, with full seating, can seat up to 15,000 fans, a capacity roughly equal to that of the MTS Centre in Winnipeg.
Wild Bill Hunter, the founder of the Edmonton Oilers
, had an agreement to purchase the St. Louis Blues
and move the team to Saskatoon as the Saskatoon Blues in the 1982–83 NHL season; however, the NHL (who did not want to leave the St. Louis market) vetoed the sale. Faced with the prospects of either having to allow the sale or contract the franchise, the league found an owner (Harry Ornest) willing to keep the team in Missouri and, in an eleventh-hour deal, preserved the Blues in St. Louis, where they remain to this day.
A proposal from Ice Edge Holdings to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes would move a portion of the team's home games to Saskatoon in an effort to maintain the team's viability in its main home in Phoenix, similar to the current Bills Toronto Series
arrangement in the National Football League
; the group, had it bought the team, was ready to go forward and had leased the Credit Union Centre for five home games in the 2009–10 season. The group is believed to lack the funds to buy the team outright, but remained in contention as potential minority owner until May 2011, when it pulled out of negotiations.
An exhibition game is scheduled for the 2011–12 NHL season for the Credit Union Centre. The Chicago Blackhawks
will face a split squad of the Edmonton Oilers
.
, a town in York Region bordered near Scarborough, and Pickering with a 261,573 population.
GTA Sports and Entertainment, a company interested in confirmed that it hopes to build a multi-use 19,500-seat, $300-million arena is being planned as part of a major entertainment complex and could be ready as soon as 2014. Markham mayor Frank Scarpitti says a group of private investors has been exploring the possibility of building an arena suitable for a National Hockey League franchise. The land, near the Unionville GO station, is owned by Rudy Bratty, chairman and CEO of the Remington Group. The Remington Group is at the heart of Markham’s proposed downtown development. Bauer chairman W. Graham Rouston is said to be interested in being part of an ownership group, both of the rink and potentially a pro hockey team. Rouston is a Montreal-raised private equity investor whose firm Kohlberg & Company, purchased Bauer from Nike.
The Greater Toronto Area has been put forward as a site for NHL-sized arenas in the past. Groups have proposed rinks in Downsview Park and Vaughan but neither plan has gone anywhere. However, any financially struggled teams can be relocated or expanded depending on NHL's policies.
have been mentioned in the media as possible future sites for new or relocated NHL teams. In December 2007, organizations from Kansas City
, Las Vegas
, Houston, and Seattle presented their proposals for a franchise to the NHL's Executive Committee.
Other possible locations include San Antonio, Salt Lake City, Portland
, Hartford
, Cleveland, Milwaukee, Oklahoma City
, Norfolk
, and Cincinnati.
The five largest metropolitan regions without NHL franchises are (in descending order of population) Houston, Atlanta, Seattle-Tacoma
, San Diego, and Cleveland. Cleveland, Houston and Atlanta have previously hosted major professional hockey teams. During the 1970s, Cleveland was home to the Cleveland Barons
(the former Oakland Seals), which failed to draw fans or revenue, and was merged with the Minnesota North Stars
(now the Dallas Stars
) after two seasons. The Houston Aeros
of the World Hockey Association
(WHA) existed from 1972 until 1978. The Atlanta Flames
joined the NHL in 1972 and played in the city for eight years before being moved to Calgary in 1980 and becoming the Calgary Flames
. The Atlanta Thrashers
played in the NHL from 1999 to 2011, until its move to Winnipeg for the 2011–12 season.
Houston (Toyota Center
), Atlanta (Philips Arena
), Cleveland (Quicken Loans Arena
), Tacoma (Tacoma Dome
) and Portland (Rose Garden) have arenas capable of hosting NHL games. Other arenas specifically designed for NBA franchises such as the Barclays Center in Brooklyn
, San Antonio's AT&T Center
, Seattle Center Coliseum
in Seattle, and Salt Lake City's EnergySolutions Arena
are also not suitable as permanent hosts for NHL hockey , although San Antonio also has the Alamodome
.
. This was followed by the Houston Apollos
, the Houston Aeros
of the WHA and the current Houston Aeros
. The WHA Houston Aeros were an original member of the World Hockey Association
. From 1972 to 1978, the Aeros twice won the AVCO World Trophy
and featured the first father/son combination to play together in professional hockey, Gordie Howe
and his two sons Mark
and Marty
. The Aeros, despite being a relatively successful franchise, were left out of the NHL-WHA merger and were forced to fold in 1978.
The current Houston Aeros
of the American Hockey League
(AHL) were founded in 1994. The team plays in the Toyota Center, which seats over 17,000 for hockey. As part of the lease agreement of the Toyota Center with the Houston Rockets, only an NHL team owned by Les Alexander, owner of the Rockets is allowed to play at the Center. The Rockets have twice explored the purchase of an NHL team for the building. According to comments made by Harris County officials, (Harris County owns the Center) there is no current interest in an NHL team. The other arenas in Houston with the capability of hosting an NHL team are The Summit, although that building has been sold to a megachurch and has been decommissioned as a sports venue, and the currently vacant Astrodome.
Kansas City, Missouri has hosted NHL hockey before. The NHL Kansas City Scouts
played out of Kemper Arena
from 1974 until 1976. The team averaged only 8,218 in attendance per game in the 17,000 seat arena, leading to the team's sale and relocation to Denver, Colorado
to become the Colorado Rockies
. Professional hockey continued at the arena in the form of the minor league Kansas City Blues
, followed by the Kansas City Blades
and the Kansas City Outlaws
.
Kansas City opened an NHL-ready arena named the Sprint Center
in 2007. The arena is owned by the Anschutz Entertainment Group
(AEG), which owns the Los Angeles Kings
, among other sports interests. In 2007, when the Pittsburgh Penguins
faced financial troubles and no prospect of a new arena, the president of AEG offered to relocate the team to Missouri to play in the new Sprint Center
rent-free and to become managing partners in the facility. The Penguins, however, remained in Pittsburgh and ultimately got their new arena in 2010. In 2009, the New York Islanders played the Los Angeles Kings
in a pre-season game at Sprint Center. The game was poorly attended, ending speculation that the Islanders would move to the arena. The Sprint Center will host another pre-season game of the Los Angeles Kings
; this time versus the Penguins, in September 2011. As AEG already owns the Los Angeles Kings, it would not be allowed to own another NHL team under NHL rules, although the rule has been circumvented in the past. The pre-season game between the Penguins and Kings was a sellout, drawing over 17,000 fans.
outside Caesars Palace
in the preseason. The minor league Las Vegas Thunder
professional ice hockey team operated out of the Thomas and Mack Center from 1993 until 1999 when the team's lease of the facility expired. Several of the team's players eventually played in the NHL.
Every year since 1997 Las Vegas has hosted Frozen Fury
, a pre-season competition between the Los Angeles Kings and the Colorado Avalanche
at the 16,800 seat capacity MGM Grand Garden Arena. It has been sold out every year, with substantial attendance from Las Vegas locals as well as travelling Kings and Avalanche fans.
Despite the fact that the 2009 NHL Awards Ceremony were held in Las Vegas, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has said it "has nothing to do with" it being a potential relocation or expansion spot. The media speculated openly about a plan involving the Hollywood producer Jerry Bruckheimer
to bring the Phoenix Coyotes to Nevada.
were the first American winners of the Stanley Cup
, but folded in 1924, while the Seattle Totems
played in the borderline-major Western Hockey League
from 1945 to 1975. During the mid-1970s, Seattle was even granted a conditional franchise that never came to fruition because of the league's instability (according to season ticket promotions the team would have kept the WHL name of Totems). A Seattle group made an unsuccessful bid on an expansion franchise in 1990. Seattle Center Coliseum
is less than ideal for NHL in terms of capacity and sightlines, due to a 1994 renovation that made the arena basketball-specific for the arena's major tenant, the now-relocated Seattle SuperSonics
; the league has stated that the Coliseum would be "a difficult arena for hockey." A Seattle group expressed its interest to the NHL in 2007. In 2011, the NHL acknowledged that there was interest expressed by a group in Seattle for a team. Multiple reports suggest Chicago Wolves
owner and businessman Don Levin has expressed interest in building a new arena in nearby Bellevue
that could host an NHL team. Another option is the Tacoma Dome
, a multi-purpose stadium
that has hosted NHL exhibition games in the past, although the stadium's distance from Seattle (30 miles) and largely temporary seating would be a concern.
and the New York Islanders
. The Coyotes filed for bankruptcy
in 2009 and are currently owned by the NHL. The team came close to being sold to the Winnipeg group that bought the Thrashers, and remain in Phoenix because of annual $25 million payments by the owner of the Coyotes' arena, the City of Glendale, Arizona
. The Coyotes relocated from Winnipeg in 1996, but have been unprofitable ever since.
The New York Islanders, one of three NHL teams in the New York metropolitan area
(none of the other major professional sports leagues have more than two in any given market) but the only major sports team representing Long Island
, have been unhappy with the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
, currently the second-oldest and second-smallest arena in the NHL, and have proposed plans for a new arena. The team remains in the Coliseum because of its lease, which expires in 2015. Lack of progress on a new arena has fueled the media speculation. In 2009, rumors arose that the New York Islanders would move to Kansas City due to Islanders' owner Charles Wang
expressing regret about buying the team, coupled with the facts that no new arena plans are in sight and that the Islanders were scheduled to play a pre-season game in September in Kansas City. The Islanders played that game in a half-empty Sprint Center
in Kansas City, ending the speculation about the move. The team reportedly has considered a move to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, although that arena is designed for basketball
. Another possible site is Willets Point near Citi Field in Queens
where business leaders have proposed that the Islanders move. As recently as January 2011, Wang has stated that the team's "'first priority' is to keep the team in Nassau County."
, stated that he looked forward to a "world playoff" for the Stanley Cup
. In 1969, Clarence Campbell
, president of the NHL, was quoted as saying "It is conceivable that the Stanley Cup will be played for in Moscow in the not too distant future. When it does, the World Tournament as we know it will just disappear ... The game will continue to expand."
While no specific European cities have been named in recent years, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly has stated in 2008 that expansion into Europe is a possibility "within 10 years time." In August 2010, IIHF's René Fasel
stated that he would strongly oppose any expansion by the NHL into European markets.
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
(NHL) has undergone several rounds of expansion and other organizational changes
History of organizational changes in the NHL
Since being founded in 1917, the National Hockey League , which in its first two seasons started out as a three-team league and eventually grew to thirty in its current state, has expanded and contracted numerous times throughout its history...
during its nearly 100-year history
History of the National Hockey League
The history of the National Hockey League begins with the end of its predecessor league, the National Hockey Association , in 1917. After unsuccessfully resolving disputes with Eddie Livingstone, owner of the Toronto Blueshirts, executives of the three other NHA franchises suspended the NHA, and...
to reach its current number of thirty teams: twenty-three in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and seven in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. A number of potential owners have sought a franchise for other cities, but as of April 2010, the NHL has repeatedly asserted that is not planning any expansion or franchise moves. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman
Gary Bettman
Gary Bruce Bettman is the commissioner of the National Hockey League , a post he has held since February 1, 1993. Previously, Bettman was a senior vice-president and general counsel to the National Basketball Association...
recently stated "we're not planning on relocating. We're not planning on expanding. Anyone who wants a franchise really is out of luck for the foreseeable future. [...] If at some point we're in the business of relocating or expanding, we're going to open it up because the number of people and the number of places that want franchises is a fairly lengthy list. " The league made an exception in the case of Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
with Bettman repeatedly having stated a desire to return to the city; the Atlanta Thrashers
Atlanta Thrashers
The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League on June 25, 1997, and became the league's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL season...
relocated to Winnipeg
Winnipeg Jets
The Winnipeg Jets were a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. They began play in the World Hockey Association in 1972, moving to the National Hockey League in 1979 following the collapse of the WHA...
for the 2011–12 NHL season.
Expansion sites within Canada
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
and the Golden Horseshoe
Golden Horseshoe
The Golden Horseshoe is a densely populated and industrialized region centred around the Greater Toronto Area at the western end of Lake Ontario in Southern Ontario, Canada, with outer boundaries stretching south to Lake Erie and north to Georgian Bay. Most of it is also part of the Quebec City...
area of Southern Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
are most frequently proposed as locations for new Canadian teams, as was Winnipeg prior to the announced relocation of the Thrashers. Canadian businessman Jim Balsillie
Jim Balsillie
James Laurence "Jim" Balsillie is a Canadian businessman and co-CEO of the Canadian company Research In Motion. He is a member of the Trilateral Commission, a private political organization...
has made several significant attempts to bring a team to Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, including a $242.5 million offer in 2009 to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes
Phoenix Coyotes
The Phoenix Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in Glendale, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their home games at Jobing.com Arena....
, immediately after the team filed for bankruptcy protection. Balsillie's efforts have been resisted by the NHL during commissioner Gary Bettman
Gary Bettman
Gary Bruce Bettman is the commissioner of the National Hockey League , a post he has held since February 1, 1993. Previously, Bettman was a senior vice-president and general counsel to the National Basketball Association...
's tenure. Balsillie's latest efforts include a public relations campaign based around Canadian nationalist
Canadian nationalism
Canadian nationalism is a term which has been applied to ideologies of several different types which highlight and promote specifically Canadian interests over those of other countries, notably the United States...
feelings and the perception that the NHL is "anti-Canadian".
History of Canadian franchises (1967–present)
Throughout the history of the NHL, attempts to bring franchises to Canadian cities have caused points of contention. VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
's rejected bid for one of six new franchises added in 1967
1967 NHL expansion
The National Hockey League undertook a major expansion for the 1967–68 season, adding six new franchises to double the size of the league. This marked the first change in the composition of the league since 1942, when the Brooklyn Americans folded. Thus, the expansion ended the era of the Original...
outraged Canadians, who felt they had been "sold out". Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Lester B. Pearson
Lester B. Pearson
Lester Bowles "Mike" Pearson, PC, OM, CC, OBE was a Canadian professor, historian, civil servant, statesman, diplomat, and politician, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 for organizing the United Nations Emergency Force to resolve the Suez Canal Crisis...
stated that "the NHL decision to expand only in the U.S. impinges on the sacred principles of all Canadians."
Three years later, the Vancouver Canucks
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver, :British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Canucks play their home games at Rogers Arena, formerly known as General Motors Place,...
joined as the league's third Canadian franchise.
The 1979 defeat by a single vote of a merger agreement
NHL–WHA merger
The 1979 merger of the NHL and WHA was the culmination of several years of negotiations between the National Hockey League and the World Hockey Association that resulted in four WHA franchises joining the NHL as expansion franchises for the 1979–80 season...
between the NHL and the rival World Hockey Association
World Hockey Association
The World Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major competition for the National Hockey League since the collapse of the Western Hockey League in 1926...
that would have resulted in three WHA franchises join the NHL led to a mass boycott of Molson
Molson
Molson-Coors Canada Inc. is the Canadian division of the world's fifth-largest brewing company, the Molson Coors Brewing Company. It is the second oldest company in Canada after the Hudson's Bay Company. Molson's first brewery was located on the St...
products across Canada. In a second vote, the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
, owned by Molson, reversed their position, allowing the Edmonton Oilers
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League ....
, Quebec Nordiques
Quebec Nordiques
The Quebec Nordiques were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The Nordiques played in the World Hockey Association and the National Hockey League...
and Winnipeg Jets to join the NHL for the 1979–80 NHL season. The Calgary Flames
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...
became Canada's seventh franchise in 1980, relocated from Atlanta.
The 1990s saw considerable upheaval amongst Canadian franchises. In 1992, the NHL returned to Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, while a potential expansion into Hamilton failed. However, the declining value of the Canadian dollar
Canadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
at that time, coupled with rapidly escalating salaries, placed hardships on Canadian franchises.
As a result, the Nordiques and Jets left Canada, becoming the Colorado Avalanche
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise...
in 1995 and the Phoenix Coyotes
Phoenix Coyotes
The Phoenix Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in Glendale, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their home games at Jobing.com Arena....
in 1996 respectively. Fears persisted up to the 2004–05 NHL lockout that the Flames, Oilers, and Senators could follow suit. The financial fortunes of Canada's teams rebounded following the lockout: Canada's six franchises represented one-third of NHL revenues in 2006–07, primarily on the back of the surging value of the Canadian dollar.
In May 2011, True North Sports and Entertainment, an ownership group with the support of billionaire David Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet
David Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet
David Kenneth Roy Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet is a Canadian media magnate. He is the son of the late Kenneth Thomson, 2nd Baron Thomson of Fleet and his siblings are actress Taylor Thomson and Peter Thomson...
, purchased the Atlanta Thrashers
Atlanta Thrashers
The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League on June 25, 1997, and became the league's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL season...
with the intention to move the team to Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
. The relocation marks the first franchise relocation since 1997 and the first new Canadian franchise since the Ottawa Senators entered the league in 1992. At the 2011 NHL Entry Draft
2011 NHL Entry Draft
The 2011 NHL Entry Draft was the 49th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 24–25, 2011, at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. It was the first time the Draft was held in the state of Minnesota since the Minnesota North Stars hosted the 1989 NHL Entry Draft.The top three picks consisted...
, it was announced that the team would be named the Jets
Winnipeg Jets
The Winnipeg Jets were a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. They began play in the World Hockey Association in 1972, moving to the National Hockey League in 1979 following the collapse of the WHA...
.
Current views on Canadian expansion
Former National Hockey League Players Association executive director Paul KellyPaul Kelly (lawyer)
Paul V. Kelly is the executive director of College Hockey, Inc. and a former Executive Director of the National Hockey League Players' Association, serving in the latter role from October 24, 2007 to August 31, 2009.- Career :...
has repeatedly argued in favour of bringing a new team to Canada. In early 2008, he described the Canadian market to The Palm Beach Post
The Palm Beach Post
The Palm Beach Post is a major daily newspaper in Florida, serving Palm Beach County in South Florida, and the Treasure Coast area. It is the 72nd largest daily newspaper in the United States and the sixth largest in Florida.-History:...
: "The six Canadian franchises do so well, they pack the buildings, get great TV, great revenue streams. If you put another team up there, be it in Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
or Hamilton, it would be more of the same."
Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Stephen Harper
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...
has also spoken in favor of another team in Canada, stating he has spoken with NHL owners in the past about bringing a new team to southern Ontario.
A study published in April 2011 by the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
's Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation
Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation
The Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation is an independent, non-partisan public policy research centre located at the University of Toronto School of Public Policy and Governance....
concluded that Canada can support 12 NHL teams, double the amount it had at the time of the study.
Hamilton
Hamilton mayor Jack MacDonaldJack MacDonald (Hamilton politician)
John A. "Jack" MacDonald was a politician, businessman, and journalist in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. He served as Mayor of Hamilton from 1976 to 1980, and wrote a column in the Hamilton Spectator newspaper for many years....
attempted to lure the Colorado Rockies
Colorado Rockies (NHL)
The Colorado Rockies were an American professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League that played in Denver, Colorado, from 1976 to 1982. They were a relocation of the Kansas City Scouts, a 1974 expansion team. The franchise moved to East Rutherford, New Jersey, in 1982 and was...
to Hamilton in 1980, an effort that ended when he lost his re-election bid.
Hamilton was also a candidate for expansion in 1991, being one of favorites, but it lost out to the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
and Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . They have one Stanley Cup championship in their history, in 2003–04. They are often referred to as the...
. Hamilton's bid group attempted to negotiate the $50 million expansion fee; a condition the NHL rejected. While it was speculated that the Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
and Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...
did not want an NHL team in Hamilton due to territorial competition, former league president Gil Stein has denied that was the case.
Research In Motion
Research In Motion Limited or RIM is a Canadian multinational telecommunications company headquartered in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada that designs, manufactures and markets wireless solutions for the worldwide mobile communications market...
founder and co-CEO Jim Balsillie
Jim Balsillie
James Laurence "Jim" Balsillie is a Canadian businessman and co-CEO of the Canadian company Research In Motion. He is a member of the Trilateral Commission, a private political organization...
has made numerous attempts to purchase an existing NHL team with the purpose of bringing it to Southern Ontario. He signed an agreement in principle to purchase the Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the first expansion teams during the league's original...
for US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
175 million on October 5, 2006.
Penguins' majority owner Mario Lemieux
Mario Lemieux
Mario Lemieux, OC, CQ is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He is acknowledged to be one of the best players of all time. He played 17 seasons as a forward for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League between 1984 and 2006...
agreed to the sale after struggling to gain support from local governments to build a new arena. Balsillie's purchase agreement offered to help finance a new arena, but also contained a stated intention to relocate the team to Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
or Kitchener
Kitchener, Ontario
The City of Kitchener is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It was the Town of Berlin from 1854 until 1912 and the City of Berlin from 1912 until 1916. The city had a population of 204,668 in the Canada 2006 Census...
-Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario
Waterloo is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It is the smallest of the three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, and is adjacent to the city of Kitchener....
if no deal on a new arena could be reached.
Balsillie later retracted his bid, claiming that the NHL had placed conditions on the sale that he was not comfortable with, including a commitment to keep the team in Pittsburgh under any circumstances.
Balsillie then reached an agreement to purchase the Nashville Predators
Nashville Predators
The Nashville Predators are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
for $238 million on May 24, 2007, and began a season ticket campaign in Hamilton a week later intended to prove that the city was capable of hosting an NHL team. Thousands of fans purchased tickets, however the sale again fell through a month later when Predators owner Craig Leipold
Craig Leipold
Craig Leipold is an American businessman. He is known for owning two professional ice hockey teams in the National Hockey League. He formerly owned the Nashville Predators and is the majority owner of the Minnesota Wild...
opted to terminate the agreement.
The Predators were later sold to a group of ten investors, led by Nashville businessman David Freeman, who promised to keep the team in Nashville.
Leipold accepted $40 million less from Freeman's group than Balsillie offered, and later ended up as the majority owner of the Minnesota Wild
Minnesota Wild
The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League ....
.
During the 2008–2009 NHL season, the future of the Phoenix Coyotes
Phoenix Coyotes
The Phoenix Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in Glendale, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their home games at Jobing.com Arena....
was on shaky ground as the team expected to lose as much as $45 million, and the league had to step in to assist with paying the team's bills. Coyotes' managing partner Jerry Moyes
Jerry Moyes
Jerry Moyes is the founder, chairman and CEO of Phoenix-based Swift Transportation, one of the largest trucking companies in the nation. Moyes is also owner of charter airline Swift Air. He was a majority owner of the Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League before the Coyotes filed...
filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in early May 2009, and immediately afterwards, an offer by Balsillie to purchase the team was made public.
The NHL challenged the Coyotes' ability to file for bankruptcy, claiming that as a result of the financial support the league had been offering the franchise, the league itself is in control of the team, and that Moyes did not have authority to act as he did.
Balsillie's launched a public relations campaign aiming at igniting Canadian nationalistic
Canadian nationalism
Canadian nationalism is a term which has been applied to ideologies of several different types which highlight and promote specifically Canadian interests over those of other countries, notably the United States...
feelings and the perception that Bettman has an anti-Canadian agenda, including a website. His bid to purchase the Coyotes failed as the bankruptcy judge ruled his offer did not meet the NHL's rules on relocation.
The Hamilton Spectator
The Hamilton Spectator
The Hamilton Spectator, founded in 1846, is a newspaper published every day but Sunday in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The paper has a daily circulation of 105,000 and a daily readership of nearly 260,000.-History:...
reported on May 9 that a Vancouver-based group led by Tom Gaglardi
Tom Gaglardi
R. Thomas Gaglardi , is a Canadian Business Executive, and owner of the Dallas Stars, of the National Hockey League.-Career:Gaglardi is president of Northland Properties Corporation, which he and his family own...
was planning to make a bid to purchase the Atlanta Thrashers
Atlanta Thrashers
The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League on June 25, 1997, and became the league's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL season...
and relocate the team to Hamilton in time for the 2010–11 NHL season
2010–11 NHL season
The 2010–11 NHL season was the 94th season of operation of the National Hockey League . It was the fourth consecutive season that opened in Europe with NHL Premiere . A record three events were scheduled, all in previous NHL Premiere cities: Helsinki, Finland; Stockholm, Sweden; and Prague, Czech...
. This never materialized, and the idea was eventually rendered moot by the Thrashers' sale and relocation to Winnipeg.
Under NHL rules, an expansion or relocation of a team to Hamilton could potentially be blocked by the Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...
, because Copps Coliseum
Copps Coliseum
Copps Coliseum is a sports and entertainment arena, on the corner of Bay Street North and York Boulevard, in Hamilton, Ontario. Depending on event, the Copps Coliseum has a capacity of up to 19,000.It is named after the former Hamilton mayor, Victor K...
, the likely venue for a Hamilton NHL team, is located less than 50 miles from the Sabres' home arena. Roughly 15% of the Sabres' business comes from residents of the area of Ontario between Hamilton and Buffalo, and the Sabres could require "an enormous indemnification payment" to allow an additional team to be established within a 50-mile radius.
A preseason NHL game was played in Hamilton between the Sabres and the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
on September 28, 2010 as part of the Kraft Hockeyville promotion, as a result of the city winning a fan vote. The game was hosted at the much smaller J. L. Grightmire Arena in the Dundas
Dundas, Ontario
Dundas is a formerly independent town and now constituent community in the city of Hamilton in Ontario, Canada. It's nickname is the Valley Town. The population has been stable for decades at about twenty thousand, largely because it has not annexed rural land from the protected Dundas Valley...
region of the city and not at the Copps Coliseum.
An unnamed bidder made a bid for the Sabres in February 2011, offering $259,000,000 for the team to move it out of Buffalo, which would either mean the team itself would relocate to Hamilton or it would clear the way for another team to make such a move. The bid was rejected in favor of an offer from Terrence Pegula
Terrence Pegula
Terrence M. "Terry" Pegula is an American businessman. Pegula founded East Resources, a natural gas drilling company, before selling the company to Royal Dutch Shell for approximately $4.7 billion....
, who planned to keep the team in Buffalo.
A popular choice for a new Hamilton team is the Tigers, the name of an NHL team in the 1920s. However, that name is very similar to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League team based in Hamilton, Ontario, founded in 1950 with the merger of the Hamilton Tigers and the Hamilton Wildcats. The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Ivor Wynne Stadium...
football team, whose name is derived from a Hamilton Tigers football team. While two professional teams sharing names is not unheard of in professional sports, any Hamilton franchise would need to seek permission from the Tiger-Cats to use the Tigers name to avoid any trademark disputes.
Toronto
Bill Daly
William L. "Bill" Daly is an attorney and the Current Deputy Commissioner and chief legal officer of the NHL under Commissioner Gary Bettman. He is also a Hockey Hall of Fame Board Member and former NHL Vice President and Chief Legal Officer. Before joining the NHL front office he worked for the...
to discuss the possibility of bringing a second NHL franchise into the Toronto area, most likely in Vaughan
Vaughan
Vaughan is a city in York Region north of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Vaughan is the fastest growing municipality in Canada achieving a population growth rate of 80.2% between 1996–2006, according to Statistics Canada having nearly doubled in population since 1991. Vaughan is located in Southern...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
. Despite the talks, Daly reportedly stated the NHL is "not currently considering expansion nor do we have any intention or desire to relocate an existing franchise."
In June 2009, a group headed by Andrew Lopez and Herbert Carnegie
Herb Carnegie
Herbert H. Carnegie, CM, O.Ont is a former Canadian ice hockey player. Born in Toronto, Ontario to Jamaican parents, Carnegie was the first African-Canadian hockey player to be offered an opportunity to play in the National Hockey League.-Playing career:Carnegie’s hockey career began in 1938 with...
proposed a $1 billion plan for a second Toronto team, called the Legacy, to begin play no earlier than 2012. The group announced a plan for a 30,000 seat arena, with 15,000 for tickets of a price of $50 or less. The arena would be situated in Downsview Park
Downsview Park
Downsview Park is a former Canadian Forces Base in the community of Downsview in Toronto, Canada. It contains about 231.5 hectares of land, of which more than 130 hectares are earmarked for traditional parkland, recreational and cultural amenities...
in the north of the city. Twenty-five percent of net profits would be given to charity.
Quebec City
Alexander MedvedevAlexander Medvedev
Alexander Ivanovich Medvedev is the current Deputy Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of Russian energy company Gazprom, president of the Kontinental Hockey League, and the Director-General of Gazprom's export arm Gazprom Export...
, the president of the KHL
Kontinental Hockey League
The Kontinental Hockey League is an international professional ice hockey league in Eurasia founded in 2008. As of 2009, it is ranked as the strongest hockey league in Europe....
, Russia's professional hockey league, has stated his intention to purchase an NHL team and move it to Quebec City
Quebec City
Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...
, saying that it is "strange" there is no NHL team there. Medvedev said he shelved plans to buy a North American team after NHL representatives told him that the league would never allow a Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
to own one of its clubs.
Quebec City mayor Regis Labeaume, on October 10, 2009 talked with NHL officials, regarding the return of the Nordiques. Bettman said this in October, 2009, that he would consider Quebec City as a possible home to an NHL team if it followed through on plans to build a top arena
New Quebec City Amphitheatre
New Quebec City Arena, called the Videotron Amphitheatre by some media outlets, in some media sources, is a description of a new multi-use indoor arena in Quebec City, Quebec that is currently in the planning stages. It will mainly be used for ice hockey, and other indoor sports, as well as music...
and if a team were for sale. In May 2011 Labeume stated that Pierre Karl Peladeau
Pierre Karl Péladeau
Pierre Karl Péladeau is President and CEO of Quebecor Inc., Quebecor Media Inc. and Sun Media Corporation. He was educated in Montreal and Paris. He holds a degree in philosophy from Université du Québec à Montréal and a law degree from Université de Montréal....
, the president and CEO of Quebecor Inc., is currently in talks with the NHL regarding a franchise in Quebec City. There also exist plans for a new 18,000-seat arena in Quebec City, the Vidéotron Amphitheatre
New Quebec City Amphitheatre
New Quebec City Arena, called the Videotron Amphitheatre by some media outlets, in some media sources, is a description of a new multi-use indoor arena in Quebec City, Quebec that is currently in the planning stages. It will mainly be used for ice hockey, and other indoor sports, as well as music...
, that is set to begin construction by no later than 2013 and be ready for use by the 2015 season.
An exhibition game is scheduled for the 2011–12 NHL season for the Colisée Pepsi. The Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
will host the Tampa Bay Lightning
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . They have one Stanley Cup championship in their history, in 2003–04. They are often referred to as the...
in Quebec.
Saskatoon
The Credit Union CentreCredit Union Centre
Credit Union Centre is an arena, located in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. Situated near the city's northern entrance, the facility opened in February, 1988 with a seating capacity of around 7,800. It was expanded to 11,330 for the World Junior Hockey Championships in 1990...
in Saskatoon
Saskatoon
Saskatoon is a city in central Saskatchewan, Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. Residents of the city of Saskatoon are called Saskatonians. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344....
, with full seating, can seat up to 15,000 fans, a capacity roughly equal to that of the MTS Centre in Winnipeg.
Wild Bill Hunter, the founder of the Edmonton Oilers
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League ....
, had an agreement to purchase the St. Louis Blues
St. Louis Blues
The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team is named after the famous W. C. Handy song "St. Louis Blues", and plays in the 19,150-seat Scottrade...
and move the team to Saskatoon as the Saskatoon Blues in the 1982–83 NHL season; however, the NHL (who did not want to leave the St. Louis market) vetoed the sale. Faced with the prospects of either having to allow the sale or contract the franchise, the league found an owner (Harry Ornest) willing to keep the team in Missouri and, in an eleventh-hour deal, preserved the Blues in St. Louis, where they remain to this day.
A proposal from Ice Edge Holdings to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes would move a portion of the team's home games to Saskatoon in an effort to maintain the team's viability in its main home in Phoenix, similar to the current Bills Toronto Series
Bills Toronto Series
The Bills Toronto Series is a five-year deal consisting of a series of National Football League games featuring the Buffalo Bills played at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The series began in the 2008 NFL season and will end during the 2012 NFL season...
arrangement in the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
; the group, had it bought the team, was ready to go forward and had leased the Credit Union Centre for five home games in the 2009–10 season. The group is believed to lack the funds to buy the team outright, but remained in contention as potential minority owner until May 2011, when it pulled out of negotiations.
An exhibition game is scheduled for the 2011–12 NHL season for the Credit Union Centre. The Chicago Blackhawks
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...
will face a split squad of the Edmonton Oilers
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League ....
.
Markham
MarkhamMarkham, Ontario
Markham is a town in the Regional Municipality of York, located within the Greater Toronto Area of Southern Ontario, Canada. The population was 261,573 at the 2006 Canadian census...
, a town in York Region bordered near Scarborough, and Pickering with a 261,573 population.
GTA Sports and Entertainment, a company interested in confirmed that it hopes to build a multi-use 19,500-seat, $300-million arena is being planned as part of a major entertainment complex and could be ready as soon as 2014. Markham mayor Frank Scarpitti says a group of private investors has been exploring the possibility of building an arena suitable for a National Hockey League franchise. The land, near the Unionville GO station, is owned by Rudy Bratty, chairman and CEO of the Remington Group. The Remington Group is at the heart of Markham’s proposed downtown development. Bauer chairman W. Graham Rouston is said to be interested in being part of an ownership group, both of the rink and potentially a pro hockey team. Rouston is a Montreal-raised private equity investor whose firm Kohlberg & Company, purchased Bauer from Nike.
The Greater Toronto Area has been put forward as a site for NHL-sized arenas in the past. Groups have proposed rinks in Downsview Park and Vaughan but neither plan has gone anywhere. However, any financially struggled teams can be relocated or expanded depending on NHL's policies.
Expansion sites within the United States
Several cities in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
have been mentioned in the media as possible future sites for new or relocated NHL teams. In December 2007, organizations from Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
, Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, Houston, and Seattle presented their proposals for a franchise to the NHL's Executive Committee.
Other possible locations include San Antonio, Salt Lake City, Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, Hartford
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
, Cleveland, Milwaukee, Oklahoma City
Oklahoma city
Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area*Downtown Oklahoma City*Uptown Oklahoma City*Oklahoma City bombing*Oklahoma City National Memorial...
, Norfolk
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, and Cincinnati.
The five largest metropolitan regions without NHL franchises are (in descending order of population) Houston, Atlanta, Seattle-Tacoma
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
, San Diego, and Cleveland. Cleveland, Houston and Atlanta have previously hosted major professional hockey teams. During the 1970s, Cleveland was home to the Cleveland Barons
Cleveland Barons (NHL)
The Cleveland Barons were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League from 1976–78. They were a relocation of the California Golden Seals franchise, which had played in Oakland since 1967...
(the former Oakland Seals), which failed to draw fans or revenue, and was merged with the Minnesota North Stars
Minnesota North Stars
The Minnesota North Stars were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League for 26 seasons, from 1967 to 1993. The North Stars played their home games at the Met Center in Bloomington, and the team's colors for most of its history were green, yellow, gold and white...
(now the Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...
) after two seasons. The Houston Aeros
Houston Aeros (WHA)
The Houston Aeros were a professional ice hockey team in the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1978.-Franchise history:The Aeros became one of the original franchises in the World Hockey Association when the Dayton Arrows franchise was moved to Houston in 1972...
of the World Hockey Association
World Hockey Association
The World Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major competition for the National Hockey League since the collapse of the Western Hockey League in 1926...
(WHA) existed from 1972 until 1978. The Atlanta Flames
Atlanta Flames
The Atlanta Flames were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia, USA from 1972 to 1980. The team, a member of the National Hockey League , was relocated to Calgary, Alberta, Canada for the start of the 1980–81 NHL season and were re-named the Calgary Flames. The NHL returned to the...
joined the NHL in 1972 and played in the city for eight years before being moved to Calgary in 1980 and becoming the Calgary Flames
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...
. The Atlanta Thrashers
Atlanta Thrashers
The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League on June 25, 1997, and became the league's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL season...
played in the NHL from 1999 to 2011, until its move to Winnipeg for the 2011–12 season.
Houston (Toyota Center
Toyota Center (Houston)
The Toyota Center is an indoor arena located in downtown Houston, Texas. It is named after the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota. The arena is home to the Rockets of the National Basketball Association, the principal owners of the building, and the Aeros of the American Hockey League.Rockets...
), Atlanta (Philips Arena
Philips Arena
Philips Arena is an indoor arena in Atlanta, Georgia.Completed in 1999 to replace The Omni, at a cost of $213.5 million, it is home to the Atlanta Hawks, of the National Basketball Association, and the Atlanta Dream, of the Women's National Basketball Association...
), Cleveland (Quicken Loans Arena
Quicken Loans Arena
Quicken Loans Arena , is a multi-purpose arena, in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States....
), Tacoma (Tacoma Dome
Tacoma Dome
The Tacoma Dome is an indoor arena located in Tacoma, Washington, USA, approximately 30 miles south of Seattle.-History:...
) and Portland (Rose Garden) have arenas capable of hosting NHL games. Other arenas specifically designed for NBA franchises such as the Barclays Center in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, San Antonio's AT&T Center
AT&T Center
AT&T Center is an indoor arena, located in San Antonio, Texas, USA. It seats 18,581, for basketball , 13,800, for ice hockey and 19,000, for concerts or religious gatherings and contains 2,018 club seats, 50 luxury suites and 32 bathrooms .It was completed in 2002, as the SBC...
, Seattle Center Coliseum
KeyArena
KeyArena at Seattle Center , is a multipurpose arena, in Seattle, Washington. It is located north of downtown in the entertainment complex known as Seattle Center, the site of the 1962 World's Fair, the Century 21 Exposition...
in Seattle, and Salt Lake City's EnergySolutions Arena
EnergySolutions Arena
EnergySolutions Arena is an indoor arena, in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, owned by Jazz Basketball Investors, Inc., the estate of Larry H. Miller...
are also not suitable as permanent hosts for NHL hockey , although San Antonio also has the Alamodome
Alamodome
The Alamodome is a domed 65,000 seat, multi-purpose facility that is primarily used as a football/basketball stadium and convention center in San Antonio, Texas, U.S...
.
Houston
Professional ice hockey dates back to 1946 in Houston with the establishment of the Houston SkippersHouston Skippers
The Houston Skippers were a minor league ice hockey team based in Houston, Texas. They were a member of the United States Hockey League, and played for only season, 1946....
. This was followed by the Houston Apollos
Houston Apollos
The Houston Apollos were a minor professional ice hockey team based in Houston, Texas. They played in the Central Hockey League from 1965 to 1969, and then from 1979 to 1981....
, the Houston Aeros
Houston Aeros (WHA)
The Houston Aeros were a professional ice hockey team in the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1978.-Franchise history:The Aeros became one of the original franchises in the World Hockey Association when the Dayton Arrows franchise was moved to Houston in 1972...
of the WHA and the current Houston Aeros
Houston Aeros
The Houston Aeros are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. The team plays in Houston, Texas, at the Toyota Center. They are the AHL affiliate of the NHL's Minnesota Wild.- History :...
. The WHA Houston Aeros were an original member of the World Hockey Association
World Hockey Association
The World Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major competition for the National Hockey League since the collapse of the Western Hockey League in 1926...
. From 1972 to 1978, the Aeros twice won the AVCO World Trophy
Avco World Trophy
The Avco World Trophy, also known as the Avco Cup, was the championship trophy of the original World Hockey Association . The trophy's naming rights were sold to the former Avco Corporation , a defense contractor who bought the rights to advertise their consumer finance division...
and featured the first father/son combination to play together in professional hockey, Gordie Howe
Gordie Howe
Gordon "Gordie" Howe, OC is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player who played for the Detroit Red Wings and Hartford Whalers of the National Hockey League , and the Houston Aeros and New England Whalers in the World Hockey Association . Howe is often referred to as Mr...
and his two sons Mark
Mark Howe
Mark Steven Howe is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League and 6 seasons in the World Hockey Association . He is the son of Colleen and Gordie Howe, and early in his career was a teammate of his father...
and Marty
Marty Howe
Marty Gordon Howe is a former professional ice hockey defenseman. Howe was drafted in the third round, 51st overall in the 1974 NHL Entry Draft by the Montreal Canadiens. From 2001 to 2006, he was an assistant coach for the Chicago Wolves of the AHL...
. The Aeros, despite being a relatively successful franchise, were left out of the NHL-WHA merger and were forced to fold in 1978.
The current Houston Aeros
Houston Aeros
The Houston Aeros are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. The team plays in Houston, Texas, at the Toyota Center. They are the AHL affiliate of the NHL's Minnesota Wild.- History :...
of the American Hockey League
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...
(AHL) were founded in 1994. The team plays in the Toyota Center, which seats over 17,000 for hockey. As part of the lease agreement of the Toyota Center with the Houston Rockets, only an NHL team owned by Les Alexander, owner of the Rockets is allowed to play at the Center. The Rockets have twice explored the purchase of an NHL team for the building. According to comments made by Harris County officials, (Harris County owns the Center) there is no current interest in an NHL team. The other arenas in Houston with the capability of hosting an NHL team are The Summit, although that building has been sold to a megachurch and has been decommissioned as a sports venue, and the currently vacant Astrodome.
Kansas City
Kansas City Scouts
The Kansas City Scouts was a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League from 1974–76. In 1976, the franchise relocated to Denver, Colorado and became the Colorado Rockies...
played out of Kemper Arena
Kemper Arena
Kemper Arena is a 19,500 seat indoor arena, in Kansas City, Missouri.It is named for R. Crosby Kemper Sr., a member of the powerful Kemper financial clan and who donated $3.2 million, from his estate for the arena...
from 1974 until 1976. The team averaged only 8,218 in attendance per game in the 17,000 seat arena, leading to the team's sale and relocation to Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
to become the Colorado Rockies
Colorado Rockies (NHL)
The Colorado Rockies were an American professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League that played in Denver, Colorado, from 1976 to 1982. They were a relocation of the Kansas City Scouts, a 1974 expansion team. The franchise moved to East Rutherford, New Jersey, in 1982 and was...
. Professional hockey continued at the arena in the form of the minor league Kansas City Blues
Kansas City Blues (ice hockey)
The Kansas City Blues were a minor-league hockey team based in Kansas City, Missouri that played in the Central Hockey League from 1967 to 1972, and again in the 1976-77 season, mainly as an affiliate of the in-state St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League. On February 21, 1971, Michel Plasse...
, followed by the Kansas City Blades
Kansas City Blades
The Kansas City Blades was a professional ice hockey team in the International Hockey League from 1990–2001 until the demise of the league after the 2000–01 season. The Blades was based in Kansas City, Missouri at Kemper Arena....
and the Kansas City Outlaws
Kansas City Outlaws
The Kansas City Outlaws were a professional ice hockey team, a former member of the UHL. They played their home games at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Missouri, where the NHL's Kansas City Scouts played for two seasons during the 1970s, and later the International Hockey League's Kansas City Blades...
.
Kansas City opened an NHL-ready arena named the Sprint Center
Sprint Center
Sprint Center is a large, multi-use indoor arena in downtown Kansas City, Missouri. The building is located at 14th Street and Grand Boulevard, on the east side of the Power & Light District...
in 2007. The arena is owned by the Anschutz Entertainment Group
Anschutz Entertainment Group
The Anschutz Entertainment Group is a sporting and music entertainment presenter and a subsidiary of The Anschutz Corporation. It is the world's largest owner of sports teams and sports events, the owner of the world’s most profitable sports and entertainment venues, and under AEG Live the world's...
(AEG), which owns the Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
, among other sports interests. In 2007, when the Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the first expansion teams during the league's original...
faced financial troubles and no prospect of a new arena, the president of AEG offered to relocate the team to Missouri to play in the new Sprint Center
Sprint Center
Sprint Center is a large, multi-use indoor arena in downtown Kansas City, Missouri. The building is located at 14th Street and Grand Boulevard, on the east side of the Power & Light District...
rent-free and to become managing partners in the facility. The Penguins, however, remained in Pittsburgh and ultimately got their new arena in 2010. In 2009, the New York Islanders played the Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
in a pre-season game at Sprint Center. The game was poorly attended, ending speculation that the Islanders would move to the arena. The Sprint Center will host another pre-season game of the Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
; this time versus the Penguins, in September 2011. As AEG already owns the Los Angeles Kings, it would not be allowed to own another NHL team under NHL rules, although the rule has been circumvented in the past. The pre-season game between the Penguins and Kings was a sellout, drawing over 17,000 fans.
Las Vegas
Ice hockey interest in Las Vegas dates back to 1991, when the first ever outdoor game in the NHL's modern era was held in Las Vegas in 1991, with the Los Angeles Kings facing the New York RangersNew York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the borough of Manhattan in New York, New York, USA. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Playing their home games at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers are one of the...
outside Caesars Palace
Caesars Palace
Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, an unincorporated township in Clark County, Nevada, United States in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. Caesars Palace is owned and operated by Caesars Entertainment Corp....
in the preseason. The minor league Las Vegas Thunder
Las Vegas Thunder
The Las Vegas Thunder were an independent professional ice hockey team competing in the International Hockey League. The team's home rink was at the Thomas & Mack Center. They began play in the 1993–1994 season, folding on April 18, 1999...
professional ice hockey team operated out of the Thomas and Mack Center from 1993 until 1999 when the team's lease of the facility expired. Several of the team's players eventually played in the NHL.
Every year since 1997 Las Vegas has hosted Frozen Fury
Frozen Fury
Frozen Fury is an annual pre-season ice hockey game between the Los Angeles Kings and the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League , held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, first played in 1997. On two occasions, the Kings have faced different teams instead of the...
, a pre-season competition between the Los Angeles Kings and the Colorado Avalanche
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise...
at the 16,800 seat capacity MGM Grand Garden Arena. It has been sold out every year, with substantial attendance from Las Vegas locals as well as travelling Kings and Avalanche fans.
Despite the fact that the 2009 NHL Awards Ceremony were held in Las Vegas, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has said it "has nothing to do with" it being a potential relocation or expansion spot. The media speculated openly about a plan involving the Hollywood producer Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerry Bruckheimer
Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...
to bring the Phoenix Coyotes to Nevada.
Seattle
The 1915 Seattle MetropolitansSeattle Metropolitans
The Seattle Metropolitans were a professional ice hockey team based in Seattle, Washington which played in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association from 1915 to 1924. They won the Stanley Cup in 1917, becoming the first American team to do so...
were the first American winners of the Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
, but folded in 1924, while the Seattle Totems
Seattle Totems
The Seattle Totems were a professional ice hockey franchise in Seattle, Washington. They were a member of various minor professional and semi-professional leagues between 1945 and 1975. They played their home games in the Mercer Arena and later at the Seattle Center Coliseum...
played in the borderline-major Western Hockey League
Western Hockey League (minor pro)
The Western Hockey League was a minor pro ice hockey league that operated from 1952 to 1974. Managed for most of its history by Hockey Hall of Fame member Al Leader, it was created out of the merger of the Pacific Coast Hockey League and the Western Canada Senior Hockey League...
from 1945 to 1975. During the mid-1970s, Seattle was even granted a conditional franchise that never came to fruition because of the league's instability (according to season ticket promotions the team would have kept the WHL name of Totems). A Seattle group made an unsuccessful bid on an expansion franchise in 1990. Seattle Center Coliseum
KeyArena
KeyArena at Seattle Center , is a multipurpose arena, in Seattle, Washington. It is located north of downtown in the entertainment complex known as Seattle Center, the site of the 1962 World's Fair, the Century 21 Exposition...
is less than ideal for NHL in terms of capacity and sightlines, due to a 1994 renovation that made the arena basketball-specific for the arena's major tenant, the now-relocated Seattle SuperSonics
Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle, Washington that played in the Pacific and Northwest Divisions of the National Basketball Association from 1967 until 2008. Following the 2007–08 season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City, and now plays as...
; the league has stated that the Coliseum would be "a difficult arena for hockey." A Seattle group expressed its interest to the NHL in 2007. In 2011, the NHL acknowledged that there was interest expressed by a group in Seattle for a team. Multiple reports suggest Chicago Wolves
Chicago Wolves
The Chicago Wolves are a professional hockey team playing in the American Hockey League. They are the top affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks of the NHL. The Wolves play home games at the Allstate Arena in the Chicago suburb of Rosemont, Illinois...
owner and businessman Don Levin has expressed interest in building a new arena in nearby Bellevue
Bellevue, Washington
Bellevue is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, across Lake Washington from Seattle. Long known as a suburb or satellite city of Seattle, it is now categorized as an edge city or a boomburb. The population was 122,363 at the 2010 census.Downtown Bellevue is...
that could host an NHL team. Another option is the Tacoma Dome
Tacoma Dome
The Tacoma Dome is an indoor arena located in Tacoma, Washington, USA, approximately 30 miles south of Seattle.-History:...
, a multi-purpose stadium
Multi-purpose stadium
Multi-purpose stadiums are a type of stadium designed in such a way as to be easily used by multiple sports. While any stadium could potentially host more than one sport, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy that stresses multi-functionality over specificity...
that has hosted NHL exhibition games in the past, although the stadium's distance from Seattle (30 miles) and largely temporary seating would be a concern.
Possible relocation candidates
Two teams have been speculated by the media as possible relocation candidates: the Phoenix CoyotesPhoenix Coyotes
The Phoenix Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in Glendale, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They play their home games at Jobing.com Arena....
and the New York Islanders
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
. The Coyotes filed for bankruptcy
Phoenix Coyotes bankruptcy
In addition to the bankruptcy of the Phoenix Coyotes, this article discusses the NHL's efforts to sell the club since purchasing it out of bankruptcy.----...
in 2009 and are currently owned by the NHL. The team came close to being sold to the Winnipeg group that bought the Thrashers, and remain in Phoenix because of annual $25 million payments by the owner of the Coyotes' arena, the City of Glendale, Arizona
Glendale, Arizona
Glendale is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, located about nine miles northwest from Downtown Phoenix. According to 2010 Census Bureau, the population of the city is 226,721....
. The Coyotes relocated from Winnipeg in 1996, but have been unprofitable ever since.
The New York Islanders, one of three NHL teams in the New York metropolitan area
New York metropolitan area
The New York metropolitan area, also known as Greater New York, or the Tri-State area, is the region that composes of New York City and the surrounding region...
(none of the other major professional sports leagues have more than two in any given market) but the only major sports team representing Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, have been unhappy with the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
The Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Uniondale, New York, United States. Home to the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League, the Coliseum is located approximately east of New York City on Long Island...
, currently the second-oldest and second-smallest arena in the NHL, and have proposed plans for a new arena. The team remains in the Coliseum because of its lease, which expires in 2015. Lack of progress on a new arena has fueled the media speculation. In 2009, rumors arose that the New York Islanders would move to Kansas City due to Islanders' owner Charles Wang
Charles Wang
Charles B. Wang is the co-founder of Computer Associates International, Inc. and owner of the New York Islanders ice hockey team and their AHL affiliates, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers....
expressing regret about buying the team, coupled with the facts that no new arena plans are in sight and that the Islanders were scheduled to play a pre-season game in September in Kansas City. The Islanders played that game in a half-empty Sprint Center
Sprint Center
Sprint Center is a large, multi-use indoor arena in downtown Kansas City, Missouri. The building is located at 14th Street and Grand Boulevard, on the east side of the Power & Light District...
in Kansas City, ending the speculation about the move. The team reportedly has considered a move to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, although that arena is designed for basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
. Another possible site is Willets Point near Citi Field in Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....
where business leaders have proposed that the Islanders move. As recently as January 2011, Wang has stated that the team's "'first priority' is to keep the team in Nassau County."
Expansion into Europe
Speculation as to NHL expansion to Europe took place as far back as the 1960s. David Molson, then-owner of the Montreal CanadiensMontreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
, stated that he looked forward to a "world playoff" for the Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
. In 1969, Clarence Campbell
Clarence Campbell
Clarence Sutherland Campbell OBE, QC was the third president of the National Hockey League from 1946 to 1977.-Early life and career:...
, president of the NHL, was quoted as saying "It is conceivable that the Stanley Cup will be played for in Moscow in the not too distant future. When it does, the World Tournament as we know it will just disappear ... The game will continue to expand."
While no specific European cities have been named in recent years, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly has stated in 2008 that expansion into Europe is a possibility "within 10 years time." In August 2010, IIHF's René Fasel
René Fasel
René Fasel DMD is a Swiss dentist and ice hockey official. He started his ice hockey career as a player for HC Fribourg-Gottéron, in 1960, and became a referee in 1972 and president of Switzerland's ice hockey federation in 1985. In 1994 he was elected president of the International Ice Hockey...
stated that he would strongly oppose any expansion by the NHL into European markets.
Possible contraction
Conversely, contraction of the NHL has also been suggested, with several teams experiencing financial and/or ownership difficulties, although some critics suggest this is because of the NHL's presence in the southern United States.External links
- makeitseven.ca, Jim Balsillie's attempt to bring the Coyotes to Hamilton
- Toronto Legacy bid website