Around the NHL: PTO Season Becomes Waiver Season

[oldgoalie]

Lindy will coach again in NJ next season. Terms not disclosed.

 

[Ehran]

Austin would be better than Houston for the same reason San Jose works better than San Francisco. It's a big metro with no big league competition.

Return of the Ice Bats would be pretty epic.

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I would be seriously tempted to buy season tickets!

Well... at least a multi-game package.

Haven't been to a Texas Stars game in ages, though.

 

[Beerz]

Salt Lake City would be the best option... even if considerably smaller than other markets like Houston and Atlanta .. would be a stronger market... SLC is passionate about their teams and its one of the most beautiful cities in the country

 

[Chainshot]

Lindy will coach again in NJ next season. Terms not disclosed.

I wonder if this puts Brunette on the list for the Rangers' job?

 

[Dingo44]

Salt Lake City would be the best option... even if considerably smaller than other markets like Houston and Atlanta .. would be a stronger market... SLC is passionate about their teams and its one of the most beautiful cities in the country

Ironically for you the beer there is pretty weak by law.

 

[Ehran]

Salt Lake City ... and its one of the most beautiful cities in the country

Yes, yes it is.

 

[KiwiGriff]

Salt Lake City would be the best option... even if considerably smaller than other markets like Houston and Atlanta .. would be a stronger market... SLC is passionate about their teams and its one of the most beautiful cities in the country

Honolulu would be pretty fun. Not sure how many coyotes live there though.

 

[Beerz]

Honolulu would be pretty fun. Not sure how many coyotes live there though.

A flight from Buffalo to Honolulu would be like 11 hours where as a flight from Buffalo to London UK would be like 7 or 8 hours... don't think it's happening lol

Would be sweet tho

 

[Jim Bob]

Five reasonable destinations for the Arizona Coyotes (and one pipe dream)

Let's face it, with the plan for a new arena in Tempe being decisively voted down by area residents, the time has come to seriously consider relocating the Arizona Coyotes. Paul D. Grant has come up with a helpful list of cities the NHL team could relocate to.

www.sportsnet.ca

1. Salt Lake City, Vivint Arena, 14,000: If these were power rankings, this entry would be No. 1, especially since Utah Jazz and Real Salt Lake owner Ryan Smith met in late March with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, as reported by Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. And Smith, who bought the building and the Jazz in December 2020, hasn't exactly dampened the enthusiasm, replying to a fan's tweet asking to bring the Stanley Cup Playoffs to Salt Lake City with a cryptic, "In motion."

A move due north by the Coyotes to Salt Lake City would also align with keeping the club in the Western Conference, mark a return to a market rich in hockey history, might well foster a rivalry with the Avalanche and Golden Knights and, although it would be a time-share with the Jazz, there's a decent building available to immediately move into. Sure, it would be the second-oldest building in the league, but there is promise of the Winter Olympics returning to the city, which would bring along with it a modern facility. Plus, there's something to be said for a city that wants a team.

Pipe dream – Quebec City, Videotron Centre, 18,259: You want a team in Quebec City. I want a team in Quebec City. Heck, what Canadian doesn't want a team in Quebec City? It's the right idea. It worked really well before. Can you imagine how much faster the Montreal Canadiens' rebuild would happen if there was a rival in Quebec City?

But Corporate America doesn't want a team in Quebec City, so therefore there will not be a team in Quebec City anytime soon. Which is a shame.

The city has a great arena (if it were in today's NHL, it would rank 20th by capacity), a passionate and knowledgable fan base and history. Sure, it's a smaller population centre and corporate bucks are lowish, but the same could be said for Winnipeg, and that seems to have worked out. Oh, and you can guarantee that the Quebec Nordiques v.2 would draw more than 4,600 each night. Actually, they might draw that many to practices.

 

[Jim Bob]

7 cities Coyotes could relocate to after failed arena deal

The writing might finally be on the wall regarding the Arizona Coyotes' tenure in the desert.After 27 years in the state and a significant amount of organizational turmoil, the future of Arizona's franchise appears to be in significant jeopardy following a failed bid to secure a new arena in...

www.thescore.com

 

[Duddy]

It's going to be ATL or Austin.

 

[Jim Bob]

It's going to be ATL or Austin.

Does Austin have an NHL-ready arena?

And I doubt they move to an eastern city.

 

[Ehran]

Does Austin have an NHL-ready arena?

The new Moody Center on the UT-Austin campus holds 15k. It opened I think 2 or 3 years ago.

No clue if it was designed with hockey in mind, though. It was primarily designed for UT Basketball and as a concert venue.

 

[Jim Bob]

The new Moody Center on the UT-Austin campus holds 15k. It opened I think 2 or 3 years ago.

No clue if it was designed with hockey in mind, though. It was primarily designed for UT Basketball and as a concert venue.

FAQs - Moody Center - Austin, Texas

FAQs | Moody Center will host the biggest and best acts in the music industry. In addition to serving as the new homecourt of The University

moodycenteratx.com

What is the capacity of the arena?
Moody Center is a 15,000+ seat venue with the largest event floor in the nation which allows for a more intimate experience for spectators closest to the stage.

Moody Center has the capability to be transformed into a 10,000-seat venue for basketball games, providing the opportunity for Longhorns fans and students to feel a part of the game.

Since it only holds 10,000 for UT basketball games, my guess is that it is not large enough for an NHL team. On top of the unlikelihood that it was designed for an ice rink.

 

[Der Jaeger]

Austin isn't the best choice. SXSW and the downtown scene are cool and all, but there are a ton of downsides. Getting into Austin on I-35 is a nightmare, and the Texas Stars play up the road in Cedar Park. I doubt the NHL or the Dallas Stars want that type of competition.

By comparison, Houston is almost 3 times larger than Austin and it's the 4th largest city in the US. The Aeros are gone, and with Austin 160 miles away, there's no cross competition with the Stars. The Toyota Center is where the Aeros used to play, so it's hockey capable.

The Stars run hockey in Texas, and with the Texas Stars in Cedar Park, they'll work against an NHL team in Austin. And there's a reason that the Stars put their AHL team into the HEB Center and not downtown. I lived in central Texas for years, and you know when you leave Williamson and enter Travis County.

To me, Houston is the front runner based on the ability to have and support a team.

 

[ValJamesDuex]

Dreger on Sabre's Live today: No updates on Johnson, does not believe The Sabres are a leading contender for Hellebuyck right now, and he believes Schifferle will likely be traded at the draft.

 

[Chainshot]

Austin isn't the best choice. SXSW and the downtown scene are cool and all, but there are a ton of downsides. Getting into Austin on I-35 is a nightmare, and the Texas Stars play up the road in Cedar Park. I doubt the NHL or the Dallas Stars want that type of competition.

By comparison, Houston is almost 3 times larger than Austin and it's the 4th largest city in the US. The Aeros are gone, and with Austin 160 miles away, there's no cross competition with the Stars. The Toyota Center is where the Aeros used to play, so it's hockey capable.

The Stars run hockey in Texas, and with the Texas Stars in Cedar Park, they'll work against an NHL team in Austin. And there's a reason that the Stars put their AHL team into the HEB Center and not downtown. I lived in central Texas for years, and you know when you leave Williamson and enter Travis County.

To me, Houston is the front runner based on the ability to have and support a team.

Houston has the population and market but the ownership options are not what the league was looking for. That's part of why the SLC idea is so appealing - Smith is already out in front of this trying to make it happen and seems genuinely to want a team.

As an aside, apologies to any Coyotes fans who stumble upon this. We're picking at the corpse of your favorite team. We've been there with the bankruptcy year. We know the league tries to keep teams in place and has done more to try to keep the Coyotes in Arizona than any franchise I've ever seen. Still, it's hard to see as someone who wondered if my favorite team was going to be the new Quebec Nordiques or Portland whatevers back in the early 2000's.

 

[Jim Bob]

 

[Montag DP]

It's going to be ATL or Austin.

I haven't been following this at all, but what is the reasoning for Atlanta being a serious contender? They already lost one franchise in the last decade (okay, just over a decade, but still).

 

[Jim Bob]

I haven't been following this at all, but what is the reasoning for Atlanta being a serious contender? They already lost one franchise in the last decade (okay, just over a decade, but still).

The recent report that they are building a new arena that will be NHL-ready.

Will a new NHL franchise come to Forsyth County's proposed arena?

A stretch of land southern Forsyth County could be the future home of a new billion-dollar arena

www.fox5atlanta.com

 

[Der Jaeger]

Houston has the population and market but the ownership options are not what the league was looking for. That's part of why the SLC idea is so appealing - Smith is already out in front of this trying to make it happen and seems genuinely to want a team.

As an aside, apologies to any Coyotes fans who stumble upon this. We're picking at the corpse of your favorite team. We've been there with the bankruptcy year. We know the league tries to keep teams in place and has done more to try to keep the Coyotes in Arizona than any franchise I've ever seen. Still, it's hard to see as someone who wondered if my favorite team was going to be the new Quebec Nordiques or Portland whatevers back in the early 2000's.

What's the ownership options?

 

[Fjordy]

What's the ownership options?

It seems that the owner of the Houston Rockets and he also seems to own the arena part-time was not enthusiastic about the potential move of Arizona to Houston.

 

[ValJamesDuex]

A flight from Buffalo to Honolulu would be like 11 hours where as a flight from Buffalo to London UK would be like 7 or 8 hours... don't think it's happening lol

Would be sweet tho

No direct flights to Europe from Buffalo, so you have to add in connection times to NY/NJ or another International hub. We would usually drive up and fly out of YYZ direct.

 

[Ehran]

Austin isn't the best choice. SXSW and the downtown scene are cool and all, but there are a ton of downsides. Getting into Austin on I-35 is a nightmare, and the Texas Stars play up the road in Cedar Park. I doubt the NHL or the Dallas Stars want that type of competition.

By comparison, Houston is almost 3 times larger than Austin and it's the 4th largest city in the US. The Aeros are gone, and with Austin 160 miles away, there's no cross competition with the Stars. The Toyota Center is where the Aeros used to play, so it's hockey capable.

The Stars run hockey in Texas, and with the Texas Stars in Cedar Park, they'll work against an NHL team in Austin. And there's a reason that the Stars put their AHL team into the HEB Center and not downtown. I lived in central Texas for years, and you know when you leave Williamson and enter Travis County.

To me, Houston is the front runner based on the ability to have and support a team.

To be clear, I don't see Austin getting a team. Just the idea of an NHL team that close would be a fun dream!

That said.... it would take me 90 minutes or so to get to work (if I wasn't a remote employee) and I only live about 25 miles from the Dell campus. Road and traffic infrastructure has no where near kept up with population growth over the past 20 years. I couldn't imagine trying to get downtown for a game.

 

[Der Jaeger]

To be clear, I don't see Austin getting a team. Just the idea of an NHL team that close would be a fun dream!

That said.... it would take me 90 minutes or so to get to work (if I wasn't a remote employee) and I only live about 25 miles from the Dell campus. Road and traffic infrastructure has no where near kept up with population growth over the past 20 years. I couldn't imagine trying to get downtown for a game.

For that reason, if we ever move back, we'll live in Leander or Cedar Park.