What cities should get NHL expansion teams?

Gary Bettman desperately needed an NHL group in Arizona to work. Phoenix is among the largest cities in the US, however with enviornment points in Arizona, the Coyotes have moved to Salt Lake Metropolis. Nonetheless, the Utah group is being handled as an enlargement group, with the Coyotes and all their iconography being saved for a future group in Arizona. As quickly as a viable enviornment is out there in Phoenix, town will get a group, which we need to see for Coyotes followers.

In fact, the Maple Leafs have been round ceaselessly. That being mentioned, if New York can have two groups, the biggest metropolis in hockey-mad Canada ought to get a second group as nicely. This goes double given how costly Leafs tickets are and the way troublesome it’s to get season tickets. Toronto has over 2.5 million individuals within the metropolis correct alone. Lots of these followers would fortunately assist a brand new NHL franchise within the metropolis. It’s not like most of them have seen the Leafs win a cup.

It’s been three a long time now for the reason that Nordiques left Quebec for Colorado. Salt was rubbed within the wounds of Nordiques followers, given the Avalanche gained the Cup the yr the franchise moved. Quebec Metropolis’s metro space is barely the seventh-largest in Canada, however the six forward of all of it have NHL groups already, and Winnipeg is eighth. A return to town by the NHL would definitely yield a passionate fan base, even when it isn’t an enormous one.

There was as soon as discuss of the Nashville Predators being moved to Hamilton, Ontario, by the Blackberry man, however that didn’t occur. Hamilton’s inhabitants base is bigger than Kitchener’s, however Hamilton can be a mere 28 miles from Toronto. A group in Hamilton would successfully be a “Toronto” group. Ontario is Canada’s most populous province, although, and Kitchener is the biggest metropolis within the tri-cities metro space of Kitchener, Cambridge, and Waterloo. Kitchener can be 58 miles from Toronto, so there is a little more room for a group in that space to breathe.

The NHL is uncommon as a result of it solely has a group in a single Texas metropolis. Whereas a second group would imply the Dallas Stars must hand over the hashtag “#TexasHockey” as a calling card, it will additionally make a ton of sense. Shedding the Phoenix space was powerful for the NHL, but it surely has by no means even tapped into one of many few bigger markets. Houston, the fourth-largest metropolis in America, has a inhabitants of over 2.3 million, and we predict by the following census, it will likely be forward of Chicago and in third.

Kansas Metropolis tried. It constructed the Dash Middle (now the T-Cell Middle) principally to attempt to lure an NHL (or NBA) franchise. One of the best the sector ever managed to do was be used as an idle menace by house owners in search of funds for enviornment upgrades. That being mentioned, what number of cities with established sporting fan bases have a ready-to-go hockey enviornment obtainable? This definitely makes Kansas Metropolis stand out.

Although we talked about Chicago is likely to be handed by Houston by 2030, it’s not about to fall out of the highest 4, and town’s inhabitants stays nicely over two million individuals. The metropolitan space, in the meantime, has over 9 million individuals. We famous we felt Toronto was worthy of two NHL groups as a result of inhabitants and fervency of the fan base. Chicago has made two MLB groups work for years. The town might simply deal with a second NHL group as nicely.

It misplaced the Clippers a long time in the past and the Chargers extra not too long ago, however San Diego continues to be a market price entering into. The sports activities followers within the metropolis want a group to root for within the winter (to the extent town experiences winter). San Diego is the eighth-largest metropolis in the US, and the second largest in California.

Portland will get talked about when it comes to getting an MLB group, however what about an NHL group? The Kraken (and doubtless the Canucks) would have one other regional rival! On high of that, Portland does have an NBA group, so the Blazers and an enlargement NHL group might share an enviornment, which makes issues simpler. It’s not a big metropolis, but it surely’s simply outdoors the highest 25, and would give them one other market within the Pacific Northwest.

Always remember, Wayne Gretzky began his skilled hockey profession in Indianapolis. The town has a hockey legacy! Oh, and the next inhabitants than Seattle, Denver, or Nashville. Whereas basketball is the beloved sport within the state, town would get behind an NHL group if given the possibility. Possibly Gretzky could be a part of the possession group.

With Baltimore, it’s all the time tough, as a result of Washington D.C., a bigger metropolis, is true there. Nonetheless, Baltimore and Washington each handle to have MLB and NFL groups. Additionally, the mixed statistical space of Baltimore and Washington is the third largest in the US. Sure, it’s bigger than Chicago or the Bay Space. It looks like two cities in that house can have NHL groups.

Milwaukee has a wintry really feel to it, which is sweet for the hockey vibe. The town has an NBA group, an MLB group, and is Inexperienced Bay-adjacent. Additionally, it’s pretty near Chicago. If sports activities followers within the space aren’t into the Blackhawks, they’d have another choice.

Gary Bettman’s biggest Solar Belt failure was the Atlanta Thrashers. The group merely didn’t work out, and ended up in Winnipeg fairly swiftly. A part of the issue? The group was unhealthy. In truth, you possibly can in all probability credit score the Thrashers for the NHL tweaking the foundations for enlargement groups and the Enlargement Draft. Atlanta is definitely not that large of a metropolis, however there are such a lot of individuals within the suburbs that the metro space is the sixth largest in the US. The NHL ought to attempt once more. However possibly don’t name them the Thrashers once more.

The NHL has completed nicely in Denver, and the state is large for school hockey as nicely. Why not attempt one other NHL group within the state, and why not break into a brand new market? Colorado Springs has a inhabitants just below 500,000. It has extra individuals than Miami or Minneapolis. The metro space has additionally been rising rapidly. In just a few years, an NHL group might be viable in Colorado Springs.

We’ll finish with an outside-the-box concept. There aren’t any main sports activities groups within the area of the US the place Sioux Falls, South Dakota is. It looks like an space that’s becoming for ice hockey. Additionally, the inhabitants has grown by over seven % for the reason that 2020 census. In every of the final 4 censuses, the inhabitants has grown by at the least 23 %. Hey, North Dakota has a powerful school hockey program. Possibly the state of South Dakota could make the NHL work.