Bettman meeting with Ryan Smith, owner of Utah Jazz and Real Salt Lake (upd: Smith asks NHL to open expansion process)

[CHRDANHUTCH]

How about the Salt Lake City Fighting Saints?

(Based on the WHA's Minnesoate Fighting Saints.)

likely will be Utah.... you don't see WVC Grizzlies EVEN though the name was changed from Denver in 2006.....

 

[Yukon Joe]

How about the Salt Lake City Fighting Saints?

(Based on the WHA's Minnesota Fighting Saints.)

Even now their logo is hard to beat and has been used by numerous teams in less well-known leagues.

1. Team is going to be called "Utah".

2. Team is going to fight hard to stay away from anything "mormon" - like the name Fighting Saints (the formal name of the church is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints).

 

[OG6ix]

I have argued this time and again and it's a hill I'll die on.

It's not that the NHL really wants to go to Utah. I mean I'm sure the team will be fine, but Salt Lake City is the 29th largest media market in the US. There are lots of larger markets that would make more sense - Atlanta, Houston, Portland OR.

But what SLC has is an owner willing to spend $1.2 billion to buy a team.

Which is also the thing QC is apparently lacking. PKP balked back when the price was $500 mil.

So look - I'm not sure exactly how or why Ryan Smith is able to afford the price while PKP isn't - according to Forbes their net worth is pretty similar. But that is where we're at.

I am sure you want a team in Quebec city but your logic is flawed here. They bid on expansion with the Vegas round and the terms were basically the same (500 million a piece for team and Quebecor was willing to pay in their bid) the NHL decided to defer their application... why? It wasn't the money... it's because they absolutely do not want to go there. Then when Seattle was ready somehow expansion was re-opened....Why didn't they allow Quebec to jump in? ... again it's because they do not want to be there. I understand why - it's the same reason the MLB and NBA would never expand anywhere other than maybe Vancouver or Montreal.

 

[Yukon Joe]

I am sure you want a team in Quebec city but your logic is flawed here. They bid on expansion with the Vegas round and the terms were basically the same (500 million a piece for team and Quebecor was willing to pay in their bid) the NHL decided to defer their application... why? It wasn't the money... it's because they absolutely do not want to go there. Then when Seattle was ready somehow expansion was re-opened....Why didn't they allow Quebec to jump in? ... again it's because they do not want to be there. I understand why - it's the same reason the MLB and NBA would never expand anywhere other than maybe Vancouver or Montreal.

Of course it's the money. It's ALWAYS about the money.

The league would love to be in Houston - but Fertitta doesn't want to pay the fee, so the NHL isn't in Houston.

The NHL was in a sensitive place with Quebec City. Bettman basically told the city that if they built a brand new arena the league would probably go back. Quebec City did build a new arena. They signed control of it over to Pierre-Karl Peladeau, owner of the Quebec Remparts and the Quebecor media empire.

I don't know if you've realized this, but the media business has been a terrible business to be in the last number of years.

But anyways - that's why Quebec City was "deferred" - they didn't want to insult the city and its fans by denying them, but it's also why you never head Quebec City being listed as a realistic expansion opportunity either. It's because there's nobody who can afford to buy the team for the price the NHL would want.

 

[RayMartyniukTotems]

How about the Salt Lake City Fighting Saints?

(Based on the WHA's Minnesota Fighting Saints.)

Even now their logo is hard to beat and has been used by numerous teams in less well-known leagues.

Hey I came up with this idea days ago where did you come up with it

 

[OG6ix]

Of course it's the money. It's ALWAYS about the money.

The league would love to be in Houston - but Fertitta doesn't want to pay the fee, so the NHL isn't in Houston.

The NHL was in a sensitive place with Quebec City. Bettman basically told the city that if they built a brand new arena the league would probably go back. Quebec City did build a new arena. They signed control of it over to Pierre-Karl Peladeau, owner of the Quebec Remparts and the Quebecor media empire.

I don't know if you've realized this, but the media business has been a terrible business to be in the last number of years.

But anyways - that's why Quebec City was "deferred" - they didn't want to insult the city and its fans by denying them, but it's also why you never head Quebec City being listed as a realistic expansion opportunity either. It's because there's nobody who can afford to buy the team for the price the NHL would want.

Yeah money is definitely something and I am sure NHL would have expanded to houston if there was an ownership group that was willing to go in when the Vegas expansion was happening. The reality is Quebecor had put down the 500 million in their pitch and was deferred. I bet that even with a billion dollar bid to relocate an american team from Quebecore the NHL would probably balk unless it was the Senators or another Canadian team.

 

[Tawnos]

How about the Salt Lake City Fighting Saints?

(Based on the WHA's Minnesota Fighting Saints.)

Even now their logo is hard to beat and has been used by numerous teams in less well-known leagues.

Not trying to offend anyone here, but please keep any Christian iconography or references out of the NHL.

 

[Yukon Joe]

Yeah money is definitely something and I am sure NHL would have expanded to houston if there was an ownership group that was willing to go in when the Vegas expansion was happening. The reality is Quebecor had put down the 500 million in their pitch and was deferred. I bet that even with a billion dollar bid to relocate an american team from Quebecore the NHL would probably balk unless it was the Senators or another Canadian team.

Exchange rate.

If you go back to like 2010 or so the CDN$ was pretty much on par with the US$. It then proceeded to decline quite a bit kind of bottoming out in 2015 - which is when Quebec City was deferred. It's recovered a little bit, but not a whole lot since then.

Quebecor, as a Canadian company, earns its money in Canadian dollars - but the expansion fee would have been in US dollars. As such the expansion fee went up quite a bit from when Quebecor initially applied, to when the decision was made.

Not trying to offend anyone here, but please keep any Christian iconography or references out of the NHL.

So that'd be a big "No" to the Utah Polygamists then?

 

[Tawnos]

So that'd be a big "No" to the Utah Polygamists then?

Hey, that's not specifically Christian!

But I don't think I need to worry about that one anyway

 

[Yukon Joe]

Hey, that's not specifically Christian!

But I don't think I need to worry about that one anyway

Utah Magic Underwear then?



As a total aside - Mormons have almost always been some of the nicest people I've met. It's just such a shame their religion seems so obviously started by a fraudster.

 

[PCSPounder]

I won’t pretend to be a specialist on Mormonism, but my understanding is that their caffeine prohibition is limited to being against “hot drinks,” as understood to be coffee or tea (even if iced). Soda didn’t exist at the time, and later interpretation of it has not included soda as being not allowed.

I’d been told that soda was prohibited… until LDS bought a soda company.


This while I lived in range of the invasion zone (which could be considered as most of Eastern Idaho and a reasonable chunk of SW Idaho, not necessarily inclusive of the Air Force town of Mountain Home). So we could argue that I was too close to things.

 

[Tawnos]

Utah Magic Underwear then?



As a total aside - Mormons have almost always been some of the nicest people I've met. It's just such a shame their religion seems so obviously started by a fraudster.

The ratio of nice to not-nice Mormons is no different than anyone else, in my experience.

I don't think Magic Underwear is a good name when they'd never partner with Victoria's Secret for advertising.

 

[checkerdome]

Hey I came up with this idea days ago where did you come up with it

My suggestion is in jest.

I just brainstormed anything to do with Saints or Mormon and I recalled the WHA Minnesota Fighting Saints.
I know full well the ubiquitous and influentlial Church of Latter Day Saints would never allow a sports team to coopt their "brand".

I'm convinced though that the Utah team will be a serious contender for the Stanley Cup within 2 or 3 years, due to the young players and draft picks it has stockpiled.

 

[PCSPounder]

Utah Buzz?
.

The owner of the Portland Beavers (the 1978 version- and remember that note for the test later) that moved to Salt Lake City for 1993 was Joe Buzas. The team became the Salt Lake Buzz, and some of us believe that was no accident. This AAA team has done a couple name changes since then if I understand correctly.

I’m being more than agnostic about the name they choose. I’ll be practically atheist.

 

[Headshot77]

The Utah Agnostics

 

[Big Z Man 1990]

Leaving Arizona: Everything you need to know about the Coyotes moving to Salt Lake City

Why Utah? What's the future of the NHL in Arizona? What will the new team be called, and where will it play? Answers to all of that and much more here.

www.espn.com

It's official. Utah will be designated an expansion team while the Coyotes go on hiatus pending completion of a new arena.

The NHL still should give the old Jets history to the current Jets. It only makes sense that modern Winnipeg pro hockey history be united under one franchise.

 

[GKJ]

Leaving Arizona: Everything you need to know about the Coyotes moving to Salt Lake City

Why Utah? What's the future of the NHL in Arizona? What will the new team be called, and where will it play? Answers to all of that and much more here.

www.espn.com

It's official. Utah will be designated an expansion team while the Coyotes go on hiatus pending completion of a new arena.

The NHL still should give the old Jets history to the current Jets. It only makes sense that modern Winnipeg pro hockey history be united under one franchise.

the sale isn't signed yet, so it's not official.

 

[Big Z Man 1990]

the sale isn't signed yet, so it's not official.

I'm just saying that once it is signed, we will have a Browns/Ravens-style arrangement. We can have two such arrangements with the transfer of the Old Jets history to the New Jets.

 

[SimpleSimon]

Salt Lake Mounteers or Utah Miners

Yeti sucks.

I feel the same with “Kracken.” I love that they have an NHL team, their colour scheme, the passionate hockey fans, But hate the name. (Edit: Kraken. But I can’t unsee the “c” which is why I don’t like the name.)

 

[checkerdome]

I feel the same with “Kracken.” I love that they have an NHL team, their colour scheme, the passionate hockey fans, But hate the name. (Edit: Kraken. But I can’t unsee the “c” which is why I don’t like the name.)

i wonder how fans felt about "Penguins" as a team name when it first came out in 1967-68.

 

[BMN]

Salt Lake Mounteers or Utah Miners

Yeti sucks.

THG made an excellent point today that we can't have the Miners--- You can't have a situation, even if it only happened once a year, where you're earnestly touting a "Predators vs. Miners" game.

 

[SimpleSimon]

I never liked the name “The Mighty Ducks” and always wished they changed it to the “Ducks” which was eventually done.

 

[Headshot77]

None of these names are that bad when you're in a league with the "Wild". It's not even a noun! How you gonna call yourselves an adjective. Wack.

 

[Tawnos]

None of these names are that bad when you're in a league with the "Wild". It's not even a noun! How you gonna call yourselves an adjective. Wack.

What are you even talking about? Wild is absolutely a noun.

 

[SimpleSimon]

Winnipeg is surrou

None of these names are that bad when you're in a league with the "Wild". It's not even a noun! How you gonna call yourselves an adjective. Wack.

Winnipeg is surrounded by farmland and there is a pretty big hog industry in southern Manitoba. Farmers use the pig manure to fertilize their fields which sends a stench through the city. I understand what you mean with the name. I am glad the team was named the “Jets” instead of the Winnipeg A**. I can understand how that can apply to the Wild since Minnesota has a lot of wilderness. But yes that name does stink. Not as bad as A** though. I did like the old North Stars name, uniform and colours though.