NHL Team For Winnipeg?
ARE you ready for the Winnipeg Coyotes?
"NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman told officials with Phoenix Coyotes that the NHL would consider moving the team to Winnipeg but not Hamilton, court filings show."
Globe & Mail
"The NHL insists it effectively took control of the Coyotes in November, when Moyes was unable or unwilling to contribute more to the team. The franchise has lost an estimated $73 million in the past three seasons and an estimated $400 million since moving from Winnipeg in 1996 ..."
Ottawa Citizen
...bit of background...
--Arsenisms has more!--
UPDATE - May 19th (late afternoon)
Judge says he'll delay ruling in Coyotes trial
A U.S. bankruptcy judge has decided to delay his ruling in a trial that pits the NHL against the majority owner of the Phoenix Coyotes, with billionaire Jim Balsillie's bid for the team hanging in the balance. Judge Redfield Baum told lawyers in a Phoenix, Ariz., courtroom that he needs more time to sift through hundreds of documents filed late last night.
CTV News
Hey Winnipegers! If you should get an NHL team back in your city ... RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO CALL THEM THE 'JETS'!
If you do manage to get the team out of Phoenix, keep the 'Coyotes' name. Your old name ... 'Jets' was weak and wimpy!
Posted by leftdog | 10:48 am, May 16, 2009
Leftdog,
Naming is a moot point. It's not gonna happen in my lifetime. If it does, I will run naked through our legislative grounds!
Posted by Scott MacNeil | 10:54 am, May 16, 2009
Hmmm .. I look forward* to seeing your Fat Arse streaking thru the park!! (*well not really) ... but I will blog it when it happens!
Posted by leftdog | 11:02 am, May 16, 2009
I kinda lookin' forward to watching the Jets vs. the Sharks. It's got that West Side Story feel.
Posted by Skinny Dipper | 11:15 am, May 16, 2009
Well ... you have a point ....
Posted by leftdog | 11:16 am, May 16, 2009
I love how people immediately write off another NHL team in Winnipeg.
Their biggest problem is having enough corporate sponsorship to make a team profitable alongside the other Canadian franchises. However, with current sponsorship potential and a sizeable fan base (approx. 750,000 fans within Metro Winnipeg) they'd be as financially well-off as many other US based NHL teams. They'd be the "poorest" of the Canadian teams, but just as financially competitive as the majority of US based franchises.
I'm a Flames fan, first and foremost, and I'd never switch my loyalty to a new Winnipeg Jets team (the name would go back to the Jets, anything else wouldn't stand), but having lived in Winnipeg for 4 years, I really feel for the NHL community that was lost in 96 when they had the money and the support to keep it alive and they were sold to Phoenix where they have done even WORSE financially to say nothing of their horrible fan attendance and win-loss ratio.
I support giving the Jets another chance in Winnipeg over a new team in Hamilton/SW Ontario (which is surely the next area to gain an expansion team).
Go, Jets, Go!
Posted by D | 12:14 pm, May 16, 2009
Let me ring in on this,
I dont know who you are leftdog, but YOUR attitude is weak and wimpy, further more should any team return to Winnipeg it will be the Jets so deal with it.....
And where did you get that picture of that poor dog, Micheal Vick?
Posted by DEATHBYPOPCORN1990 | 2:01 pm, May 16, 2009
@ Dylan
Know I was a touch hard on you elsewhere today. But the powers that be (i.e. League, local Wpg govt, and our hurtin' Chamber of Commerce) will never be able to get their act together to make this happen. Would I love to cheer for the (re)newest NHL franchise - yes! Will the NHL or the new owner consider returning here without exacting an unnecessary financial commitment (tax concessions?) of some sort? No.
The risk adverse tepid business culture here in Wpg is unwilling to put up its own money to make this happen. If that bastard Bettman ever approves a team for us... you can bet government handouts will be asked for to support the new "Winnipeg Wolves"(?) - and on that basis I think it is never going to happen.
The only way I would support any tax incentives is if the new club was going to be "Community owned" [like our BLUE should have stayed] ... otherwise... [insert naughty word here]
@ leftdog,
Just saw your earlier comment re my arse streaking- again, no worries - I shall never have to honour the pledge (nor suffer the indignity) cause, quite simply - it ain't gonna happen, we are not getting the Coyotes.
Posted by Scott MacNeil | 4:11 pm, May 16, 2009
@deathbypopcorn
Hey, is that you Shenkarow? Get over it - Game 6 1990 was a long time ago.
Posted by Scott MacNeil | 6:37 pm, May 16, 2009
Every year there seems to be some new hope that our beloved Jets will return and every year we are blue balled. I refuse to get my hopes up. If it ever does happen I will be the first in line for tickets. They would simply have to be called the Jets though. It is unfortunate that there are so many nay-sayers and small minded dickheads in this town who have a negative attitude about us getting a team back. I sometimes think the biggest obstacle to the NHL returning to Winnipeg are Winnipeggers who are so sure "It will never happen" I'm also tired of people telling me to "get over it" and I always try to tell them the same thing. Imagine next year your team was gone. I don't care if your team is the Habs or the Flames or even some NFL team you follow Imagine your team is gone. Than imagine how you would feel when some ignorant cunt told you to get over it. Often those ignorant cunts will then say something to the effect of " If you loved them so much why didn't you support them while they were here?" More ignorance. The Jets left because they had a lousey rink and a lousey deal with the rink. It was never a case of lack of fan support. So bring back the mighty Jets and put a team in Hamilton too. Hell put a team in Regina. This game belongs to Canadians.
Posted by Militant Dipper | 8:26 am, May 17, 2009
I live in Regina, and normally cheer for the Habs, but I strongly endorse an NHL team returning to Winnipeg. When I compare some of the American cities that host a team, (with little support from the locals) to fans in Winnipeg, there is no comparison. Winnipeg should have an NHL franchise ....
Posted by leftdog | 8:54 am, May 17, 2009
Check out a site that has objectively reviewed the news about the NHL and provided their own financial projections for an NHL team back in Manitoba, based off numbers from the NHL:
ManitobaMythbusters.com
Myth Conceptions:(each explained on the site)
Myth #1: Arena Too Small
Myth #2: Ticket Prices Too High
Myth #3: No Ownership Group
Myth #4: Population Too Small
Myth #5: No One Believes It Can Happen
Myth #6: Salary Cap Is Too High
Myth #7: Not Enough Corporate Support
Myth #8: No Teams Looking To Relocate
Myth #9: Not Enough Premium Revenue Streams
Myth #10: Reasons The Jets Left
Myth #11: NHL Doesn't Want Winnipeg
Myth #12: Canadian Dollar Too Low
ManitobaMythbusters.com
Posted by Chris | 10:02 am, June 25, 2009