Potential Atlanta NHL Expansion Team Thread

[voyageur]

There's really not a lot of things one could pick as being uniquely Georgia/Atlanta and being a good name. The Honeybee is the state insect, and the Tree Frog is the state amphibian, the state fish is the Largemouth Bass... but those are unlikely to make good names either. One could court the Coachella Valley Firebirds for their team name, as a reference to the city seal of Atlanta, but that's really about it as far as alternatives go.

So, really... no matter why we don't like the name, chances are very good we're stuck with it.

Any chance the team becomes Georgia with the geographical location of the arena. I don't really know the geography of Atlanta.

I think Peaches, Masters and OutKasts would be off the table. Maybe Ghost Pirates?

 

[Tawnos]

I don't think any of the pro teams I root for are named after state symbols. They can be a good jumping off point, but certainly not a requirement.

A Pittsburgh Ruffed Grouses vs. Philadelphia Laurels rivalry just wouldn't be the same.

A team in Charlotte should name themselves after the state marsupial:

Carolina Virginia Opossums.

 

[No Fun Shogun]

Yeah, I feel like a lot of folks get in their minds that a team had to be associated with something specific about their city or state. Sometimes, sure. Other times, just go with whatever.

 

[aqib]

Okay, that suggestion was dumb...but I do kinda hope Atlanta goes with a different identity if they get another team.

Thrashers is a nonsense name to the general public.

So unscientifically it seems on this board that most of the people who are actually from Atlanta seem to be in favor of reviving the Thrashers name. So if Atlanta fans like it then revive it. Coming up with names is hard these days. Between the other major leagues, minor leagues, colleges, etc. it is hard to come up with a team name that isn't already taken. Vegas is the Golden Knights because Knights was already taken by London Knights and Army wasn't going to allow the Black Knights name to be used.

 

[dj4aces]

Any chance the team becomes Georgia with the geographical location of the arena. I don't really know the geography of Atlanta.

I think Peaches, Masters and OutKasts would be off the table. Maybe Ghost Pirates?

That Ghost Pirates name is amazing. I love the branding, for sure. The old Atlanta Knights would be a great name too, if only Vegas didn't use Golden Knights.

As for it being "Georgia" vs "Atlanta", I really have no idea... something tells me though that it's gonna stay Atlanta.

Yeah, I feel like a lot of folks get in their minds that a team had to be associated with something specific about their city or state. Sometimes, sure. Other times, just go with whatever.

Nah, it doesn't *have* to be. It was the first thing I thought of. I'm sure there's plenty of things the team could be named after if not the Thrashers again. I'm just not thinking that far ahead.

 

[Headshot77]

As an aside I think a PWHL expansion franchise called the Pittsburgh Puffins should exist.

Anyway, with this arena going up a solid 30ish miles north of Atlanta, I think calling the team the Georgia Thrashers would be very appropriate. Help connect the team to history but also clearly identify that this is something new.

 

[nhlfan79]

Any chance the team becomes Georgia with the geographical location of the arena. I don't really know the geography of Atlanta.

I think Peaches, Masters and OutKasts would be off the table. Maybe Ghost Pirates?

Ghost Pirates is uniquely Savannah, based on that city's history. It's perfect for that town, not Atlanta, which has nothing to do with ghosts or pirates. Masters (I assume you mean because of Augusta National) has no direct connection to Atlanta. Also, given the city's, ahem, antebellum history, that'd be incredibly awkward, especially with the arena being in Forsyth County, which very famously was a segregated county and the site of racial unrest all the way into the 1980s. OutKasts? Just no.

I think they should do something totally outside the box. I would love to see a gorilla or panda team, two animals made locally and nationally famous at our Zoo. It's too bad we just sent the pandas back to China. They'd kill with panda hockey merch. It's too bad Huntsville, Alabama is already using Trash Pandas (local slang for raccoon) for their minor league baseball team. That would've been amazing, as it linguistically kinda sounds like a tribute to the "Thrash" in a way.

 

[nhlfan79]

Nope, not me! I check that account on occasion since it seems to be the easiest way to find updates regarding the Atlanta/NHL situation (at least for the moment). I’m hoping for additional sources of info for Atlanta/NHL in the months to come rather than just relying on one person.

I would be very cautious about giving that NHL To Atlanta account any credence. He essentially just scours Twitter/X and reposts things as his own scoops. Those who actually are "in the know" about certain things read his stuff for pure entertainment value and/or take it with a huge grain of salt. To me, that account seems like a "doesn't know what he doesn't know" situation.

 

[nhlfan79]

And it just hit me that Atlanta Pandas, when spoken, rolls off the tongue in a unique way. Kinda like the Savannah Bananas.

 

[hangman005]

Ghost Pirates is uniquely Savannah, based on that city's history. It's perfect for that town, not Atlanta, which has nothing to do with ghosts or pirates. Masters (I assume you mean because of Augusta National) has no direct connection to Atlanta. Also, given the city's, ahem, antebellum history, that'd be incredibly awkward, especially with the arena being in Forsyth County, which very famously was a segregated county and the site of racial unrest all the way into the 1980s. OutKasts? Just no.

I think they should do something totally outside the box. I would love to see a gorilla or panda team, two animals made locally and nationally famous at our Zoo. It's too bad we just sent the pandas back to China. They'd kill with panda hockey merch. It's too bad Huntsville, Alabama is already using Trash Pandas (local slang for raccoon) for their minor league baseball team. That would've been amazing, as it linguistically kinda sounds like a tribute to the "Thrash" in a way.

View attachment 929543

Improve the word art, and go with the Atlanta Thrash Trash Pandas

 

[ponder719]

Improve the word art, and go with the Atlanta Thrash Trash Pandas

It smooths out nicely as Thrash Pandas. Just legally distinct enough from either Thrashers or Trash Pandas, a nod to the past while being different, and goofy enough to draw the eye (but you're going to have to fight the urge to make it as minor league as possible when it comes to logos and jerseys.)

 

[dj4aces]

I would be very cautious about giving that NHL To Atlanta account any credence. He essentially just scours Twitter/X and reposts things as his own scoops.

Showing up to the party hours after Friedman or Wysh has posted something with an unsourced screenshot making it look like he's the insider is certainly a choice. The old guy who ran the account was better, for sure.

 

[Nogatco Rd]

A team in Charlotte should name themselves after the state marsupial:

Carolina Virginia Opossums.

Big fan of this description of a possum by one of the first Europeans to lay eyes on it, John Smith in 1608: "An Opassom hath an head like a Swine, and a taile like a Rat, and is of the bignes of a Cat. Under her belly she hath a bagge, wherein she lodgeth, carrieth, and sucketh her young."

 

[KevFu]

As an aside I think a PWHL expansion franchise called the Pittsburgh Puffins should exist.

Oh my, that would be awesome. Although Berkeley Breathed might have a trademark objection.

 

[oknazevad]

Regarding naming a Pittsburgh PWHL team "Puffins", I'm reminded of two fun facts:

Firstly, the Penguin Books, one of the big publishing houses, uses Puffin Books as one of its imprints for children's books, playing on the same mental association between the northern sea birds and the Antarctic ones.

But also, the fact that puffins are in the auk family, and that penguins got that name because they resembled the great auk, which was black with plump white bellies, sizable, and flightless (but a very good swimmer). It was hunted to extinction in the 1850s. "Penguin" comes from the Latin word "pinguis" meaning plump, and was similar to the French, Spanish, and Portuguese name for the great auk.

In other words, puffins are smaller relatives of the now-extinct bird from which penguins stole their name.

 

[RBH]

 

[Optimistic Cynic]

Not that I get a vote but if I did it would be for the Georgia Thrashers.

 

[AtlantaHockeyFanatic]

People who live 30 miles outside Atlanta say that they live in Atlanta. I’d be fine with Atlanta or Georgia, but keep the Thrashers name. I see those damn birds every day & it represents the state well. Plus, I like how all of our teams are birds (except for the Braves).

 

[AtlantaHockeyFanatic]

Anyone here in the metro area willing to teach me how to skate?? I’ll pay of course..

 

[RBH]

NHL expansion may not have been on the agenda at this week’s Board of Governors meeting, but the topic loomed large in conversations.

“There’s nothing going on at the present time other than there continue to be expressions of interest,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said.

Insiders Darren Dreger and Pierre LeBrun weighed in on the speculation on both TSN's "Early Trading" and a piece published over at The Athletic, noting growing interest from markets like Atlanta, Houston and Phoenix, alongside smaller markets like Cincinnati and Nebraska.

A representative from one of two Atlanta-area groups attended the meetings, according to The Athletic's report, signaling the city’s desire to rejoin the NHL.

Despite the commissioner's tempered response, Dreger highlighted that expansion remains a hot topic among team owners.

“You can’t escape a Board of Governors meeting without talking about expansion,” Dreger said. “Some owners feel further expansion is inevitable. The timeline is the mystery — are we talking two teams? When does it happen?”

https://athlonsports.com/nhl/owners-expect-inevitable-nhl-expansion-under-mystery-timeline-report

"The NHL hasn't signaled when, or even if, it will look at expanding beyond 32 teams, but it seems to have a growing list of suitors looking to gain entrance to the club. Beyond Atlanta, you have major markets in Houston and Phoenix currently without a team, and Bettman has said previously that smaller places like Cincinnati and Nebraska have shown interest."

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5984581/2024/12/10/nhl-board-of-governors-rumblings/

 

[nhlfan79]

“A representative from one of two Atlanta-area groups attended the meetings, according to The Athletic's report, signaling the city’s desire to rejoin the NHL.”

Hmm, you would think that would be from Krause’s group at this point, but you’d be wrong. Apparently, it was Anson himself (or so I hear).

 

[GreenHornet]

“A representative from one of two Atlanta-area groups attended the meetings, according to The Athletic's report, signaling the city’s desire to rejoin the NHL.”

Hmm, you would think that would be from Krause’s group at this point, but you’d be wrong. Apparently, it was Anson himself (or so I hear).

Assuming your info. is right (and I have no reason to believe it's not), what I like about this is that both groups appear keeping in the loop and demonstrating that they're serious. Bodes well when the BoG decides to go ahead with the expansion process.

 

[dj4aces]

Assuming your info. is right (and I have no reason to believe it's not), what I like about this is that both groups appear keeping in the loop and demonstrating that they're serious. Bodes well when the BoG decides to go ahead with the expansion process.

Anson said himself he was in Florida at the BoG meeting, via Instagram. A screenshot of the post was posted on Bluesky.

I didn't think it was newsworthy, so I didn't post it. But since it's newsworthy enough for The Athletic, for some reason, here's the image that someone posted over there.

 

[rojac]

Anson said himself he was in Florida at the BoG meeting, via Instagram. A screenshot of the post was posted on Bluesky.

I didn't think it was newsworthy, so I didn't post it. But since it's newsworthy enough for The Athletic, for some reason, here's the image that someone posted over there.

View attachment 944965

Carter is also an analyst for TNT. Is it possibe that he was at the meetings in that role and not as a rep for his Atlanta expansion group?