FoxYou727
Registered User
With it being the offseason and all the talks about expansion recently it has me thinking. What would a 40 team leauge look like. Assuming the NHL does (and personally I think they do) expands again they would have to add 4 teams to make the conferences/divisions work, since 34 is only divisible by 4 numbers (1, 2, 17 and 34). So when expansion inevitably comes there will at the very least be 4 new teams. Atlanta, Houston and Phoenix are all but confirmed at this point so we know 3 of them already. Anyways enough rambling what I am essentially asking is this:
If the NHL were to add 8 new teams: 5 American and 3 Canadian what cities would you want to have a team. There would be 4 divisions (North/Canadian, South/Central, West and East) with 10 teams in each division. And if you want to give your reasoning for the respected city
North
Canadians
Leafs
Senators
Jets
Flames
Oilers
Canucks
*Quebec City Nordiques: Don't really need an explanation
*Hamilton: A 2nd team in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) would 100% work and instant rivals with the Leafs and Sens
*Saskatoon: They almost got the Blues and they would get the entire Saskatchewan province
East
Islanders
Rangers
Devils
Penguins
Flyers
Bruins
Sabres
Capitals
Red Wings
Blue Jackets
West
Kings
Sharks
Ducks
Kraken
Avalanche
Golden Knights
Utah
Wild
*Arizona Coyotes: The fact Meruelo was originally promised first dibs on an expansion team for Arizona and the Suns owner being interested in a hockey team makes it seem likely
*San Diego/Ohama/Portland: San Diego only has the Padres so there isn't much competition for the NHL although 4 teams in California is a bit much. Ohama is interested in a NHL team, this is one of the more out there picks but they will have the entire state of Nebraska market so there is that. Portland has a rich hockey culture plus instant rivals with the Kraken makes and the Trail Blazers and Timber being the only other team makes this a good choice as well
South/Central
Panthers
Lightning
Predators
Stars
Hurricanes
Blackhawks
Blues
*Houston: 4th largest metro in the USA, owner is practically begging for a team and instant rivals with Dallas
*Atlanta: 3rd times the charm I guess but with all the talks about them it seems pretty inevitable
*Kansas City/Oklahoma City: Decided to combine these 2 since not only do they both end in City but I see both of them as equal markets for very different reasons. For KC, Mahomes has expressed interest in a NHL team and if KC were to get one I would put good money he would have some sort of part in it which would be an easy sell to the residents of Kansas City. OKC only have 1 pro sports team in the Thunder, but unlike the Thunder, this is an original, homegrown team so it won't be to hard to win over the locals
If the NHL were to add 8 new teams: 5 American and 3 Canadian what cities would you want to have a team. There would be 4 divisions (North/Canadian, South/Central, West and East) with 10 teams in each division. And if you want to give your reasoning for the respected city
North
Canadians
Leafs
Senators
Jets
Flames
Oilers
Canucks
*Quebec City Nordiques: Don't really need an explanation
*Hamilton: A 2nd team in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area) would 100% work and instant rivals with the Leafs and Sens
*Saskatoon: They almost got the Blues and they would get the entire Saskatchewan province
East
Islanders
Rangers
Devils
Penguins
Flyers
Bruins
Sabres
Capitals
Red Wings
Blue Jackets
West
Kings
Sharks
Ducks
Kraken
Avalanche
Golden Knights
Utah
Wild
*Arizona Coyotes: The fact Meruelo was originally promised first dibs on an expansion team for Arizona and the Suns owner being interested in a hockey team makes it seem likely
*San Diego/Ohama/Portland: San Diego only has the Padres so there isn't much competition for the NHL although 4 teams in California is a bit much. Ohama is interested in a NHL team, this is one of the more out there picks but they will have the entire state of Nebraska market so there is that. Portland has a rich hockey culture plus instant rivals with the Kraken makes and the Trail Blazers and Timber being the only other team makes this a good choice as well
South/Central
Panthers
Lightning
Predators
Stars
Hurricanes
Blackhawks
Blues
*Houston: 4th largest metro in the USA, owner is practically begging for a team and instant rivals with Dallas
*Atlanta: 3rd times the charm I guess but with all the talks about them it seems pretty inevitable
*Kansas City/Oklahoma City: Decided to combine these 2 since not only do they both end in City but I see both of them as equal markets for very different reasons. For KC, Mahomes has expressed interest in a NHL team and if KC were to get one I would put good money he would have some sort of part in it which would be an easy sell to the residents of Kansas City. OKC only have 1 pro sports team in the Thunder, but unlike the Thunder, this is an original, homegrown team so it won't be to hard to win over the locals