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Path: utzoo!watmath!watnot!watcgl!electrohome
From: electrohome@watcgl.UUCP (electrohome)
Newsgroups: net.sport.hockey
Subject: Re: NHL Expansion, if any
Message-ID: <1934@watcgl.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 30-May-85 17:08:45 EDT
Article-I.D.: watcgl.1934
Posted: Thu May 30 17:08:45 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 31-May-85 02:32:10 EDT
References: <1820@watcgl.UUCP> <5566@ucla-cs.ARPA> <511@alberta.UUCP> <512@alberta.UUCP> <7503@ucbvax.ARPA> <2037@ucf-cs.UUCP>
Reply-To: electro!carlo@watcgl.UUCP (Carlo Sgro)
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 48
Summary: 

In article <2037@ucf-cs.UUCP> mike@ucf-cs.UUCP (Ruthless) writes:
>I agree that Portland and Saskatoon would be two of the better places
>to try to expand.  Hamilton too.  Hamilton is about the same size as
>Calgary or Edmonton, and has a successful CFL franchise.  

Not really.  The Ti-Cats have had attendance problems for the last
few years.  The downturn in the steel situation has really hurt them.
I feel that pro hockey would be different, however.

>It has always
>been a mystery to me why Alberta got into the NHL before Hamilton.

Two words:  Harold Ballard.  His current complaint is that he wants a new
stadium for his Ti-Cats and that he won't waive his territorial rights
until he gets it.  In the meantime, there is a brand new 18,000 seat arena
in Hamilton just waiting for a professional hockey team.

>
>About expanding in Seattle:  Is it really in
>Vancouver's territory?  Wouldn't the political boundary hinder
>Washington state people from supporting a Canadian based team, both
>psychologically and physically (Customs and immigration officials can
>be a real pain)?  

Whether or not this is true, the NHL has legally-restricted areas around
existing territories occupied by teams.  Would attendance be great enough 
to warrant the exhorbitant price going to be asked for by the Canucks?

In any case, the border is not a factor when it comes to residents of 
Niagara Falls and St. Catharines going over to Buffalo for Sabres' games.
Whether or not this would be true if the Sabres were lousy, who knows??

>On paper, Ohio should be able to handle one or two franchises, yet
>WHA and NHL teams there have always died.  Does anyone have any
>theories why?

The media in Ohio have hypothesized that it is because of the distance from
Cleveland to the arena in which they played, the poor quality of play
(both in the case of the Barons), and bad (negative and inadequate) media 
coverage.


					-Carlo Sgro
					 Electrohome Canada
					 ...!watmath!watcgl!electro!carlo

The opinions expressed in this posting may or may not represent the opinion
of Electrohome Canada (since we don't talk hockey here anyway).