sixer 37 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 Go East!!! YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
auxlepli 17 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 I've reached my threshold with Mario, et. al. ... STFU or move. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Yzermania19 1 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 Are we fairly certain the Pens would go to Kansas City? I mean, the NHL already tried that 30 years ago and couldn't cut it, so they bailed after 2 seasons. I think it would be a mistake to put a team there. Of course Bettman put a team in Atlanta again, too, so who knows? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
evilmrt 636 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 If 15 teams in the East vote for Detroit to move to the East because of Detroit being a good drawing away team wouldn't the teams in the West vote against Detroit for that very same reason? The West doesn't have draws like Crosby, Ovechkin, Toronto, Montreal, either.... methinks their would sooner be a majority vote for a Columbus move than Detroit...... That is, however, not taking into account seniority, ownership as you mentioned, and other possible factors..... If you want to talk about drawing people... You guys seem to forget that the West will be getting Crosby...plus Malkin, etc. Sid the kid is the next Gretz. Thats actually a big loss for the East. People come to away games in low-draw markets just to see this guy play. On that note, CBJ doesn't seem a very fair trade for the Pens + Crosby, does it? I'd say the Wings look more attractive. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Viperar 16 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 evilmrt, i completely agree Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MacK_Attack 108 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 Are we fairly certain the Pens would go to Kansas City? I mean, the NHL already tried that 30 years ago and couldn't cut it, so they bailed after 2 seasons. I think it would be a mistake to put a team there. Of course Bettman put a team in Atlanta again, too, so who knows? It was a different scenario in the 70s. That team was doomed from the beginning, largely from cheap ownership. They cut every corner imaginable, which meant that no star players stood a chance of ending up in a Scouts uniform. The fans realized this quickly and stopped caring. Also, Kansas City is much larger now than it was 30 years ago. It can handle the team. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
juice71285 2 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 There is no doubt in my mind that IF Pittsburgh moves its going to be in Kansas City. Kansas City is a very good pick to in my mind. The reason being is that in the last thirty years the Midwest and Plains states have become a hot spot for hockey. Look at all the recent editions to the AHL Omaha, Iowa, Peoria, possibly Rockford, IL. If they would have tried this even fifteen years ago it wouldn't have happened. Also the UHL is almost enitrely based in the Midwest, while the CHL is mostly Texas and surrounding states. You take a look at the top two junior A programs and one of the top junior B programs (USHL, NAHL-A and CSHL-B) have their entire leagues in the Midwest and Plains. Kansas City may not be a very big city but it does have some close proximity to other somewhat smaller cities such as Independence and others. Also Topeka is about an hour to hour and a half drive from there. You know people will be willing to drive that if they get the likes of Crosby and Malkin. As for what happens with Detroit whether or not they move East, I could care less. All I care is about them playing and rooting them on. I don't want to see what happened a couple seasons ago happen again. On a personal note, I wish I had the money and resources to start up my own little semi-pro league here in the Midwest. Being in Illinois near Peoria, which has had some form of semi-pro to pro hockey for quite some time now. I would like to recreate the old Continental Hockey League, or All-American League. A lot of these cities that held these teams have grown, and some now do support some semi-pro to pro league teams. These teams would mostly be made of local guys who have some junior or college level experience. Since these guys are local to their areas I think it would draw some good crowds not to mention a lot of these teams would have at least 1 or 2 other teams in close proximity so you would have some good rivalries started up. I know you guys probably didn't care about that last paragraph but oh well its there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Olympia Stadium Fan 0 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 I've reached my threshold with Mario, et. al. ... STFU or move. Why blame Mario? He's been trying to get a new arena for YEARS. Blame the idiot governor and local officials. See this link--very few Mario bashers from those closer to the situation: http://bwi.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?fid=36&a...751&style=1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
The Enforcer 13 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 I could care less where Pit ends up.......It's actually getting kind of old listening to "Super Mario" whine about his luck. Make a decision, stick with it and quit holding the people hostage. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YoungGuns1340 1 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 (edited) Is anyone else sick of other teams piggybacking off of the Red Wings? I understand that our team benefits from having great ownership, but it is pathetic how often Illitch has to pay for other owners not pulling their weight. Take some money out of your pockets, put it towards some exciting players, and stop complaining about how the Red Wings organization is monopolizing the sport of hockey in the U.S. Simply because Detroit is a great pull - meaning, it cares about winning and Illitch runs this organization as such - it may be stuck in the West just so our fans can complement other teams income. Edited March 6, 2007 by YoungGuns1340 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wingsfan31 0 Report post Posted March 6, 2007 The Wings have been propping up franchises in the West for better than 10 years now. Hell, the Wings games are about the only time Nashville sells out. There is no way the Wings move East aside from Ilitch threatening to dissolve the team or some other drastic move. The NHL won't allow it, they'll move C-bus East and either go back to the two-division format with KC, Minny and Dallas in the "Norris" for lack of a better description. Or, they'll keep things they way they are and move Minny into the Central and try to make it so K.C. plays in the N.W. division, or whatever they call it this week, so Sid the Kid can get home to Canada four times a year in Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hiei 192 Report post Posted March 7, 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittsburgh_Penguins Kansas City, MO (Large town, an arena that isn't Kemper, neighboring cities of Independence, KC Kansas, plus fans from Joplin-2 hours, Topeka-1/1.5 hours, and Northwestern Arkansas maybe-3 hours) Portland, OR (Rose Garden has the NBA, No NHL Teams in the Northwest, save for Vancouver) Houston, TX (AHL Success, Dallas is the only NHL team in Texas, home to many minor league franchises, Largest City in Texas) Winnipeg, MB (Once had the Jets now Coyotes, New arena although it only holds a little over 15,000) Tulsa, OK (Metro Area with Bartlesville totals 1 million, New BOK Center opening Oct, 08, Good draw from CHL's Oilers already, Oklahoma City is 2 hours away, Northwestern Arkansas is 1.5 hours away) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HoustonWingsFan 0 Report post Posted March 7, 2007 By DALE ROBERTSON Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell says he will turn to the NHL to prevent the Pittsburgh Penguins from leaving the state. The announcement came one day after the team said it had reached an impasse in negotiations with state, county and local officials to finance a new arena. ``The governor believes we have put an exceptionally attractive offer on the table,'' according to a statement released by Rendell's office. Later in the day, Rendell told reporters, ``If they don't take it, we're going to be up in New York asking the NHL to bar the Penguins from moving.'' Formidable obstacles on all fronts remain before Houston sports fans should dare believe it possible the city could inherit the NHL's best young hockey team, but it now seems likely the Pittsburgh Penguins' owners will finally pay a visit this week to tour the Toyota Center. Lemeiux and Burkle will then fly on to Los Angeles, where the company that's going to operate Kansas City's new arena is based, to continue discussions on a possible lease. Kansas City is assumed to have the inside track on landing the Penguins if Pittsburgh can't keep them. However, before returning home, Lemieux and Burkle are said to be contemplating a detour through Houston. Late last week it appeared the Penguins was close to finalizing a deal on the construction of a building to replace Pittsburgh's nearly half-century old Mellon Arena. But team officials, who had been silent on the subject for weeks, suddenly issued a statement Monday declaring an impasse, saying they intended "to aggressively explore relocation." The biggest hurdle for a move to Houston, even if the Penguins prove willing, is thought to be Alexander. A team as attractive as the Penguins, who are led by 19-year-old superstar Sidney Crosby, could become a drain on the Rockets' revenues that whatever extra income it generated might not offset. Also, while Alexander has expressed interest in bringing hockey to Houston, it has always been assumed he would only want to own the NHL team himself. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
evilmrt 636 Report post Posted March 7, 2007 Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell says he will turn to the NHL to prevent the Pittsburgh Penguins from leaving the state. The announcement came one day after the team said it had reached an impasse in negotiations with state, county and local officials to finance a new arena. ``The governor believes we have put an exceptionally attractive offer on the table,'' according to a statement released by Rendell's office. Later in the day, Rendell told reporters, ``If they don't take it, we're going to be up in New York asking the NHL to bar the Penguins from moving.'' This is getting to be rediculous. Didn't we hear this before? If Rendell doesn't want the Pens to move out of his state, maybe he should try to push forward a better package for a new arena. Money talks, not whining to Uncle Bettman about Mario and how he won't play nice. How about the odds on Bettman banning a move? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
theman19 47 Report post Posted March 7, 2007 zero, the nhl will promptly tell the penn. goverment to pay up or stay out of the way Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
evilmrt 636 Report post Posted March 7, 2007 Oh boy! todays update!!! From AP: Penguins owner Ron Burkle traveled to Las Vegas on Wednesday to meet with the mayor and discuss the possibility of relocating the team there. Burkle, who lives in Los Angeles, led a delegation in talks with Las Vegas Mayor Oscar B. Goodman, according to Penguins spokesman Tom McMillan. Las Vegas...er....well, some of us thought it MIGHT be a good idea, but in light of the recent NBA All-Star game in Vegas....and the disaster it was (I guess it effectively squashed all hopes of the NBA putting a team there), this doesn't seem like a very good thing to even explore. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kp-Wings 3 Report post Posted March 7, 2007 When it comes right down to it, nobody in the East will need the Wings like teams in the west. In the East, you have Florida, Boston, Long Island, and that's about it for teams that can't fill the building. In the West however, you have Chicago, St. Louis, Phoenix, LA, Columbus (occasionally they do ok in attendance, but majority rules says they don't), Nashville and a couple of others. That's 3 to about 5 or 6 or maybe even more. While I would certainly love to see the Wings play Toronto 8 times a season rather than Columbus, it's not feasable at the present time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Viperar 16 Report post Posted March 7, 2007 Add the capitals to that list there KP, i go to games here regularly and the only time its been close to full was for opening night this season against the hurricanes, coming fresh off the cup win. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
schulzte 18 Report post Posted March 8, 2007 I don't know why every one is bent on getting the Wings in the East. Detroit is right on the line between being in the East and West. There are lots of good teams in the West, and if they had been in the East all these years, there is no Colorado-Detroit rivalry for all that time. I know playing the orignial six teams mosr would be nice, but that is no reason to root for the Penguins to move to Kansas City, which is absolutely senseless. Kansas City is another Nashville waiting to happen. The problem is the schedule, when we had a balanced schedule, few people were going crazy about Detroit being in the East. We just need to play Eastern teams more often. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Airborn 0 Report post Posted March 8, 2007 Here's an article from Scott Burnside of ESPN that examines both sides of the argument. http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/columns/stor...&id=2790975 While I would like to see the Wings go East, I don't want to see Pittsburgh lose their team. That would be horrible for the league, and worse for the fans. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gowingsgo 3 Report post Posted March 8, 2007 The Pens will get their arena, in Pittsburgh Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BuckeyeWingsfan80 209 Report post Posted March 8, 2007 By DALE ROBERTSON Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell says he will turn to the NHL to prevent the Pittsburgh Penguins from leaving the state. The announcement came one day after the team said it had reached an impasse in negotiations with state, county and local officials to finance a new arena. ``The governor believes we have put an exceptionally attractive offer on the table,'' according to a statement released by Rendell's office. Later in the day, Rendell told reporters, ``If they don't take it, we're going to be up in New York asking the NHL to bar the Penguins from moving.'' Formidable obstacles on all fronts remain before Houston sports fans should dare believe it possible the city could inherit the NHL's best young hockey team, but it now seems likely the Pittsburgh Penguins' owners will finally pay a visit this week to tour the Toyota Center. Lemeiux and Burkle will then fly on to Los Angeles, where the company that's going to operate Kansas City's new arena is based, to continue discussions on a possible lease. Kansas City is assumed to have the inside track on landing the Penguins if Pittsburgh can't keep them. However, before returning home, Lemieux and Burkle are said to be contemplating a detour through Houston. Late last week it appeared the Penguins was close to finalizing a deal on the construction of a building to replace Pittsburgh's nearly half-century old Mellon Arena. But team officials, who had been silent on the subject for weeks, suddenly issued a statement Monday declaring an impasse, saying they intended "to aggressively explore relocation." The biggest hurdle for a move to Houston, even if the Penguins prove willing, is thought to be Alexander. A team as attractive as the Penguins, who are led by 19-year-old superstar Sidney Crosby, could become a drain on the Rockets' revenues that whatever extra income it generated might not offset. Also, while Alexander has expressed interest in bringing hockey to Houston, it has always been assumed he would only want to own the NHL team himself. why the hell does Rendell care anyway? He's a Philly guy after all.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheLegend19 1 Report post Posted March 8, 2007 Two words: Scare Tactics Two more words: Good Call Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
StevieY9802 6 Report post Posted March 8, 2007 I wouldn't have a problem with the Wings going east. Imagine most games at 7pm or 7:30? And playing all but 1 orginal 6 team. And the Hawks are the biggest disgrace to the 6 anyway so I wouldn't really care. I don't want the Pens to move but I like the idea of them ouf the West. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BlakChamber 8 Report post Posted March 8, 2007 The Pens need to aggressively come to Houston. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites