DarkJourney

And yet they've reportedly been in financial trouble, which doesn't speak well for the strength of the league.

Agreed. If the business model requires most teams to make the playoffs or even go to the 2nd round to be profitable, that's not good.

Dolling out 9 expansion teams in a 9 year period doesn't help either. 30 NHL teams is frickin' ridiculous.

Doesn't Division III have a 32 team playoff?

Yes it does

http://www.ncaa.com/interactive-bracket/football/d3

I really do hope the Coyotes somehow become financially successful in Glendale and the fans sell out the joint night after night but it's a real long shot. If only the arena was built somewhere in Phoenix and not Glendale. Well it's way to late to look back on that.

If indeed they stay let's revisit the Coyotes situation 3 years from now and see where it's at. It's up to the fans to turn this around. Fill the building.

and we wonder why no one can take the NHL seriously. Hockey = great sport. NHL = idiots with billions.

The new Quebec arena is scheduled to open in 2015. So the Coyotes have the next 3 seasons to fix things with Jamison.

Nassau Coliseum is so bad they should put it inside Candlestick Park when they implode that sucker.

But what does that have do do with the city of Glendale passing their budget on June 12 to allow another set of millions to be paid to the NHL?

MOD EDIT: Let's refrain from commenting on what we perceive to be another community-member's personality traits and/or habits.

Nassau Coliseum is so bad they should put it inside Candlestick Park when they implode that sucker.

Barclays Center owner hopeful of more hockey

It's all a secret deal. Jamison keeps them in Glendale for a few more seasons and then moves them to Seattle.

That would require an NBA team in Seattle, which doesn't seem forthcoming with no real NBA options right now.

I was joking hence the smiley face

If this all goes down we have...

-Utah State and San Jose State in the MW

-UTSA and Louisiana Tech in C-USA

-Texas State and UT Arlington in the Sun Belt

This leaves four schools: Denver, Idaho, New Mexico State and Seattle.

Seattle may have the easiest route as the West Coast Conference could open their arms to another old friend (they already did with U. of the Pacific).

Denver would be a great fit in the Summit League. Yeah, they would have trips to Michigan and Indiana, but it has to be better then trips to Texas and Louisiana (or now, with trips to as far as Florida).

Idaho and New Mexico State would be the hardest to deal with since they have football. The best route - Join the Mountain West. Here's a possible scenario for what the Conference may look like here:

Mountain Division

-Air Force

-Colorado State

-New Mexico

-New Mexico State

-Utah State

-Wyoming

West Division

-Fresno State

-Hawaii

-Idaho

-Nevada

-San Jose State

-UNLV

Another thing to consider: Boise State's other sports will return to the WAC in 2013. If the WAC falls, they need a home for everything else.

I could see Denver join Seattle in the WCC. Making it a perfect 12 unless BYU leaves down the road. Also maybe Boise State to the Big West for all it's other sports.

Possible WCC travel partners:

Denver-BYU

Gonzaga-Seattle

San Francisco-Santa Clara

St. Mary's-Pacific

Loyola Marymount-Pepperdine

San Diego-Portland

Now this:

Conference USA East

Alabama-Birmingham

Charlotte

East Carolina

Florida International

Marshall

Old Dominion

Southern Mississippi

Conference USA West

Louisiana Tech

North Texas

Rice

Texas-El Paso

Texas-San Antonio

Tulane

Tulsa

It's all a secret deal. Jamison keeps them in Glendale for a few more seasons and then moves them to Seattle.

So in 2013 we should have this.....

Conference USA (12)

Alabama-Birmingham

East Carolina

Florida International

Louisiana Tech

Marshall

North Texas

Rice

Southern Mississippi

Texas-El Paso

Texas-San Antonio

Tulane

Tulsa

Mountain West (10)

Air Force

Fresno State

Colorado State

Hawaii

Nevada

New Mexico

San Jose State

UNLV

Utah State

Wyoming

Sun Belt (10)

Arkansas State

Florida Atlantic

Georgia State

Louisiana-Lafayette

Louisiana-Monroe

Middle Tennessee State

Texas State

Troy

South Alabama

Western Kentucky

Western Athletic (0)

DEAD

Idaho & New Mexico State:

1. Somehow get invited to Mountain West

2. Become FBS independents

3. Transition down to FCS

UTSA is leaving the WAC for Conference USA

http://sports.yahoo....nCK58iiz4kcvrYF

Goodnight WAC football. We knew the well, sort of.

With the MWC/C-USA merger basically dead, C-USA is going after even more. (FIU, UNT, and La Tech)

Likely why the Sun Belt is adding South Alabama, Georgia State and possibly Georgia Southern

UTSA is leaving the WAC for Conference USA

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/utsa-poised-leave-wac-conference-170525111--ncaaf.html;_ylt=AsSBHQeAYTs22nCK58iiz4kcvrYF

Goodnight WAC football. We knew the well, sort of.

Bettman saving the Coyotes just to move them to Seattle in a few years and then serving up the Islanders to Quebec City in 2015 just in time for their new arena to open. Little bastard is devious.

Is anyone in Arizona really going to miss the Coyotes other than die hard hockey fans?

I can just see it now as the Coyotes are leaving for Quebec City: Gary Bettman holding onto the leg of the Coyotes mascot screaming "You're making me look like a giant douche!"

If the Pac-12 eventually does add 4 from the Big 12 I think they should take Baylor over Texas Tech.

Possible Division I FBS in 2015:

ACC (14)

Atlantic: Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, Maryland, N.C. State, Syracuse, Wake Forest

Coastal: Duke, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Miami, Pittsburgh, Virginia, Virginia Tech

Big 12 (12)

North: BYU, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Louisville, West Virginia

South: Baylor, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas, Texas Tech

Big East (12)

Eastern: Army, Navy, Central Florida, Connecticut, Rutgers, South Florida,

Western: Boise State, Cincinnati, Houston, Memphis, San Diego State, SMU

Big Ten (12)

Leaders: Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin

Legends: Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern

Conference USA (12)

East: Alabama-Birmingham, East Carolina, Louisiana Tech, Marshall, Southern Miss, Tulane

West: North Texas, Rice, Texas-El Paso, Texas-San Antonio, Texas State, Tulsa

Independent (1)

Notre Dame

MAC (14)

East: Akron, Buffalo, Kent State, Massachusetts, Miami (OH), Ohio, Temple

West: Ball State, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Northern Illinois, Toledo, Western Michigan

MWC (12)

Mountain: Air Force, Colorado State, New Mexico, New Mexico State, Utah State, Wyoming

West: Fresno State, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, San Jose State, UNLV

Pac-12 (12)

North: California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, Washington, Washington State

South: Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, UCLA, USC, Utah

SEC (14)

East: Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vanderbilt

West: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, LSU, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Texas A&M

Sun Belt (9)

Arkansas State, Florida Atlantic, Florida International, Louisiana-Lafayette, Louisiana-Monroe, Middle Tennessee State, South Alabama, Troy, Western Kentucky

Note: I could also see UMass and Temple joining the Big East to replace Rutgers and UConn after they eventually bounce to better conferences

New Orleans to Seattle, Sacramento stays put, and Charlotte gets the Hornets nickname back. All fixed

Pitt to the Coastal and Syracuse to the Atlantic

Quebec arena report handed to prosecutor?s office

The Canadian Press

QUEBEC - A report into Quebec City's contract for a new hockey arena has been transferred to the provincial prosecutor's office following months of controversy surrounding the deal.

The report by the province's lobbying commissioner, released Wednesday, said some organizations failed to register as lobbyists while they were negotiating a deal to name and operate the future arena.

That municipal contract was eventually awarded to the Quebecor media empire, which is now working to bring an NHL team back to the provincial capital 16 years after it lost the Nordiques.

The report released Wednesday said several organizations broke the law by not registering as lobbyists, or by registering too late.

"The lobbyists' registry is the vehicle for ensuring transparency, as set out in the law. It is its bedrock," the report said.

Some of those organizations ? including Quebecor itself, along with virtual gaming company Aurifossor and insurance company Deux Rives ? cannot be charged because the one-year statute of limitations has passed.

The report said Quebecor broke the law by registering too late. It said Quebecor president Pierre Karl Peladeau broke the provincial Lobbying Transpency and Ethics Act by failing to add vice-president Jean-Francois Pruneau to the registry. The company has received a warning.

Two other companies are accused of breaking the rules more recently and could face penalties: Bell Canada and Evenko, a company tied to the Montreal Canadiens and which was represented in the talks by former Habs president Pierre Boivin.

The Crown must now decide whether to seek penalties from them, including fines of up to $25,000.

The arena project was dogged this spring by accusations that it flouted municipal contracting guidelines.

When some opponents threatened to launch a court case against it, provincial politicians stepped in with a law designed to protect the deal from any legal challenge.

But that legislation proved divisive within the opposition Parti Quebecois, which saw some of its best-known members quit in protest against what they described as a legal abomination.

After the agreement in principle with Quebecor was announced earlier this year, the province's lobbying commissioner opened a formal investigation in June.

Quebec City Mayor Regis Labeaume said at the time that five other suitors, in addition to Quebecor, had expressed an interest in the contract to operate the $400 million arena.

The media organization issued a release Wednesday saying it had taken note of conclusion that it should have registered sooner.

But it said it had always been transparent, with good intentions, throughout the process.

The company said it had been clear from the start about its intention to bring a team to Quebec City, and that it registered as a lobbyist once a formal process was underway.

"Quebecor Media points out that no negotiations took place and no proposals were made before the registration on the registry on Aug. 10, 2010," the company statement said.

"Quebecor Media believes it therefore always acted responsibly and in good faith on this file, and that the negotiations ? took place between September 2010 and February 2011."

Four 16-team mega conferences. The four conference championship game winners meet in a final four (semifinals & championship) to determine the national champion. Simple as that. No more BCS.

Oh to be young and naive.

Oh to be old and from Ohio