Fraser's New and Improved National Hockey League: Part Three

This is Part Three of my four-part article on how I would make the National Hockey League more profitable and how I’d return the league back into the big four major sporting leagues. 

In this section, I will talk about the cities that I have left out of my NHL, discuss the new alignment of the divisions and conferences, and finally I will explain some of the selections that I made. 

First, why did I leave places like Nashville, Carolina, Tampa Bay, and Atlanta out of my NHL?

Let’s talk about why I have made some of the moves I have made. Before people think I am dissing any of your cities I would like to say I have nothing against any city in North America, except of course for Edmonton, but that’s a Southern Albertan thing and the fact that half my family is from Edmonton, the phone calls in the ’80s got really annoying after every win in the City of Chumpions. 

In my NHL, I have taken a look at the NASCAR business model. Over the past decade, NASCAR has grown from a regional entity to the position of the No. 2 sporting organization in North America, pushing the NHL out of the big four. 

How did they do it? For the most part, NASCAR is a regional sport. The majority of races take place in the eastern and southeastern regions of the United States.

They realized that they would have to drop some of the long-standing race tracks from their schedule in order to help continue the growth and they decided to replace them with bigger centers like California, Phoenix, and Chicago. 

They know their place in the world and have exploded their property into an international phenomenon.

So now the question is, how can the NHL follow the same model as NASCAR? Let’s examine the best way to do this.

As some of you have noticed, there are certain cities missing from my National Hockey League. I have taken franchises away from Nashville, Raleigh, N.C., Tampa, Miami Buffalo, Phoenix, and Atlanta. 

I chose these cities for a variety of reasons. The No. 1 reason is location but I also considered fan support, local governmental support, and climate. 

Buffalo was an extremely difficult decision because of the history of hockey in the region. The Sabres have seen players such as Hall of Famers Gilbert Perreault, Dale Hawerchuk, Pat LaFontaine, and coaches like George "Punch" Imlach and Scotty Bowman have all called Buffalo home.

When I did my research, I was concerned about the effect of putting a club in the Golden Horseshoe region of South Ontario because all the major sports teams in Buffalo draw a significant amount of their fan base from this region.

I took a look at the market size of the area around Buffalo and had to discount them from my NHL. 

Phoenix should be a successful hockey market, but some pretty big mistakes were made in the short history of the Coyotes. The team moved out of a downtown Phoenix arena to a brand new, state-of-the-art arena in Glendale. 

Jobing.com Arena is an hour and a half drive (according to GoogleMaps.com) from downtown Phoenix and the city had a population base of 253,152 in 2007. 

When people are asked on the street about the Coyotes, the most common comment heard is “Phoenix has a hockey team?” Not good for a region that has had a NHL team since 1996. 

Nashville, Miami, and Atlanta have had decreasing attendance numbers over the past few years and the accuracy of their attendance numbers has been called into question lately.

The amount of revenue being generated by these franchises is among the lowest in the league and in order to make the league more profitable, the weak must be re-examined for the overall success of the business. 

Tampa Bay and Raleigh were examined solely because of their geographical location after the removal of franchises in Miami, Nashville and Atlanta.

They would become islands alone in the bigger picture and would have increased expenses because of the new landscape, which I am putting forward in this article. 

Both cities have had their shares of ups and downs with the Lightning and Hurricanes, respectively.  Both franchises have been Stanley Cup champions in the last five years can be successful entities with the NHL, when the on-ice product is also successful. 

Now, how many franchises is the right number to have without significantly diluting the on-ice product.  Hockey has truly become a global game.  The game is played all over North America, Europe and in many other countries around the world to varying extent.

It is the most popular sport in Canada, Finland, Latvia, the Czech Republic, and in Slovakia.  The governing body is the 68-member International Ice Hockey Federation, (IIHF).

In 23 of the 68 member countries, the number of registered hockey players is 1,380,705.

Now what is a good percentage to use, to be classified as an elite player, elite enough to make a NHL team? One percent, 0.5%, 0.25%, which number should I use? For argument sake, let’s go with 0.15% or a fifteenth of one percent. 

According the NHL CBA, each team can have up to 50 players on what is called a reserve list. These are players that have their rights owned by any NHL franchise.

There are 23 players on the NHL roster and the rest are either placed on their American Hockey League Affiliate or if they are still eligible, the go to major junior or major college teams throughout North America.

So we have established my criteria, when I calculate the numbers, it works out to 40 NHL franchises. Forty, huh? Wow, that would make the NHL the biggest major league in North America and it should be because it is the only major league that has more than one franchise outside of the United States.

So how do I organize 40 franchises into divisions and conferences?

What is a workable schedule? How many teams make the playoffs? What format do I use to decide the Stanley Cup champion?

Let’s place the franchises first. Ok, 40 franchises, and well we already have 30 teams but we have moved around seven, so here are the cities we will use for our new NHL. I have renamed the conferences and divisions to award the history of the NHL.  

Since the Maurice Richard Trophy was introduced in 1998, there have been no more major awards created to honour some of the recent Hall of Fame inductees. 

Let’s look at the new Gordie Howe Conference first. In the Mark Messier Division, I would place the following teams:    

1 and 2. New York City 

With the Rangers making Manhattan home in the world famous Madison Square Garden, I believe the city could support another team inside its limits. 

Reports indicate that the New Jersey Nets of the NBA are looking at building a brand-new arena in Brooklyn. The Barclays Center has an estimated reported capacity of 20,000 and plans to open in 2011.

3. Long Island

Long Island has a population of 7.7 million people and currently is home for the Islanders. The Islanders play in Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum but owner Charles Wang is looking to develop the Lighthouse Project.

The Lighthouse Project is the currently proposed transformation of Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and the area surrounding it into a modern suburban area, introduced by Islanders' owner Charles Wang.

The project would center on a proposed renovated Coliseum for the New York Islanders. Surrounding the Coliseum would be various other venues, including a minor league baseball ballpark, restaurants, stores, and hotels.

4. Newark, N.J.

The Devils have a brand new home called the Prudential Center that opened for the 2007-08 season. 

5. Philadelphia

The Flyers have played their home games on Broad Street since their inception, first at The Spectrum from 1967 until 1996, and then at the Wachovia Center from 1996 to the present, hence their nickname, the Broad Street Bullies.

Travel between the two farthest major airports in this division is from JFK International Airport in New York City and the Philadelphia International Airport is 132 km. 

In the Mario Lemieux Division, I would place the following teams;

6. Pittsburgh

The Penguins have played in Mellon Arena since their first season, and will move into their new arena, Consol Energy Center, in time for the 2010–11 NHL season.

7. Washington, D.C.

The Capitals played in Landover, Md., at the Capital Center from 1974 until 1997 and then moved into Washington’s Chinatown to play in the Verizon Center for the 1997-98 season. 

8. Boston

The Bruins play their home games at the TD Garden, where they have played since 1995 after leaving the Boston Garden, which had been their home since 1928.

9. Montreal

The Canadiens play their home games at the Bell Centre, which was named the Molson Centre until 2003. Former homes of the team include Jubilee Rink, Montreal Westmount Arena, Mount Royal Arena, and the Montreal Forum.

The Forum was considered a veritable shrine to hockey fans everywhere, and housed the team for seven decades and all but their first two Stanley Cup championships.

10. Quebec City

The former home of the NHL’s Quebec Nordiques was the Colisée de Québec and has since been renamed Colisée Pepsi (Pepsi Coliseum for the English-speaking world). This arena has some significant issues and a new building will have to be built but based on the history of Quebec City, this city needs to be given another chance.

The travel between the two farthest major airports in this division is from the Pittsburgh International Airport and the Jean Lesage International Airport in Quebec City is 999 km. 

In the Steve Yzerman Division, I would place the following teams;

11. Columbus

The Blue Jackets were established in 2000 and play their home games at Nationwide Arena. 

12. Cleveland

The city of Cleveland has a beautiful arena that is the home of the Cavaliers of the NBA. The Quicken Loans Arena was opened in 1994 is already used for the Lake Erie Monsters of the AHL.

13. Detroit

The Red Wings were established way back in 1926 and have played their home games in Joe Louis Arena since 1979.

14 and 15. Chicago

The Blackhawks were established in 1926 and since 1994; the Blackhawks have played their home games at the United Center after having spent over 60 years playing at Chicago Stadium.

Now, I choose Chicago for a second franchise for two reasons. First, there is a history of financial success for both the Cubs and the White Sox, despite a lack of championship success. 

Secondly, once I started to do my research for this series, I noticed that the United Center has two interesting owners and operators.

Blackhawks’ owner Rocky Wirtz, whose family has owned the Blackhawks for over four decades, is listed in partnership with the White Sox and Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf. 

Reinsdorf is currently trying to purchase the bankrupt Phoenix Coyotes from Jerry Moyes. 

This information forced me to ask one question, Does Jerry Reinsdorf truly want to keep a team in Phoenix or his he looking for another tenant for his co-owned building. 

There is another arena option in Chicago, the Allstate Arena is located in Rosemont Illinois, and opened in 1980. 

Its capacity is 16,000 for hockey and is currently the home of Chicago Wolves, a minor pro hockey team that has played in both the AHL and the now-defunct International Hockey League.

The arena is adjacent to O’Hare International Airport and is 15.2 miles from the United Center.

Travel between the two farthest major airports in this division is from O'Hare International Airport in Chicago and the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport is 439 km. 

In the Darryl Sittler Division, I would place the following teams;   

16. Toronto

The Maple Leafs is officially known as the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and is the leading subsidiary of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. (MLSE). They have played at the Air Canada Centre (ACC) since 1999, after 68 years at Maple Leaf Gardens.

17. Ottawa

The Senators play their home games at the 20,500 capacity Scotiabank Place (originally named the 'Palladium', and later the 'Corel Centre').

18. Hamilton (Ontario)

As the home of the AHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs, Copps Coliseum has a capacity of 17,383 and played host to one of the most famous hockey games and hockey goals in the history of the game. 

In 1987, the arena was the primary host for the Canada Cup ice hockey tournament and was the site of Mario Lemieux's famous goal that beat the Soviets 6-5 in the decisive game.

With news circulating around the Phoenix Coyotes and Research in Motion Co-CEO Jim Balsillie, a franchise granted his ownership, would also come with the proper renovations to make Copps Coliseum a serviceable NHL arena.

19. Mississauga (Ontario)

Mississauga is a city in Southern Ontario and part of the Greater Toronto Area. With a population of 668,549 as of the 2006 census, it is Canada's sixth-most populous municipality, and has almost doubled in population in each of the last two decades.

Mississauga would need to build a NHL arena but there have been published reports of a group being interested in building a new arena, in order to secure another NHL franchise for the Greater Toronto Area.

20. London (Ontario)

London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, with a metropolitan area population of 457,720 and is approximately halfway between Toronto, Ontario and Detroit Michigan.  London is close to a number of the teams in the Eastern Conference, 75 miles from Hamilton, and 130 miles from Detroit, 121 miles from Toronto and 105 miles from Mississauga.

To put this into perspective, the distance between Edmonton and Calgary, Alberta is 183 miles and there is almost six times the population base, in Southern Ontario.

The travel between the two farthest major airports in this division is from the Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier International Airport and the London International Airport is 519 km. 

Now, let’s look at the new Wayne Gretzky Conference. In the Marcel Dionne Division, I would place teams in the following cities: 

1. Los Angeles

The Kings called The Forum in Inglewood, Calif., their home for 32 years until they moved to Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles to start the 1999–2000 season.

2. Anaheim

Since their inception, the Ducks have played their home games at Honda Center. In their 15-year existence, the Ducks have made the playoffs seven times, winning one Pacific Division title (2007), two Western Conference Championships (2003 and 2007), and the Stanley Cup Championship (in 2007).

3. San Jose

The Sharks were founded in 1991 and played their first two seasons in Daly, Calif., at an arena called the Cow Palace. 

In 1993, the Sharks moved into their current home in San Jose, the HP Pavilion at San Jose, formerly known as Compaq Center at San Jose and San Jose Arena. The Shark Tank's only major tenants are the San Jose Sharks.

4. Oakland

A franchise placed in Oakland, could play its home games in home of the Golden State Warriors of the NBA. The Oracle Arena, also known by its former names of the Oakland Coliseum Arena, the Oakland Arena, the Arena in Oakland, and The New Arena, is an indoor arena in Oakland.

It was originally constructed as the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena in 1966. It is also the oldest facility still in use by the NBA. It was also the one-time home of the California Golden Seals, a defunct franchise that played in the NHL from 1967-1976.

5. Sacramento 

I never discussed the city of Sacramento before but as I was placing teams into new division, I liked the distance between the other markets in California. Also, Sacramento already has standing arena that a NHL team could play in.

Arco Arena opened its doors in 1988 and has the Sacramento Kings of the NBA a major tenant. Having two major professional franchises playing out of the same building may generate the necessary revenue to help finance a new building.

The travel between the two farthest major airports in this division is from the Los Angeles International Airport and the Sacramento International Airport is 521 km.

In the Lanny McDonald Division, I would place teams in the following cities:

6. Calgary

The Pengrowth Saddledome (formerly known as the Olympic Saddledome and Canadian Airlines Saddledome) is the main indoor arena facility in Calgary, Alberta, Canada and is situated on the east end of the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede grounds in downtown Calgary.

It is often referred to simply as the Saddledome or even the 'Dome. The Saddledome was built in 1983 to host the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League (NHL) and to serve as the primary facility ice hockey and figure skating at the 1988 Winter Olympics.

The Saddledome was built to have a maximum capacity of approximately 20,000 fans. Major renovations in 1994–1995 reduced capacity to its current configuration of 19,289 for hockey.

The facility is currently managed by the Calgary Flames Hockey Club, who has leased the 'Dome until 2014.

The future of the building is currently under debate, as the Flames have begun plans to build a new arena, at which point it is expected the Saddledome will be demolished.

7. Edmonton

Rexall Place is an indoor arena in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada situated on the north side of Northlands Park. It is home to the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League, the Edmonton Rush of the National Lacrosse League and the Edmonton Oil Kings of the WHL.

Though it is one of the oldest venues in the NHL, it has been consistently renovated to keep the facilities up-to-date.

When the arena opened on Nov. 10, 1974, it was known as Northlands Coliseum to house the World Hockey Association Oilers. Then it became the Edmonton Coliseum in 1994 and Skyreach Centre in 1998, before it changed to its current name during the middle of the 2003–04 NHL season when its naming rights were purchased by the Rexall medicine company, a subsidiary of Katz Group Canada.

8. Vancouver

General Motors Place is also known as GM Place and nicknamed The Garage, is located in Downtown Vancouver. The arena is home to the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League. The arena is sponsored by General Motors Canada.

As corporate sponsors are unable to brand sporting venues during the Olympics, GM Place will be temporarily renamed Canada Hockey Place during the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in February 2010.

9. Seattle

KeyArena was once home to the Seattle SuperSonics.

On July 2, 2008, the Oklahoma City-based ownership group of the SuperSonics reached a settlement deal with the City of Seattle, releasing the team from the last two years of their lease with the city and allowing the team to relocate to Oklahoma City for the 2008-09 NBA season. The SuperSonics name was dissolved. Until July 2, 2008, it was the oldest arena in the NBA.

In addition to being the former home of the NBA in Seattle, it was also home to the Seattle Thunderbirds, a junior hockey team in the Western Hockey League.

The Thunderbirds hosted the Memorial Cup in the Seattle Center Coliseum pre-KeyArena remodel in 1992.

10. Portland (Ore.)

The Rose Garden, commonly known as the Rose Garden Arena, is the primary indoor sports arena in Portland, Oregon. It is suitable for large indoor events of all sorts, including basketball, ice hockey, rodeos, circuses, conventions, ice shows, concerts, and dramatic productions.

The arena has a capacity of 18,280 spectators when configured for hockey. The arena is equipped with state-of-the-art acoustics and other amenities

The travel between the two farthest major airports in this division is from the Edmonton International Airport and the Portland International Airport is 933 km.

In the Dale Hawerchuk Division, I would place teams in the following cities;

11. Regina (Saskatchewan)

There is not an arena in Regina that would meet NHL standards. The biggest arena in Regina is the Brandt Centre, which is the home of the Western Hockey League’s Regina Pats. It has a capacity of only 7,000 seats.

Saskatoon’s Credit Union Centre has a bigger capacity for hockey at 14,311 but the extra travel on the division and the wear and tear on the players make it far more reasonable to just build a new arena in the province’s capital. 

A NHL team in Regina is worth it, to quote a famous line from the movie, Field of Dreams. “If you build it, they will come.”

12. Winnipeg (Manitoba)

The MTS Centre is located in downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba, at the former Eaton's site. It is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment Limited, at a cost of $133.5 million CAD.

It opened on Nov. 16, 2004, replacing the since-demolished Winnipeg Arena. It can seat 15,015 spectators for ice hockey and up to 16,333 spectators for concerts.

It was formerly known as the True North Centre during planning and construction before Manitoba Telecom Services bought the naming rights for $7 million over 10 years.

The MTS Centre is usually seen as much too small and would require a significant increase to the seating capacity and significant cost.

Its current capacity is 15,015 and the potential ownership including Manitoba Moose owner Mark Chipman has stated that it is in fact not too small, but would create a supply-and-demand situation.

While it would in fact be the smallest arena in the league, Edmonton's Rexall Place being the current smallest at a capacity of just under 17,000, many NHL teams report average attendance well under 15,000.

It could also be renovated and it’s a great starting point for a city that never should have lost its franchise in the first place.

13. Denver

Pepsi Center (aka The Can) is in Denver, Colorado. The building is home to the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League, the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association, and the Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League. Pepsi Center opened its doors in time for 1999-00 season. 

The Colorado Avalanche’s previous home games were played at McNichols Sports Arena.  Big Mac was also the home of the Colorado Rockies that played in Denver from 1976 until they moved to East Rutherford, N.J., in 1982.

14. St. Paul, Minn.

Xcel Energy Center (The X) is a multi-purpose arena located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, sponsored by Xcel Energy. It is home of the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League and the Minnesota Swarm of the National Lacrosse League. It is owned by the city of Saint Paul and operated by Minnesota Sports & Entertainment.

It is on the same block as the RiverCentre convention facility, Roy Wilkins Auditorium, and Ordway Center for the Performing Arts. The arena has four spectator levels: one suite level and three general seating levels named the 100 level, the club level, and the 200 level. Its official capacity is 18,064.

15. Minneapolis

The Target Center is an arena in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is sponsored by Target Corporation. The center is home to the National Basketball Association's Minnesota Timberwolves. It opened its doors in 1990 and has a seating capacity for hockey of 19,500. 

It is located only 16 kms from the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, but in the state that produces so many NHL hockey players, I believe this situation can work. 

It is roughly the exact same distance between US Cellular Field and Wrigley Field, in Chicago. It would create a natural rival in a division with large amount of travel; it would be a great situation to play two games in the same area without the travel.

Travel between the two farthest major airports in this division is from the Regina International Airport and the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport is 1,211 kms. 

In the Brett Hull Division, I would place teams in the following cities;

16. St. Louis

Scottrade Center (formerly Kiel Center and Savvis Center) is a 19,150 seat arena located in downtown St. Louis, Missouri, opened in 1994. It is nicknamed "The House that Brett Hull Built". It is the home of the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League.

The Scottrade Center is respected as one of the louder NHL arenas due to several factors including the nine-second foghorn blast after every Blues' goal followed by an organ rendition of "When the Saints Go Marching In."

17. Kansas City (Mo.)

Sprint Center is a large, multi-use indoor arena in downtown Kansas City, Missouri. The building is located at 14th Street and Grand Boulevard, on the east side of the Power & Light District.

The arena's naming rights partner is the telecommunications company Sprint, whose world headquarters is in nearby Overland Park, Kansas.

Sprint Center opened to the public on October 10, 2007, and a concert on October 13, 2007 by Elton John was the first event held at the arena. The arena seats 17,752 people for a hockey game and has 72 suites.

Sprint Center has effectively replaced Kemper Arena, which was built in 1974 just a few miles away in the southern portion of the West Bottoms.

Additionally, the College Basketball Experience, which includes the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame is connected to and located directly north of Sprint Center.

18. Milwaukee

The Bradley Center is an indoor arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is home to the Milwaukee Bucks of the NBA, the Marquette University men's basketball team, the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL (and formerly of the IHL). 

For hockey it has a seating capacity of 17,800 and when the arena opened its doors in 1988.  The first event it played host to was a NHL pre-season exhibition game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Chicago Blackhawks.

19. Dallas

The American Airlines Center is a multi-purpose arena located in the Victory Park neighborhood near downtown Dallas, Texas. It is home to the Dallas Stars of the National Hockey League and the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association.

Prior to the doors being opened in 2001, the Dallas Stars played their home games at Reunion Arena.

20. Houston

The Toyota Center is an indoor arena located in downtown Houston, Texas. It is named after the Japanese automobile manufacturer Toyota.

The arena is home to the Rockets of the National Basketball Association, the principal owners of the building, and the Aeros of the American Hockey League.

Rockets owner Leslie Alexander first began to request a new arena in 1995, and attempted to release the Rockets from their lease at The Summit, which ran until 2003.

However, he was denied by arena owner Chuck Watson, then-owner of the Aeros, who also wanted control of a new arena. The two sides agreed to equal control over an arena in a deal signed in 1997, but the proposal was rejected by city voters in a 1999 referendum.

It was not until the city and the Rockets signed an amended agreement in 2001, excluding the Aeros, that the proposal was accepted.

Construction began in July 2001, and the new arena was officially opened in September 2003. The total costs were $235 million, with the city of Houston paying the majority, and the Rockets paying for enhancements. Toyota paid $100 million for the naming rights.

Travel between the two farthest major airports in this division is from the General Mitchell International Airport, in Milwaukee and the George Bush Intercontinental Airport, in Houston is 1,378 km. 

Who gets which franchises and who gets expansion franchises?

So there you have it, the 40 homes for my new and improved NHL. But I never said where I was moving the seven franchises that are now missing homes and which cities would I require coughing up the money for the expansion franchises. 

I figure to be fair, if a city doesn’t already have a state of the art arena, I won’t force them to also pay for an expansion franchise.

The seven oldest buildings or inadequate arenas are located in; Regina, Sacramento, Oakland, Mississauga, London, Quebec City and Seattle.

This is where I placed each homeless franchise; The Saskatchewan Panthers, the Sacramento Predators, the Oakland Sabres, the Mississauga Thrashers, the London Hurricanes, the Quebec City Lightning, and the Chicago Coyotes.

The only three franchises I had reasons for placing where I did were the Hurricanes, the Coyotes, and the Lightning. The current Hurricanes’ owner Peter Karmanos has a business rivalry with Detroit Red Wings’ owner Mike Ilitch and thought it might be fun to move the ‘Canes to the closest market to Detroit. 

I moved the Lightning to Quebec City because the current franchise players are Vincent Lecavalier, who is from Ile Bizard, Quebec, Canada, and Martin St. Louis, who is from Laval, Quebec, Canada. I thought the Francophone presence might help in obtaining a new arena.

I moved the Coyotes to Chicago because of the issues currently surrounding Jerry Reinsdorf and his involvement with the United Center in Chicago.

This places expansion franchises in Portland, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Winnipeg, Milwaukee, Houston, Hamilton, Brooklyn, and Seattle. 

If you charge between $250 million and $300 million for an expansion fee, that would generate between $2.5 billion and $3 billion in revenue for the National Hockey League’s 30 established owners. At least that is how it is currently done. 

I would ask that that money be funnelled to help with the franchises that need to upgrade or build new arenas as compensation for these owners moving their teams. The excess, I would then split between the 23 clubs that were unaffected by these actions.