cusimano_brothers 1,655 Report post Posted October 11, 2009 From Toronto Star : ... In language that strengthens while American teams grow weaker, the National Hockey League sounds as if it's ready to return teams to Quebec and Winnipeg, with a second team for southern Ontario also under consideration. "We do have an interest in returning teams to Canadian cities that have hosted and supported NHL teams historically," deputy commissioner Bill Daly told the Toronto Star in an email "Both Winnipeg and Quebec City have done that, so we'll see how things transpire. That doesn't mean southern Ontario won't or can't be considered. It will be." ... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bring Back The Bruise Bros 1,029 Report post Posted October 11, 2009 From Toronto Star : I'd love to see the NHL come through with this.Cities like Winnipeg and Quebec City shouldve never had hockey taken away from them in the first place.Hamilton is obviously still an option. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
evilmrt 636 Report post Posted October 11, 2009 Yeah, apparently the meeting between the mayor of Quebec City and Bettman was something the mayor, who is trying to move a team there, said went very well. I understand the plans for the new arena will be released this coming week, and that is when things will get serious. I've got to admit, I'm a little shocked that Bettman seems to be entertaining this, while Hamilton was something he opposed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SweWings 45 Report post Posted October 11, 2009 Yeah, apparently the meeting between the mayor of Quebec City and Bettman was something the mayor, who is trying to move a team there, said went very well. I understand the plans for the new arena will be released this coming week, and that is when things will get serious. I've got to admit, I'm a little shocked that Bettman seems to be entertaining this, while Hamilton was something he opposed. Seems to me like a complete turnaround on this issue, but then I haven't been following it that strictly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hiei 192 Report post Posted October 11, 2009 BRING BACK THE 'DIQUES! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nhurdi 42 Report post Posted October 11, 2009 Perhaps he is doing it to save some face. Got lots of bad PR maybe from the latest debacle. This is potentially some good PR. I'm Canadian and would love more teams in Canada. But only if they are viable. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
eva unit zero 271 Report post Posted October 11, 2009 It's not that Bettman has ever been against NHL teams in Canada. He isn't opposed to a team in Hamilton and never was. Bettman and the BoG opposed Balsillie's attempts to bypass League procedures and acquire a team and move them without the League approving either the purchase or the move. And as for when the Nordiques and Jets moved, those teams were sold and then moved, and the purchase and the new owners were approved by the League BoG. The move was also approved by the BoG. Those cases followed all league procedures, hence the League did not push against the wishes of the team's current owner and potential owner. The Phoenix situation is totally and completely dissimilar in that the current owner and Balsillie basically attempted a backdoor deal where Balsillie would have paid off Moyes' creditors in part and given Moyes a nice chunk of change for the team, and then moved the team. The continuing lack of understanding about how the League makes decisions (Board of Governors vote, not Commish totalitarianism) is getting tiresome. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mmorland 16 Report post Posted October 11, 2009 QUEBEC CITY, Quebec -- The mayor of Quebec City has spoken with the NHL about the possible return of the Nordiques to the NHL. Mayor Regis Labeaume said Saturday he met with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman along with former Nordiques owner Marcel Aubut. The mayor adds that the talks in New York on Friday were "very profitable, very worthwhile." The talk revolved around the need for a new arena, the need for a good owner and the need for corporate support, according to ESPN.com's Pierre Lebrun. Bettman encouraged the mayor to continue trying to get a new arena built, but made no promises, according to LeBrun. They also agreed to stay in touch. Bettman said this month 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. The Nordiques were sold in 1995 and moved to Denver as the Colorado Avalanche. http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=4549063 I say bring em' back! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cern 0 Report post Posted October 11, 2009 I've got to admit, I'm a little shocked that Bettman seems to be entertaining this, while Hamilton was something he opposed. The thing is, he ultimately didn't. During the Coyotes saga he mentioned Winnipeg as being a viable potential relocation area, and the League testified in court that a Hamilton team would likely be hugely successful. It was Basillie's method they were ultimately fighting against, not the notion of having more Canadian teams. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hank Dats 'N Homer 81 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 Who are they ganna move out that way? I heard the Islanders were thinking about selling/moving. I dont really understand how Phoenix still has a team if they have filed for bankruptcy, could they be moved out that way? I would love to see the Nordiques back, i thought they had the some of hte best jerseys ever. If a new team is moved there though, would the avalanche still be considered the expansion team from Quebec or would they lose that title/right? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GMRwings1983 8,804 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 (edited) I always liked the color of their uniforms. The logo was stupid (what did it mean anyway?), but it's a classic. Edited October 12, 2009 by GMRwings1983 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Doc Holiday 0 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 I always liked the color of their uniforms. The logo was stupid (what did it mean anyway?), but it's a classic. http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qi...25061235AAsMaqb An igloo apparently. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cern 0 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 The logo was stupid (what did it mean anyway?), but it's a classic. The logo was an igloo shaped as a stylized n. And a hockey stick. Funny thing about their jerseys/logo, the Nordiques were all set to adopt new uniforms and team colours as a revitalization plan only to move to Colorado the year they were set to be put into use. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LeftWinger 5,153 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 Well, since the NHL is losing money (so the higher-ups want you to believe anyway) I highly doubt any NEW teams appear, so the question is, which current teams move to Quebec, Hamilton & Winnipeg? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bring Back The Bruise Bros 1,029 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 Well, since the NHL is losing money (so the higher-ups want you to believe anyway) I highly doubt any NEW teams appear, so the question is, which current teams move to Quebec, Hamilton & Winnipeg? ive had that same thought in my head for a while now. Phoenix-Hamilton NY Islanders-Quebec Colorado-Winnipeg How the divisions will look?beats me... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VM1138 1,921 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 Colorado isn't going anywhere. The Islanders and Coyotes are first on the chopping block. Any news on whether or not they would actually come back as the Nordiques or as a new name/franchise? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miller76 463 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 (edited) Why does everyone always believe that just because there is small talk to put a team back in Quebec City or Winnipeg, that it will be a current nhl team that is struggling in a non traditional hockey market to move? Bill Daly is on xm radio 204 about twice a month talking about this topic. He always seems to lean more like the league will expand to 32 then eventually to 34 teams. With no immediate interest in placing any of them in Europe. The only things that are missing from cities like Winnipeg and QC are major corporate partners willing to foot a large bill, and substantial television revenues. They can live and breathe hockey 24/7 in these areas, but television revenues in a lot of these Canadian cities are peanuts compared to what is received in south Florida, Atlanta, and Phoenix. These two things are much more of obstacles then arenas to play in! Edited October 12, 2009 by miller76 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HenryMalredo 2 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 It's just talk. Quebec City and Winnipeg don't have the corporate support for an NHL team. Southern Ontario is the only Canadian market that could support another team. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Barrie 900 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 Bettman encouraged the mayor to continue trying to get a new arena built, but made no promises, according to LeBrun. They also agreed to stay in touch. I would think the city of Quebec would need more assurance that if they built a new arena they can get a team... "but made no promises" wouldn't be enough for me to build a new arena. I'd want to be given the approval before I spent the millions. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cern 0 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 (edited) Why does everyone always believe that just because there is small talk to put a team back in Quebec City or Winnipeg, that it will be a current nhl team that is struggling in a non traditional hockey market to move? In the article Bettman himself actually mentions a team being for sale as a prospective criteria for Quebec. Not that expansion is not also an option (though going beyond 30 teams seems like a touch of a stretch right now), just seems interesting that he would specify relocation in this instance. The only things that are missing from cities like Winnipeg and QC are major corporate partners willing to foot a large bill, and substantial television revenues. They can live and breathe hockey 24/7 in these areas, but television revenues in a lot of these Canadian cities are peanuts compared to what is received in south Florida, Atlanta, and Phoenix. These two things are much more of obstacles then arenas to play in! Which is fair enough, but how many people are genuinely picking up those TV packages in those markets? If there was such a lucrative TV following in Phoenix, wouldn't it stand to reason that it would translate into game attendance and thus not reflect their dire financial issues? Moreover, if it was all about TV revenue, teams like the Oilers wouldn't exist - and the QC capital region has more people than Edmonton. The fact that even watching games in most US markets requires specialty cable packages only available through a small number of distributors diminishes the impact of TV revenues in the League. In Canada you can watch several games a week just on basic cable with Sportsnet focusing on regional team coverage, and there are far more people actually willing to watch. Lucrative TV revenues are essentially a given in Canada just through sheer ease of availability compared to most US coverage. I'm also not terribly knowledgeable about what the corporate scenario is like in Quebec, but the city hosts the largest, most famous winter festival in the world. There obviously has to be a great deal of corporate/local support around to keep an event like that not only alive but world-famous, and the Carnival's international draw could potentially be a considerable boost in drawing attention to the Nords. Edited October 12, 2009 by Cern Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cusimano_brothers 1,655 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 Who are they ganna move out that way? ... There are so many to choose from: Phoenix, Tampa Bay, Florida, Atlanta and Nashville (still) for starters. I heard an "expert" on TV say that Columbus is shaky as well. From Toronto Star : Lebaume said more news would come this week, most likely a promise of funding from the city for a $250 million, 18,000-seat, NHL-sized arena that could be part of a bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics. If there is no bid, there may be no plans for a new arena. The current arena, the Colisée Pepsi (where the Nordiques called home), only holds 15+ thousand. The burden of an Olympic bid on the taxpayers of Quebec would be again interesting, to say the least; they might still be paying for the Games held in Montréal in 1976. And, with the 2010 Games being held in Vancouver, the QC bid might be facing long odds. Now Winnipeg, that's a whole different story... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Barrie 900 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 (edited) ive had that same thought in my head for a while now. Phoenix-Hamilton NY Islanders-Quebec Colorado-Winnipeg How the divisions will look?beats me... Really? Colorado and the Isles aren't going anywhere. It'll probably be Phoenix, Atlanta, and Florida. Edit: They should move teams to Seattle and Houston too. Edited October 12, 2009 by Barrie Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lfd250 1 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 I'm suprised noone said Dallas. The owner is in huge money trouble and probably has to sell his ball team to keep the hockey the hockey team. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
C-TownWing 0 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 (edited) It's not that Bettman has ever been against NHL teams in Canada. He isn't opposed to a team in Hamilton and never was. Bettman and the BoG opposed Balsillie's attempts to bypass League procedures and acquire a team and move them without the League approving either the purchase or the move. And as for when the Nordiques and Jets moved, those teams were sold and then moved, and the purchase and the new owners were approved by the League BoG. The move was also approved by the BoG. Those cases followed all league procedures, hence the League did not push against the wishes of the team's current owner and potential owner. The Phoenix situation is totally and completely dissimilar in that the current owner and Balsillie basically attempted a backdoor deal where Balsillie would have paid off Moyes' creditors in part and given Moyes a nice chunk of change for the team, and then moved the team. The continuing lack of understanding about how the League makes decisions (Board of Governors vote, not Commish totalitarianism) is getting tiresome. Great post. I for one don't really understand why everyone assumes Bettman/BoG would resist a southern team moving to Canada. We're 10-15 years out from the southern push, which to me is the point where you really know if a franchise is going to work in the long term. In this era, teams aren't moved after two years, and rightfully so, these were new markets and some work building a fan and corporate base was needed. But now we know, for the most part, that it's just not happening in some places. So it'll be interesting to see what happens from here. Someone's going to have to give me a non-Balsillie example before I buy it. I'll toss out resisting the Penguins moving to KC as exhibit A in "Bettman ultimately wants the teams to be where they can be most profitable, even if not in the south, because that's his job." Edited October 12, 2009 by C-TownWing Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
C-TownWing 0 Report post Posted October 12, 2009 There are so many to choose from: Phoenix, Tampa Bay, Florida, Atlanta and Nashville (still) for starters. I heard an "expert" on TV say that Columbus is shaky as well. From Toronto Star : If there is no bid, there may be no plans for a new arena. The current arena, the Colisée Pepsi (where the Nordiques called home), only holds 15+ thousand. The burden of an Olympic bid on the taxpayers of Quebec would be again interesting, to say the least; they might still be paying for the Games held in Montréal in 1976. And, with the 2010 Games being held in Vancouver, the QC bid might be facing long odds. Now Winnipeg, that's a whole different story... I wouldn't be surprised if that's the case, because last year finally stopped the bleeding of their attendance numbers, general interest, etc. Making the playoffs for them was huge on a lot of different levels. But if they can't keep that momentum going, they'll be right back in the toilet. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
