120 replies to this topic

[CenterIce]

I am not sure where everyone is getting that Bettmen said the Wings would be the one to go East. He has said on his radio show that no team is favored, and, as someone has said, Bettmen mentioned how the the Wings are one of the bigger draws in the West.

Edited by CenterIce, 10 March 2009 - 07:32 PM.

[vangvace]

"The Kansas City Islanders"

One of these things is not like the others, one of these things just doesn't belong...

The Utah Jazz

[Dabura]

Ah, good old parity.

[daniel1]

Maybe hockey just isn't their thing. Maybe the Islanders can move to Detroit and become the Lions next year - they coudn't lose any more games next season as the "new" Lions than the "old" Lions did this season.

[MabusIncarnate]

Send the Islanders to Phoenix and the Coyotes to the Island. Maybe a conference swap would bring better success to both organizations.

[betterREDthandead]

They get snow in KC and ice forms naturally. Isn't that the only real requirement for hockey?

No, you also can't be within a hundred miles of a NASCAR track, and there's one in KCK. Because southerners (which includes Kansas City, because hockey has failed in Kansas City before) are all drawling, inbred, Dale-Junior-loving rednecks and NASCAR fans. And you can't like both NASCAR and hockey, everyone knows this.

I'm surprised, by the way, that there isn't a conflict of interest question or two that's being raised by this:

But the best move would be Kansas City, where a new arena sits empty. Anschutz Entertainment Group – which owns the Los Angeles Kings and is controlled by Philip Anschutz, who has the ear of Bettman – has a deal to manage Kansas City's Sprint Center, and a contract with the city to find a tenant.

Can a guy own one team and lease an arena to another? That sounds like a big gray area to me.

[BlakChamber]

No, you also can't be within a hundred miles of a NASCAR track, and there's one in KCK. Because southerners (which includes Kansas City, because hockey has failed in Kansas City before) are all drawling, inbred, Dale-Junior-loving rednecks and NASCAR fans. And you can't like both NASCAR and hockey, everyone knows this.

Well, it looks like Detroit is on the move then. JLA is only 72 miles from MIS.

[rivieraillusions]

while its not a hockey city, i will be upset because its my only chance to get to see two wings games a year.

I'll second that. One of the reasons why I finally agreed to move to Phoenix from Austin was the chance to see the Wings twice a year without having to drive to Dallas. Besides, it warms my cockles to hear "Let's Go Red Wings" echoing through the concourse of Jobing.com Arena!

[betterREDthandead]

Well, it looks like Detroit is on the move then. JLA is only 72 miles from MIS.

Yeah. The Blackhawks and Bruins, too. The Predators have shown everyone that NASCAR and hockey can't coexist, so how does this sound: Medicine Hat Blackhawks, and Charlottetown Bruins. Canada needs more teams.

[StormJH1]

Yeah. The Blackhawks and Bruins, too. The Predators have shown everyone that NASCAR and hockey can't coexist, so how does this sound: Medicine Hat Blackhawks, and Charlottetown Bruins. Canada needs more teams.

Ha, yeah. CLEARLY, the NASCAR race in Las Vegas is the reason the NHL never expanded to Sin City. (j/k)

I thought about this a million different ways, but it usually just leads me back to the fact that there are too many teams. Contraction is a dirty word in sports, and I would hate to do that to fans of the Islanders, Coyotes, Predators, etc., but honestly, if those teams relocate anyway, why is that any better than just contracting the team?

The league is spread too thin. People don't want to talk about contraction b/c it's like a sign of weakness, but I maintain that this was always predominantly a regional game, and getting it back to the number of teams it had just 20 years ago could ultimately prevent the league from having multiple teams losing serious money.

It would also improve the quality of the product. Imagine if every team in the league sent their 4th line to the minors and had their 3rd line as the "worst line" on the team. If 2-4 teams were contracted, this would essentially be the effect. Each team would add several skill players through a dispersal draft, too. And if you didn't have three teams in California, two in New York, and random teams in places where only Frost Belt transplants care about hockey, I'd have to think attendance would be better, on average.

[BlakChamber]

Yeah. The Blackhawks and Bruins, too. The Predators have shown everyone that NASCAR and hockey can't coexist, so how does this sound: Medicine Hat Blackhawks, and Charlottetown Bruins. Canada needs more teams.

Don't forget about the Whitehorse Predators. Who cares if they're up in the Yukon Territory? They're in Canada, they can't fail!

[betterREDthandead]

Don't forget about the Whitehorse Predators. Who cares if they're up in the Yukon Territory? They're in Canada, they can't fail!

If you put them in Iqaluit, Tootoo's family could go see him play. What a nice story that would be. And they wouldn't even have to build an arena. Outdoor hockey every day.

[55fan]

Well, heck. If it's ice and snow we want why don't we move them to Alaska?

The Juneau Whats.

[Coolio Mendez]

Moving? Maybe in the standings

The team is not going anywhere.

One, The team makes a profit where they are now due to the hugely generous TV package they have
Two, the owner has lived in NYC all his American life and has no plans to go anywhere

Just because the media speculates something, doesn't mean it is true. There has been media speculation since the early 90s that the Islanders were moving..............and every time a building becomes available, the speculation increases.

Charles Wang has steadfastly maintained that the Islanders aren't going anywhere.

Edited by Coolio Mendez, 11 March 2009 - 06:09 PM.

[NumbaSixty-Six]

SAVIOR! THE MESSIAH HAS RISEN!

[CaliWingsNut]

Yeah. The Blackhawks and Bruins, too. The Predators have shown everyone that NASCAR and hockey can't coexist, so how does this sound: Medicine Hat Blackhawks, and Charlottetown Bruins. Canada needs more teams.

So does California then... There's more people here.

[chrisdetroit]

Perfect! Move the Islanders to the Western Conference and move the Wings east to maintain the balance.

Git er done Gary!

[betterREDthandead]

So does California then... There's more people here.

No sirree. You heard the criteria. We're gonna have to get the Kings and Ducks out of NASCAR country, actually, there's a track down there too. We still haven't given teams to Sherbrooke or Kelowna. People around this site have proven time and again with actual serious proposals to put teams in places like Saskatoon or Maine that they don't care how many people are in a place, they just care that those people live in the ice and snow.

[chrisdetroit]

I saw someone mention before that the Wings have some sort of agreement with the league to move east before Columbus, even though CBJ is further east than Detroit.

I'm not sure I really want them to move to the Eastern Conference though. I think they'd be more likely to sink down to the level of the Eastern teams rather than maintain the high level they have from being constantly challenged in the West.

You are kidding right? I looked this up because on a map they seem to be about the same. Doing a general search I found that both Detroit and Columbus are at latitude of about -83 degrees west. Zero latitude is in the middle of the Atlantic so the higher negative number is further east.

Then I searched for JLA and Nationwide Arena.

JLA -83.0514
NWA -83.0061

This means that NWA is actuually further east by 0.0453 degrees latitude which is approximately 5 km or only about 3 miles.

SO technically you are right, Nationwide Arena is 3 miles further East than the Joe.

Longitude not Latitude...

Edited by chrisdetroit, 11 March 2009 - 08:20 PM.

[chrisdetroit]

You are kidding right? I looked this up because on a map they seem to be about the same. Doing a general search I found that both Detroit and Columbus are at latitude of about -83 degrees west. Zero latitude is in the middle of the Atlantic so the higher negative number is further east.

Then I searched for JLA and Nationwide Arena.

JLA -83.0514
NWA -83.0061

This means that NWA is actuually further east by 0.0453 degrees latitude which is approximately 5 km or only about 3 miles.

SO technically you are right, Nationwide Arena is 3 miles further East than the Joe.