Miscellaneous NHL Discussion CI: Friday, March 8 at 3 p.m. ET. (TV info in OP)

[GKJ]

It is starting to sound like, finally, clarity is coming soon in Arizona

 

[Beef Invictus]

Sometimes I think a gate-driven league shouldn't drop franchises in unsustainable places to lay claim to TV markets where nobody watches, so they end up being irrelevant for TV negotiations anyway.

 

[ponder719]

But now, consider Marc Staal and Risto

Must I?

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

RIP to the Coyotes Social Media intern.

I believe the cool kids say, he's fixin' to get dragged.

 

[dragonoffrost]

RIP to the Coyotes Social Media intern.

I believe the cool kids say, he's fixin' to get dragged.

What did the poor kid do on Elon's trash heap?

 

[DancingPanther]

RIP to the Coyotes Social Media intern.

I believe the cool kids say, he's fixin' to get dragged.

You can't just not post a screencap

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

You can't just not post a screencap

What did the poor kid do on Elon's trash heap?

Oh there's no screencap.

They just talked MAD shit about them staying in Arizona in the past so that's going to blow up in their face and people don't forget.

 

[LegionOfDoom91]

Yeah I’d imagine the writing is on the wall. The potential package in Salt Lake City might be enough for the league to finally admit defeat in Arizona.

 

[Beef Invictus]

Yeah I’d imagine the writing is on the wall. The potential package in Salt Lake City might be enough for the league to finally admit defeat in Arizona.

I wonder what the cost of purchase and relocation of an existing franchise is vs an expansion? If I'm a prospective new owner and the costs are even close to equal, I know I'd rather get that sweet expansion draft instead of getting a fixer upper. We can send the fixer uppers to Quebec, where the maniacs will vigorously support whatever.

 

[PALE PWNR]

Are we going back to Atlanta? I'm sure it will work this time

 

[GKJ]

I wonder what the cost of purchase and relocation of an existing franchise is vs an expansion? If I'm a prospective new owner and the costs are even close to equal, I know I'd rather get that sweet expansion draft instead of getting a fixer upper. We can send the fixer uppers to Quebec, where the maniacs will vigorously support whatever.

The league has done a good job making expansion franchises value given the recent success, but bottom line is that someone's gonna have to take on the Coyotes and Ryan Smith is a guy they really want in the league, and he's definitely more eager to get in.

Are we going back to Atlanta? I'm sure it will work this time

They will be going back to Atlanta, but they're not going to be pushed out of the market like they were last time.

 

[Cody Webster]

Are we going back to Atlanta? I'm sure it will work this time

Arizona will probably be moved to Utah. Not sure how they'd plan to bring Atlanta back into the fold since it would then create an odd number of teams

 

[renberg]

32 is the magic number for franchises in a major NA sport. One could argue that that number is a few too many. Go over 32 and league divisions get unbalanced and then there aren’t enough quality players to fill out a roster. As far as the NHL is concerned, I’d be more for contraction than expansion. Too many Deslauriers types in the game and every club has some.

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

That sweet, sweet, expansion fee will be milked as many times as they can. This league is getting to 34 teams in the very near future and then probably going to go up from there.

They absolutely shouldn't because of the talent pool but this is the NHL.

 

[Beef Invictus]

That sweet, sweet, expansion fee will be milked as many times as they can. This league is getting to 34 teams in the very near future and then probably going to go up from there.

They absolutely shouldn't because of the talent pool but this is the NHL.

What if I told you we'd need to hit like 60-90 teams to be as watered down as the 70s. A truly great era! An era of Titans! Don't be so negative.

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

What if I told you we'd need to hit like 60-90 teams to be as watered down as the 70s. A truly great era! An era of Titans! Don't be so negative.

Striiker would say those are rookie numbers. It's more like 2,000,000,000 teams.

Remember that argument we had on here with someone about Europeans and what not with regards to the watering down of the talent pool? I don't remember details.

 

[Magua]

Remember that argument we had on here with someone about Europeans and what not with regards to the watering down of the talent pool? I don't remember details.

Yup. That person was saying how the league was more talented pound for pound back in the 60s-70s. When it was 90% Canadians. Forget the seismic shift in evaluating the talent at hand.

 

[LegionOfDoom91]

I wonder what the cost of purchase and relocation of an existing franchise is vs an expansion? If I'm a prospective new owner and the costs are even close to equal, I know I'd rather get that sweet expansion draft instead of getting a fixer upper. We can send the fixer uppers to Quebec, where the maniacs will vigorously support whatever.

So Vegas was $500M & Seattle was $650M. Minnesota, Columbus, Atlanta, & Nashville were all $80M in the late 90’s/early 2000’s.

Winnipeg apparently paid $60M to the league in a relocation fee when they bought Atlanta.

So expansion is definitely more profitable & it’s probably been the saving grace for Arizona in recent times but I think it’s getting to a point of no return. How much more money can you sink into this if you’re the league owners? Especially now when you have a liable replacement that makes a ton of sense business wise but also logistically.

 

[LegionOfDoom91]

Yup. That person was saying how the league was more talented pound for pound back in the 60s-70s. When it was 90% Canadians. Forget the seismic shift in evaluating the talent at hand.

Chris Therien & ASF go on that rant every once in a while on their podcast. They both think that because the teams shifted from like 21-24 or whatever when Therien played to 32 now the overall talent pool has stayed the same at best.

 

[Magua]

Chris Therien & ASF go on that rant every once in a while on their podcast. They both think that because the teams shifted from like 21-24 or whatever when Therien played to 32 now the overall talent pool has stayed the same at best.

The last 2 expansion teams won playoff rounds in their 1st and 2nd years in the league. With a stockpile of depth players other teams didn't properly value. I think that just about blows up that narrative. Meanwhile, the Flyers have won a single round in 12 years. The league quite recently is discovering how much talent is really beneath the surface.

But you have to be touched in the head to think adding an arsenal of talent from Sweden, Russia, Finland, Czechia, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Belarus, Slovenia, Slovakia.....has watered anything down. Forget that US hockey has never ever been better -- compare that 2010 Olympics roster to a projected 2026 roster.

 

[FlyerNutter]

why is Slovakia last.

Peasant man

 

[LegionOfDoom91]

The last 2 expansion teams won playoff rounds in their 1st and 2nd years in the league. With a stockpile of depth players other teams didn't properly value. I think that just about blows up that narrative. Meanwhile, the Flyers have won a single round in 12 years. The league quite recently is discovering how much talent is really beneath the surface.

But you have to be touched in the head to think adding an arsenal of talent from Sweden, Russia, Finland, Czechia, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Belarus, Slovenia, Slovakia.....has watered anything down. Forget that US hockey has never ever been better -- compare that 2010 Olympics roster to a projected 2026 roster.

I think Therien’s mindset is obviously biased but I think his logic to go along with the teams have increased is that because guys like Gretzky, Lemuiex, Jagr, Messier, Sakic, Coffey, etc. played during his era that’s reflective of the entire depth pool. Mind you this ignores that every team back then employed at least multiple face punchers with little to no actual ability to make hockey plays.

Look at Nic Deslauries he’s pretty much one of the last face punchers left & he’s pretty much been one of the worst forwards in the league in recent years. If was pre-lockout standards that guy would absolutely be playing closer to the middle the lineup opposed to the last forward in or out.

As for USA Hockey they’re the second biggest talent producer in the league now behind Canada. It’s pretty evident the leaps they’ve grown over the last few decades is pretty apparent. Even at the World Championships where you probably get a better sense for the depth given most of the top players sit out. Those rosters are absolutely considerably better now than they were a decade ago having watched them. They haven’t won gold over that time yet but they’ve gotten absolutely closer as time goes on & they’re an absolute fact in the medal picture now. They were starving off potential relegations a decade or two ago.

A decade ago a guy like Tim Stapleton was one of their better players on the roster at that tournament for example.

 

[LegionOfDoom91]

That f***er isn’t just from the south, he’s from f***ing Mississippi.

 

[Cody Webster]

Three games for this seems pretty wild

 

[Chicken N Raffls]

That f***er isn’t just from the south, he’s from f***ing Mississippi.

Oh snap. The Deep South