NHL Anti-Thread: Bad Business Decision Aggregator

[HedleyLamarr]

Basically, an organized and pre-conceived way of doing what the NBA did with the Hornets out of necessity? Is that the gist of what you're saying there?

Would be a bit interesting to see Seattle try to get a team the same way they had their NBA team ripped out from under them.

In a way, yeah.

I always found it a bit odd that the NHL said something like "we'll reassess this realignment plan after three seasons" if most were in support of the realignment proposal to begin with. I figured that was mainly to see how the playoff seedings and free agency (in terms of seeing how many players go to the Western Conference to better their chances of making the playoffs) shook themselves out.

I would think the NHL would have given a recommendation to Quebec City to build (or not build) an arena if there's intentions (or no intentions) of having a team play there. But instead of moving a team there right away, the NHL gives QC a hushed "get yourselves ready, but be quiet and play nicely with us" memo, kinda like Winnipeg/True North. Arena issues aside, they can use Seattle as a test market (still an American market, but perhaps a more traditional hockey market) while QC's arena gets built and the league lets their soon-to-be-current realignment play itself out some.

Quebec City has a new arena and a perceived large fanbase in place.

Seattle could prove to be a hockey goldmine and the city starts building their own arena.

Other teams (Devils, Blue Jackets, or whomever else) continue (or start) to have money problems, up to the point where a sale of the team is needed.

The league re-evaluates their current divisional/playoff setup.

....all these things happening by the summer of 2016.

If Seattle thrives, allowing the team to go there would be a "win" for the NHL/Bettman.

If Seattle falters (or another team just can't stay in their current locale), Quebec City becomes the hot destination, and the league's financials get a boost, which becomes another "win" for the NHL/Bettman.

[rams80]

I was thinking about something.....could the NHL be using Seattle as a stop-over before moving the team to Quebec City?

The NHL is pretty dead-set on realigning the league for next season, apparently. There's nothing definite about Seattle building a new arena (while QC is getting their arena built right now), and the NHL has said they'll re-visit the league's soon-to-be-adopted realignment plan after three seasons. By then, Quebec's arena will be completed (and possibly given a trial run by a minor league team), we'll have a good idea on Seattle being a worthy NHL market, and other teams with money issues (namely the Devils) would have three years to see which financial direction they're going in.....all the while the league's salary cap restraints (if I remember correctly) are set for the next couple seasons. (Did the league and NHLPA agree to a fixed cap limit for the next few years, in the $64-million neighborhood?)

The league is hell bent on realignment because Detroit and Columbus complained about going out West all the time. Of course, the ironic aspect this fervent desire for realignment is that if Detroit and Columbus were to stay out West, they would likely only play around 4 more games each in the Mountain or Pacific time zone than they would in the East thanks to the NHL's guarantee that each team plays at least a home and home.

[Lee.]

Just remind me why the league is hell-bent on acquiescing to Columbus's demands, again

[Kramerica Industries]

They realize McCarthy is a huge Blue Jacket voice on a kinda/sorta not-too-big/not-too-small sports logos forum?

[HedleyLamarr]

The league is hell bent on realignment because Detroit and Columbus complained about going out West all the time. Of course, the ironic aspect this fervent desire for realignment is that if Detroit and Columbus were to stay out West, they would likely only play around 4 more games each in the Mountain or Pacific time zone than they would in the East thanks to the NHL's guarantee that each team plays at least a home and home.

....and they're both likely still taking a couple week-long west coast trips (which they had to begin with), unless they would prefer one 10-13 day trip and get all 7-8 MT- and PT-zone games out of the way.

It's a lot like that Astros-to-the-AL talk.....sure, you get 18 games with the Rangers instead of 6 (and only 6 more home games, or 2 more home series), but you also gain three trips to Seattle and California and yearly trips/visits with the Yankees and Red Sox (which helps in selling tickets, though it's kinda a wash since they lose the multiple visits from the Cubs and Cardinals, and annual visits from the Braves and Dodgers and other established rivals) and you have to deal with Customs when going to/from Toronto, which is never quick-n-easy. Was gaining 12 games with the Rangers worth all that, even if they had a contending team?

[cmm]

If memory serves, the Astros situation was a bit different. They weren't asking to switch like the Red Wings and Blue Jackets. MLB wanted them to move, and gave the new owners a $70 million discount to switch leagues.

[mattwswfc]

Some of the points made on here are quite interesting and make a lot of sense for the NHL, because if they up and move the Coyotes to QC then there is no guarantee that Seattle will want to pay $300 million for an expansion team, especially if they have no new arena on the way.

Everyone knows including Quebecor that QC is top of the list for a team, but it may not be the right time, for the NHL that is, to move the team up to Quebec, when they know Quebec will snatch an expansion team right out of their hands!

We can all just sit back and watch it unfold, clever move by the NHL.

[Sport]

They realize McCarthy is a huge Blue Jacket voice on a kinda/sorta not-too-big/not-too-small sports logos forum?

Close. I'm actually Gary Bettman. This thread has been an interesting read. We're doing all that we can to come to a solution to keep the Coyotes in the Phoenix market while keeping all of our franchises happy and healthy. Now how about these terrific Stanley Cup Finals we're seeing?

[Mac the Knife]

I offered this solution to the realignment mess when the NHL initially announced its intent to return to a 4-division setup, and I still think it's the right way to go, particularly taking Columbus/Detroit into account.

Scrap the idea of conferences altogether and have 5 divisions of 6 teams each. The 5 division champs plus 11 other qualifiers (regardless of division) make the playoffs, giving you (presumably) the 16 best teams in the playoffs each and every year. Go back to non-regional naming conventions for the divisions. Then if the Coyotes stay in Phoenix, or if they move to Seattle, Quebec, or Timbuktu, you can take your time with realignment among the 5 divisions that makes the most sense... unlike having the Winnipeg Jets in the Southeast Division.

Expand the regular season by one game, to 83 total. Have each team play the five other teams in its division 7 times each, for 35 games. Have them then play home-and-home with the other 24 teams, for 48 games. Problem solved to cover virtually any contingency, providing an innovative solution that'll eventually have fans of other sports envious when they see a 10-6 Chicago Bears team miss the NFC playoffs and a 8-7-1 Miami Dolphins make it as a wild-card in the AFC.

[CJR]

Sounds familiar.

[Mac the Knife]

Sounds familiar.

I can't say it for sure, but I suspect if you went through the archives here, you'd see where I put it up first.

Either way, it's a good idea.

[rams80]

I was thinking about something.....could the NHL be using Seattle as a stop-over before moving the team to Quebec City?

The NHL is pretty dead-set on realigning the league for next season, apparently. There's nothing definite about Seattle building a new arena (while QC is getting their arena built right now), and the NHL has said they'll re-visit the league's soon-to-be-adopted realignment plan after three seasons. By then, Quebec's arena will be completed (and possibly given a trial run by a minor league team), we'll have a good idea on Seattle being a worthy NHL market, and other teams with money issues (namely the Devils) would have three years to see which financial direction they're going in.....all the while the league's salary cap restraints (if I remember correctly) are set for the next couple seasons. (Did the league and NHLPA agree to a fixed cap limit for the next few years, in the $64-million neighborhood?)

The league is hell bent on realignment because Detroit and Columbus complained about going out West all the time. Of course, the ironic aspect this fervent desire for realignment is that if Detroit and Columbus were to stay out West, they would likely only play around 4 more games each in the Mountain or Pacific time zone than they would in the East thanks to the NHL's guarantee that each team plays at least a home and home.

Mainly, it's a playoff thing. The travel for West coast games is taxing, while Eastern teams can literally drive to the visitors arena.

If I am not mistaken, your playoff opponent is under the same travel conditions as you. Sorry, bad rationale.

[DaytonBlue]

The Astros situation was because the team was being sold. I don't think the sale would have been approved without them agreeing to go to the AL.

If any teams on the east/west border are sold in the next few years, I bet the NHL would do the same thing to them or insert some clause allowing the league to put them wherever the needed them to be.

[IceCap]

I was thinking about something.....could the NHL be using Seattle as a stop-over before moving the team to Quebec City?

The NHL is pretty dead-set on realigning the league for next season, apparently. There's nothing definite about Seattle building a new arena (while QC is getting their arena built right now), and the NHL has said they'll re-visit the league's soon-to-be-adopted realignment plan after three seasons. By then, Quebec's arena will be completed (and possibly given a trial run by a minor league team), we'll have a good idea on Seattle being a worthy NHL market, and other teams with money issues (namely the Devils) would have three years to see which financial direction they're going in.....all the while the league's salary cap restraints (if I remember correctly) are set for the next couple seasons. (Did the league and NHLPA agree to a fixed cap limit for the next few years, in the $64-million neighborhood?)

The league is hell bent on realignment because Detroit and Columbus complained about going out West all the time. Of course, the ironic aspect this fervent desire for realignment is that if Detroit and Columbus were to stay out West, they would likely only play around 4 more games each in the Mountain or Pacific time zone than they would in the East thanks to the NHL's guarantee that each team plays at least a home and home.

Mainly, it's a playoff thing. The travel for West coast games is taxing, while Eastern teams can literally drive to the visitors arena.

And the Wings have won four Stanley Cup since moving to the West. They obvious weren't hurting.

[OMMF]

I was thinking about something.....could the NHL be using Seattle as a stop-over before moving the team to Quebec City?

The NHL is pretty dead-set on realigning the league for next season, apparently. There's nothing definite about Seattle building a new arena (while QC is getting their arena built right now), and the NHL has said they'll re-visit the league's soon-to-be-adopted realignment plan after three seasons. By then, Quebec's arena will be completed (and possibly given a trial run by a minor league team), we'll have a good idea on Seattle being a worthy NHL market, and other teams with money issues (namely the Devils) would have three years to see which financial direction they're going in.....all the while the league's salary cap restraints (if I remember correctly) are set for the next couple seasons. (Did the league and NHLPA agree to a fixed cap limit for the next few years, in the $64-million neighborhood?)

The league is hell bent on realignment because Detroit and Columbus complained about going out West all the time. Of course, the ironic aspect this fervent desire for realignment is that if Detroit and Columbus were to stay out West, they would likely only play around 4 more games each in the Mountain or Pacific time zone than they would in the East thanks to the NHL's guarantee that each team plays at least a home and home.

Mainly, it's a playoff thing. The travel for West coast games is taxing, while Eastern teams can literally drive to the visitors arena.

If I am not mistaken, your playoff opponent is under the same travel conditions as you. Sorry, bad rationale.

I don't agree with the other side but your argument isn't entirely correct. Let's say LA/ANA/SJ/VAN had home ice over DET/CBJ. The latter teams would have to make 2 extra flights that the former wouldn't: one to start the series and, if they won, one home or to the host of the next round.

[youcan'tseeme]

Isn't that the case in any series though? San Jose woukd have to do the same in a series where Detroit has home ice advantage.

[OMMF]

Isn't that the case in any series though? San Jose woukd have to do the same in a series where Detroit has home ice advantage.

Right. Point is that travel isn't the same for both teams in any given series. So saying both teams are under the same conditions isn't 100% correct.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

The more I think, the more it's best for the Seattle NHL team to come online first. If an NHL team followed the new Sonics, it'd be much harder to get Seattle's attention on another winter sport. By coming first, the Coyotes have another couple of years to establish themselves as part of the sports landscape before having to compete with the Sonics.

It's probably the best way to establish both teams in the long-run.

[The_Admiral]

It's still not good for Seattle to get a team right now. But of course, that's by design. The Coyotes now exist to suppress revenue. They'll do that in Seattle, but not on the league's dime. So enjoy this touring production of Springtime For Doaner.

[Magnus]

It's still not good for Seattle to get a team right now. But of course, that's by design. The Coyotes now exist to suppress revenue.

A loss-leader, as it were. Lose money on one item to gain more on big-ticket ones, like the Wings...