Putting an eighth NHL team in a hockey-mad nation might seem like a no-brainer, but landing it hasn’t and never will be easy
John Graham is a race car driver, hockey promoter and believer in improbable dreams, an optimism he applied to his role as the point man for a group of prominent though unnamed Saskatoon businessmen who approached the NHL in 2012 with a pitch to buy the money-bleeding, league-owned Phoenix Coyotes and move them to the Prairies.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly even met with Graham and the Saskatoon group, meetings that produced more meetings, talks that, while cordial, weren’t enough to dislodge the Coyotes from Phoenix, where the franchise remains — a money loser still, albeit under new ownership and with a new name, the Arizona Coyotes.
It can be easy, even comforting, to conclude that the problem must be them: them being the league, its American-sunbelt-loving-New-York-City-headquartered commissioner, Gary Bettman, and the majority of American owners behind him, hell bent on propping up marginal franchises in Florida, Arizona and the Carolinas, while forgoing slam dunk propositions such as the Nordiques 2.0.
Hence the need for a rich person, a billionaire at minimum, which in Canada limits the pool to about 100 potential buyers, seven of which — the Molsons, David Thomson, Larry Tanenbaum, the Rogers, Daryl Katz, Francesco Aquilini, Murray Edwards and Eugene Melnyk — already own, directly or indirectly through companies, at least a part of the seven existing Canadian franchises.
We put the question to Bill Daly, Bettman’s second-in-command. “I’m not prepared to say that Quebec is not a viable market for a future NHL franchise,” he says via email. “And I’m not prepared to say that future opportunities will not present themselves. Every situation is fact- and circumstance-specific, and I would certainly not rule out the possibility of facts and circumstances aligning in the future so as to create a new opportunity.
The NHL’s existing strategy might even be paying off, depending on one’s perspective. Auston Matthews, Maple Leafs star and a former No. 1 overall NHL pick, grew up in the Phoenix suburbs as a Coyotes fan; the Arizona State University men’s hockey team in nearby Tempe has emerged as a U.S. college hockey power; and youth hockey enrolment in the state has quadrupled since the Coyotes arrived in 1996. Hockey has a toehold in Arizona, like it or not.
Canadian franchises generate revenues in Canadian dollars, while paying players in U.S. funds. Add in U.S. travel expenses, and the cost of operating minor league franchises, typically based in the U.S., and the pressure exerted on a Canadian franchise’s financial well-being by a weakened dollar is significant. Canadian teams can hedge, buying up greenbacks when the loonie is strong and spending them in times when it’s not. But hedging also costs money, and it involves risk.
Peddie was approached, post-MLSE career, by a private group looking to examine the possibility of Toronto being home to another NHL team, a big what-if requiring an ownership group with a monopoly agreeing to waive its monopoly. The working assumption was that the alliance between Bell and Rogers would eventually fracture, forcing one of them out of the Leafs’ ownership group.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Burke ‘stunned’ by CWHL folding, hopes it’s part of bigger plan - Sportsnet.caHC's Brian Burke explains to the Starting Lineup why he was so stunned by the CWHL folding, why he hopes it’s just part of a bigger women’s hockey strategy, and why this now sets a clear path for the NHL to step in and help.
Read more »
NHL suspends Slava Voynov for entire 2019-20 season - Sportsnet.caThe NHL has suspended defenceman Slava Voynov for the entire 2019-20 season and playoffs for 'unacceptable off-ice conduct.'
Read more »
NHL releases playoffs schedule - TSN.caThe Winnipeg Jets will begin their first-round Stanley Cup playoff series Wednesday while the Toronto Maple Leafs and Calgary Flames play their respective Game 1's on Thursday.
Read more »
Inside the 2019 NHL Draft Lottery Room - Sportsnet.caSportsnet's Kristina Rutherford got a sneak peek at what happens behind the scenes when those ping pong balls are selected at the NHL Draft Lottery.
Read more »
Devils win top pick in 2019 NHL Draft - TSN.caThe New Jersey Devils will have the No. 1 pick at this year's NHL draft. The Colorado Avalanche had the best odds of landing the first pick at 18.5 per cent, but they drew the No. 4 selection. The New York Rangers will pick second and the Chicago Blackhawks will select third at the June draft.
Read more »
3 things we learned in the NHL: The future is bright in Ottawa - Sportsnet.caBrady Tkachuk continues to impress, Patrick Kane's mitts are still as silky as ever and Henrik Lundqvist is in jeopardy of missing a couple of milestones. Here are three things we learned in the NHL on Wednesday.
Read more »
Kucherov, Ovechkin highlight early NHL award winners - Sportsnet.caWith the 2018-19 regular season officially in the rearview, we've got some early award winners to fill you in on.
Read more »
Condon determined to return to the NHL with Sens - TSN.caAfter stem cell treatment, Mike Condon is confident he will return to the Senators goaltending picture next season, Ian Mendes writes.
Read more »