Nordiques, Jets, Whalers, Oh My: Could the NHL Revive Historic Teams?

That Was Then

In 1995, Canada had a national population of just over 29 million people. To put it in perspective, that would place them in between California and Texas for total population.

Why is this significant? Because 1995 was the last time Canada was at full strength with eight, count 'em eight, NHL teams. In case you forgot what that looked like, I've provided a link of the final standings here.

In a league that had only 26 teams at the time, 30 percent hailed from north of the border.

Think about that for a moment.

That's roughly the equivalent of Texas alone having eight such franchises today. This ain't college football and having 10 division-one schools just doesn't mean the same thing.

Northeast division: Ottawa Senators, Quebec Nordiques, Montreal Canadiens

Central: Winnipeg Jets and Toronto Maple Leafs

Pacific: Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Vancouver Canucks

It seemed no matter where you looked, the league was dominated by Canadian franchises, and for good reason.

That season also included a lockout-shortened 48 game schedule and saw the Quebec Nordiques dominate to the tune of a 30-13-5 record to capture the No. 1 overall seed in the Prince of Whales Conference. The Nordiques, however, lost in six games in the first round of the playoffs to the New York Rangers.

That surprising loss was the last series ever played in Quebec.

That offseason they relocated to Denver, Colorado, immediately winning the Stanley Cup. The championship can be attributed to years of picking first overall and stockpiling youth and talent with smart trades, most notably the Eric Lindros deal in 1992.

After mostly-online grumbling mixed with nostalgic whimpers of the past and wishful thinking amongst heartbroken fans, for the first time since 1995 it appears that the NHL is serious about returning to Le Vieille Capitale.

This Is Now

Last Sunday, Oct. 11, news broke that the current mayor of Quebec City, Regis Labeaume met with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and former Nordiques owner Marcel Aubut discussing the potential of a franchise returning in the near future.

In case you haven't been keeping up with it, allow me to summarize the details:

• The meeting was driven by the staggering U.S. economy, particularly in the U.S. Southern franchises, when it comes to NHL hockey clubs.
• Any city wanting to host a team, Winnipeg and Hamilton are the others named, have to first submit a plan which includes a new hockey arena to be built and a separate plan on exactly how that arena would be paid.
• Any new hockey arena must include at least 18,000 capacity seats.
• There is no clear favorite, as a fair and formal process would need to be conducted, but Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly has already made it known that "We do have an interest in returning teams to Canadian cities that have hosted and supported NHL teams historically."

Mayor Labeaume followed up the media hype by introducing plans last Friday Oct. 16, for a brand-new $400 million arena that would also be used in a joint effort to entice the 2022 or 2026 Olympic games to Quebec.

In doing so, he also took time to address concerns from political opponents who claimed such a nostalgic move was done to gain votes for his up-coming re-election bid.

"I don't need that to win the election. I would say more I'm taking a risk now," Labeaume, who is leading the polls and was already expected to cruise to victory, responded to CBC News Oct. 12.

Canadian Media Speculation Runs Wild

Newspaper outlets have suggested that with the U.S. sliding economy, now might be the perfect time for traditional markets to uproot those in newer, less traditional markets such as those in the Southeast.

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