canada could use another team. so the hawks can keep improving their record against Canadian teams ;)

to where you saw that Reinsdorf was interested?

doesn’t make a bit of sense to me.

put them back in canada. maybe put a team back in quebec or winnipeg

New York City area- 3 teams (counting the Devils)
Los Angeles Area- 2 teams
Toronto area- 1 team?

Something about that math doesn’t add up

Hopefully Reinsdorf doesn’t get his mitts on the Yotes.

Actually, the NHL shouldn’t abandon a top US TV market like Phoenix, which is #12. Moving another team to Canada just devalues the league. To leave a market of 4.1 million people is plain, flat, stupid.

There have been a number of factors that have caused problems with the franchise. For one — it has been horrid, for 90% of it’s time in Phoenix. It first played in a building unsuitable for hockey, and was the secondary tenant. It did need its’ own home, and fatefully — there’s plenty of land adjacent to freeway access in West Phoenix, (as you’ll note the growth of spring training faclities in that area of Phoenix) so Glendale stepped up and built a magnificent arena. (It may be the best building in the NHL, IMHO.)

However, there’s a problem. This location may work for the Cardinals, with the NFL’s short schedule. Day in and day out — it’s a mammoth drive for east valley residents across town. I’ve made the trip from Mesa to Surprise for night baseball during rush hour — it took 2 hours. (Probably, it would have been 90 mins to Jobing.com Arena, right off the Loop 101.)

If the team isn’t doing well, you won’t see East Valley residents driving to Glendale, no matter how nice the facility is. (This is why the Suns are running a franchise in the ECHL, located in US Airways Arena, selling only seats in the bottom bowl of the arena. Problem is – that team has finished last every season.)

Howver, a competitive team will eventually thrive. Even though Phoenix is being hit hard by the recession, there’s more room for growth and eventually, more people will live west of downtown PHX than East. (You could argue that the arena should have been located SOUTH of PHX, along I-10, which also has plenty of land available. In any event, you don’t relocate from a market of nearly 2 million to historic hockey towns like Winnipeg, with only 700,000 in the market. Population “draw?” That’s nonsense. You have to check the facts, Blue Mike.

Calgary and Edmonton just barely make the cut for a major league franchise, with 1.1 people in the Calgary market and 1.08 in Edmonton. You could argue that Houston, the #10 market with a population of 2.1 million deserves an NHL franchise more than Columbus, the #32 market with under 1 million people.

Bettman needs to stand up to this Blackberry bully and his “nationalistic” tactics to steal a team. The league has supported bad situations in Pittsburgh, Buffalo — and in Edmonton, if you recall.

I don’t have the time to go back to research this — but I’d bet, during the Blackhawks darkest years, the Coyotes average attendence was better than the crowds at the UC.
Were there whispers that “Chicago can’t support hockey anymore” when there were 9K at the UC? Well, there probably were — within ignorant circles. but there was never a word of ’gotta leave the Chicago market…"

I’m not a Reinsdorf fan — but he, and partners got the team, it would be in the best interest of the NHL. There are only 3 major markets in Canada — Toronto, Montreal and Yancouver….and every other Canadian market should be damn happy they still have a team. The NHL didn’t flinch (except in Winnipeg, which, as I state — is too small for an NHL franchise) when the Canadian dollar was taking, 15 years ago and it should hold steady in Phoenix.

Maybe ol’ Jer can make up fsome karma for the time he railroaded the state of Illinois into building him his ballpark for threatening to move to Tampa….

Phoenix, the #12 market is nearly 2 million (not 4.1) (First ’graph)

Leaving a market of nearly 2 million is still stupid, by any measure.