What Would The Ideal NHL Look Like?

The New Jersey Devils should also remain. They're doing well enough financially to warrant their remained existence. That leaves the New York Islanders. Yes, they've won their fare share of Cups and were a dynasty in the 1980s. But New York has proven that it can't maintain two hockey franchises. They are the second least valuable team in the NHL and are not competitive. That means they're the first team on the chopping block.

I won't address the rest of this, some of which I agree with (bringing the Whalers back, for example), and some of which I don't (especially the idea that St. Louis should be moved. Not even remotely close to accurate.) But the New Jersey Devils? Doing well financially? The last numbers I heard (as of 5/30/12) were that Jeffrey Vanderbeek was $177 Million in the hole, and Forbes' current value for them as of November of last year was $181 Million. They're in atrocious, appalling financial shape, and even their most recent Stanley Cup Finals appearance isn't helping.

The Devils can't afford to continue as they are, and since they'll probably have to move, with numbers like that staring them in the face, that would very easily be enough to make the Islanders the logical second greater NY team.
 

FDW

Banned
Most of the teams on your list are financially unsound. They have high levels of debt, don't sell tickets, and don't sell merchandise. I think the argument that they have small but rabid fanbases is irrelevant. The NHL is principally a business. These teams aren't making money, and don't have a great history, so move them.

Not all of these teams are necessarily without a history (The Blue have a history) or are financially unsound (The Predators sure aren't that).

I won't address the rest of this, some of which I agree with (bringing the Whalers back, for example), and some of which I don't (especially the idea that St. Louis should be moved. Not even remotely close to accurate.) But the New Jersey Devils? Doing well financially? The last numbers I heard (as of 5/30/12) were that Jeffrey Vanderbeek was $177 Million in the hole, and Forbes' current value for them as of November of last year was $181 Million. They're in atrocious, appalling financial shape, and even their most recent Stanley Cup Finals appearance isn't helping.

The Devils can't afford to continue as they are, and since they'll probably have to move, with numbers like that staring them in the face, that would very easily be enough to make the Islanders the logical second greater NY team.

Yeah, the situation with The Devils kind of makes me iffy about bringing back back The Whalers, as the New York market looks to be over saturated with hockey.
 
Western Conference
Central Division
Northwest Division
Chicago Blackhawks​
Calgary Flames​
Anaheim Ducks​
Detroit Red Wings​
Colorado Avalanche​
Los Angeles Kings​
Minnesota Wild​
Edmonton Oilers​
Seattle Seals​
Winnipeg Jets​
Utah Ice (Salt Lake City)​
Portland Storm​
Dallas Stars​
Vancouver Canucks​

I would have Vancouver in the same Division as Seattle and really start to get a cross border rivalry going with the 2 teams. As well all 5 of the teams would be in the same time zone which will help on TV viewership.
 
A Chipperback NHL

Who says we need 30 teams or an Eastern or Western Conference, eh?

Gordie Howe Conference
Bobby Orr Division
Boston Bruins
New York Rangers
Detroit Red Wings
Montreal Canadiens
Toronto Maple Leafs
Chicago Blackhawks

Mario Lemieux Division
Philadelphia Flyers
New York Islanders
Pittsburgh Penguins
Hartford Whalers
New Jersey Devils
Buffalo Sabres

Wayne Gretzky Conference
Mark Messier Division
Edmonton Oilers
Calgary Flames
Los Angeles Kings
Vancouver Canucks
Colorado Avalanche
Winnipeg Jets

Mike Modano Division
St. Louis Blues
Omaha Knights
Minnesota North Stars
Columbus Bluejackets
Indianapolis Racers
Dallas Lone Stars
 
 
As a Canadian, of course I'd like to see more Canadian teams. Thus, an ideal NHL would mainly cover Canada (say, 1-2 from each province/territory) and a number of northern states. More New England cities too, perhaps?

The thing with that is that LA and San Jose are honestly good teams. They've made the playoffs a number of times, LA won the cup this year and made the final back in 1993... A bit of an anomaly...

Player salaries would have to be lower to support teams in smaller cities. Maybe a few million over a few years for the very best, and $100-250k for the average player. I'd like to see less European/Russian players too. I'm not being xenophobic or anything, but foreign players do tend to make things expensive.

Maybe have a World Cup-like tournament every 4 years as well. The thing is, though, the NHL probably funded the beginnings of the KHL and other leagues in Europe. So that would still have to exist. Actually, the NHL could help with funding players at a lower level as well, in order for new players to emerge.
 

FDW

Banned
As a Canadian, of course I'd like to see more Canadian teams. Thus, an ideal NHL would mainly cover Canada (say, 1-2 from each province/territory) and a number of northern states. More New England cities too, perhaps?

The thing with that is that LA and San Jose are honestly good teams. They've made the playoffs a number of times, LA won the cup this year and made the final back in 1993... A bit of an anomaly...

Player salaries would have to be lower to support teams in smaller cities. Maybe a few million over a few years for the very best, and $100-250k for the average player. I'd like to see less European/Russian players too. I'm not being xenophobic or anything, but foreign players do tend to make things expensive.

Maybe have a World Cup-like tournament every 4 years as well. The thing is, though, the NHL probably funded the beginnings of the KHL and other leagues in Europe. So that would still have to exist. Actually, the NHL could help with funding players at a lower level as well, in order for new players to emerge.

To be honest, what you're implying sounds rather insular, and the reality is the era of big salaries is probably here to stay. And the NHL really isn't an exclusively Canada's league anymore, as it's legacy has become every bit as American as it is Canadian. And I really wouldn't consider Gary Bettmann Southern Strategy to be a complete failure just because of the situations with Atlanta and Phoenix, there were just as many successes that resulted from it too (Anaheim, San Jose, Colorado, Dallas, and Nashville), though all of these markets really should've been all opened up via wholesale expansion of the league, as opposed to moving established teams.
 
Most of the teams on your list are financially unsound. They have high levels of debt, don't sell tickets, and don't sell merchandise. I think the argument that they have small but rabid fanbases is irrelevant. The NHL is principally a business. These teams aren't making money, and don't have a great history, so move them.

I disagree with you on the Islanders not having a great history. They did have a Dynasy back in the early 80's, winning the Stanley Cup four times in a row.
 

FDW

Banned
I disagree with you on the Islanders not having a great history. They did have a Dynasy back in the early 80's, winning the Stanley Cup four times in a row.

I think he's referring to their (generally futile) history since then. I myself am of the opinion that The Islanders are going to leaving for QC soon. The Devils might also be going through some upheaval in the near future, given their debts. So it's possible that they could leave town, possibly for Seattle, where there's been a huge gap in the market for major league hockey for decades.
 
Isn't one of the conditions of this new arena being built in Seattle that Seattle acquire an NHL team?
 
I think he's referring to their (generally futile) history since then. I myself am of the opinion that The Islanders are going to leaving for QC soon. The Devils might also be going through some upheaval in the near future, given their debts. So it's possible that they could leave town, possibly for Seattle, where there's been a huge gap in the market for major league hockey for decades.

Fair point. Though they do have John Tavares playing for them, and he's one of the best Hockey players in the NHL. That doesn't mean they'll win the Stanley Cup anytime soon, but it's still something to keep in mind if the team is moved in the near future.
 

FDW

Banned
Isn't one of the conditions of this new arena being built in Seattle that Seattle acquire an NHL team?

I haven't been following the issue too closely, so I'm sure on that. My assumption was that SODO stadium in Seattle was meant to be a bribe to the NBA so that David Stern would revive The Sonics, (And yes, Revive is the right term to use here.) and that an NHL team would really sort of be a nice bonus. I'm generally thinking that the team that will end up in Seattle will be New Jersey Devils, who'll rename themselves after one of Seattle's previous hockey teams (Metropolitans, Totems, Thunderbirds).

Fair point. Though they do have John Tavares playing for them, and he's one of the best Hockey players in the NHL. That doesn't mean they'll win the Stanley Cup anytime soon, but it's still something to keep in mind if the team is moved in the near future.

Keep in mind, most sports that historically made major moves are teams with an extended period of futility (Usually a for a period of a decade or more before the move), and not getting out of the first of the playoffs in 20 years definitely counts as futility, quality of players aside. I think the Islanders will move to Quebec City either next summer or in 2014.
 
The ideal NHL, eh?

<pulls out soapbox and steps up thereon>

First: Bettman goes. This is absolutely non-negotiable.

Second: so do Andy van Hellemond and Brendan Shanahan. Van Hellemond was incompetent on the ice and is worse as an administrator. Shanahan's bias is as evident as a neon sign at midnight.

Third: roll back the rules (except for face shields and helmets) essentially to those of 1986-87. Particularly, I speak of repeal of the instigator rule, repeal of the idiotic trapezoid, sky's-the-limit stick blade curve, and no, repeat no regular season overtime (clearly the shootout is relegated to museum piece status). OT will be purely a creature of the playoffs. There is no need, if a game can't be decided properly in 60 minutes during the regular season, to extend it with artificial playing rules or a skills contest.

Fourth: officials will be subject to annual review by players and coaches.

Fifth: no more two referees. One is just fine.

Sixth: relocate most of the more southern franchises, and eliminate two altogether. I mean Tampa Bay, Florida, Nashville, Phoenix, Anaheim, along with makes-no-earthly-sense Columbus. Those should be replaced by Québec, Seattle, Hamilton, and Milwaukee (see below for comments re: Baltimore). That accounts for four of six; pick any two for contraction.

Seventh: realignment, thus:

Adams Division
Boston
Quebec
Ottawa
Montreal
Toronto
Hamilton
Buffalo

Patrick Division
NY Rangers
NY Islanders
New Jersey
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Washington
Carolina

Norris Division
Detroit
Chicago
Milwaukee
Minnesota
St. Louis
Dallas
Winnipeg

Smythe Division
Colorado
Los Angeles
San Jose
Seattle
Vancouver
Calgary
Edmonton

Eighth: fix the schedule. Play your division opponents seven times each year (four home/three road or vice versa; alternate which teams get three home games in the series in alternating seasons); teams in the other division in the conference four times (two home/two road); teams in the other conference once. Total: 42+28+14= 84 regular season games.

Ninth: adjust playoff seeding. Division winners don't get a top seed automatically. The best eight teams in each conference make the playoffs with seedings strictly according to regular season points with tiebreakers built in (they'll be needed at some point).

Tenth: no more poster boys/golden boys. Yes, I mean Cindy Crosby. He has to take his lumps like anyone else, and his endless whining is going to earn him two for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Postscript: I excluded Baltimore specifically because that city doesn't have an NHL-worthy arena. The Baltimore Arena (originally the Civic Center) was opened in 1962 and is, in a word, primitive. The lighting is terrible; there are columns in some of the sight lines; all the seats face straight ahead instead of the center of the playing surface; one entire end is occupied by a blank wall with a permanent stage more suited for a large high school. It's a total dump. I should know: I grew up in Baltimore and watched numerous AHL games there.
 
The ideal NHL, eh?

Postscript: I excluded Baltimore specifically because that city doesn't have an NHL-worthy arena. The Baltimore Arena (originally the Civic Center) was opened in 1962 and is, in a word, primitive. The lighting is terrible; there are columns in some of the sight lines; all the seats face straight ahead instead of the center of the playing surface; one entire end is occupied by a blank wall with a permanent stage more suited for a large high school. It's a total dump. I should know: I grew up in Baltimore and watched numerous AHL games there.

That figures. I heard that Memorial Stadium was pretty much obsolete after it was built. There were people in the late-40's that wanted to build a state-of-the-art domed stadium, but the cost-conscious people prevailed, unfortunately, and they built something that was completely opposite.
 
Sixth: relocate most of the more southern franchises, and eliminate two altogether. I meanTampa Bay, Florida, Nashville, Phoenix, Anaheim, along with makes-no-earthly-sense Columbus. Those should be replaced by Québec, Seattle, Hamilton, and Milwaukee (see below for comments re: Baltimore). That accounts for four of six; pick any two for contraction.

Seventh: realignment, thus:

Adams Division
Boston
Quebec
Ottawa
Montreal
Toronto
Hamilton
Buffalo

Patrick Division
NY Rangers
NY Islanders
New Jersey
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Washington
Carolina

Norris Division
Detroit
Chicago
Milwaukee
Minnesota
St. Louis
Dallas
Winnipeg

Smythe Division
Colorado
Los Angeles
San Jose
Seattle
Vancouver
Calgary
Edmonton

How come you think that Tampa Bay, Florida, Nashville, Phoenix, Anaheim and Columbus shouldn't belong but Carolina, Dallas and San Jose do?
 

FDW

Banned
How come you think that Tampa Bay, Florida, Nashville, Phoenix, Anaheim and Columbus shouldn't belong but Carolina, Dallas and San Jose do?

Carolina I can't really account for, but Dallas and San Jose are probably the two biggest "success stories" of the southern strategy.
 

FDW

Banned
How are you measuring success?

Both heirs to the North Stars do a good job at filling their arenas, and both sit above the 50 percentile in terms of ticket revenue per game. Both teams have are also regulars in playoffs as well (Though the Sharks seem to suffer from an annoying case of Bay Choke).
 

NothingNow

Banned
Most of the teams on your list are financially unsound. They have high levels of debt, don't sell tickets, and don't sell merchandise. I think the argument that they have small but rabid fanbases is irrelevant. The NHL is principally a business. These teams aren't making money, and don't have a great history, so move them.

Actually, the Lightning are doing fine financially, and that situation's been rapidly improving since Vinik bought the team, as I honestly think bought it as an investment or tax dodge, but that's how the Lightning were back in the 90's as well, under Kokusai Green (except it was worse back then.)

Is that when you're getting your numbers from? The Lightning have been on pretty solid ground financially since the start of the century.

Hell, aside from 2007-2008, the Forum's always respectably filled (if down from being 2nd in the league back in 2005-2006,) and last season it was verging on maxing out the capacity for the Forum again, to the point that honestly, the Trop might as well become the Thunderdome once more (It's not like the Rays couldn't use one of the billion spring training fields here anyway.)

Since the start of the decade the team's recovered, we got just this close to winning our second division championship back in 2010-2011 in that amazing series with Boston, and did well enough last season.
 
The Seattle area already has two teams (Everett Silvertips, and the Seattle Thunderbirds playing in Kent). Yeah, they're WHL teams, but so what? "Minor" leagues are better anyway (more about the game than about the money).
 
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