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OT slightly: Has anyone been following the Hamilton year-in-exodus stuff?
OT slightly: Has anyone been following the Hamilton year-in-exodus stuff?
Now, I never think an NHL would ever be in the situation where they absolutly thought rebuilding a whole new arena could only work on the same location, causing a move for a year. (Maybe NYR if MSG despite the renos needed to be completly rebuilt years from now)
We've seen it though in the NFL with the Bears and are now seeing it with the Tiger-Cats. Now, after listening to Scott Mitchell (Ticats president) on PTS 2 nights agom he mentioned some interesting things. (Go to about 2/3rds through audio file in link if interested)
Some interesting things were brought up. The balance between appeasing local fans by finding someplace decent enough for a year compared to completely moving to another city for a year. It still sounds like 1 game might be played in Quebec or Moncton but not a full-time move.
What's also interesting though is that many cities see this as an opportunity to maybe test out a franchise without going all-in. The NBA got out to test out OKC (not by choice, natural disaster) and realized it could work. Scott Mitchell admitted interest with the Ticats from 20 cities, with about 10 being American! From the sound s of it, Buffalo was a serious consideration if both stadiums could have fit the CFL field.
I find these 1-2 year moves interesting ways to test out markets. I wonder given the option, what market would the NHL try out for 1-2 years if something like this happened to a franchise?
Now, I never think an NHL would ever be in the situation where they absolutly thought rebuilding a whole new arena could only work on the same location, causing a move for a year. (Maybe NYR if MSG despite the renos needed to be completly rebuilt years from now)
We've seen it though in the NFL with the Bears and are now seeing it with the Tiger-Cats. Now, after listening to Scott Mitchell (Ticats president) on PTS 2 nights agom he mentioned some interesting things. (Go to about 2/3rds through audio file in link if interested)
Some interesting things were brought up. The balance between appeasing local fans by finding someplace decent enough for a year compared to completely moving to another city for a year. It still sounds like 1 game might be played in Quebec or Moncton but not a full-time move.
What's also interesting though is that many cities see this as an opportunity to maybe test out a franchise without going all-in. The NBA got out to test out OKC (not by choice, natural disaster) and realized it could work. Scott Mitchell admitted interest with the Ticats from 20 cities, with about 10 being American! From the sound s of it, Buffalo was a serious consideration if both stadiums could have fit the CFL field.
I find these 1-2 year moves interesting ways to test out markets. I wonder given the option, what market would the NHL try out for 1-2 years if something like this happened to a franchise?
Assuming the NHL would ever do this (remember that the NHL plays about four times as many games as the CFL) I'd test markets like KC, LV, and Seattle to see if there's legitimate fan support for a franchise.
In terms of the CFL I think Moncton and QC should be tried out.
I know it was a whole other breed of situation, but I think after the Hurricanes' stint in Greensboro, any owner (and maybe the league itself) would have cold feet about knowingly setting up shop in a temporary market.
Despite plenty of local hockey tradition with the Greensboro Generals/Greensboro Monarchs/Carolina Monarchs in town since 1959, there was little desire among the population to support a hockey team that was known to be destined for another city.
I know it was a whole other breed of situation, but I think after the Hurricanes' stint in Greensboro, any owner (and maybe the league itself) would have cold feet about knowingly setting up shop in a temporary market.
Despite plenty of local hockey tradition with the Greensboro Generals/Greensboro Monarchs/Carolina Monarchs in town since 1959, there was little desire among the population to support a hockey team that was known to be destined for another city.
I completely forgot about the early Canes! So of cases we can think of...
-Greensboro for the Canes was not the best
-Hornets in OKC worked, they got a team out of it.
-Bears moved 2 hours south of Chicago to Champaign, easier to accomodate crazy Bear fans so I guess it went good.
Any other major examples of borrowed teams for a year or two? San Antonio I think hosted the Saints, but was that for practise facilities or actual games?
IIRC the Expos split their last season between Montreal and Puerto Rico, supposedly to test the market for an eventual Expos move which was inevitable at that point. Ended up heading to Washington, so I guess it didn't work.
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The Golden State Warriors played a season at the Tank (then still the non-corporate San Jose Arena) in '96-'97 when the then Oakland Coliseum Arena was gutted & rebuilt.
The Yankees spent two years at Shea Stadium ('74 & '75) while Yankee Stadium was renovated.
Didn't the New Orleans Saints play for a while away due to Katrina?
Edit: Yup. Don't know about distances involded.
[QUOTEWikipedia]Effect of Hurricane Katrina
Main article: Effect of Hurricane Katrina on the New Orleans Saints
The Tiger Stadium was one of the venues that hosted the Saints in 2005.
Due to the damage Hurricane Katrina caused to the Superdome and the New Orleans area, the Saints scheduled 2005 home opener against the New York Giants was moved to Giants Stadium. The remainder of their 2005 home games were split between the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, and LSU's Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.[/QUOTE]
IIRC the Expos split their last season between Montreal and Puerto Rico, supposedly to test the market for an eventual Expos move which was inevitable at that point. Ended up heading to Washington, so I guess it didn't work.
PR had worse attendance than Montreal so it's safe to say it failed.
I find these 1-2 year moves interesting ways to test out markets. I wonder given the option, what market would the NHL try out for 1-2 years if something like this happened to a franchise?
It depends on whether the franchise is looking to move, or to expand its current market.
Hamilton isn't going to stray too far from its home-base because they know that they'll be back in Hamilton next year.
The move to Guelph makes perfect sense in taking advantage of an opportunity to expand its fan base. With a Guelph population of close to 150,000, and with nearby Kitchener-Waterloo (350,000?), the Cats will create some interest in a 1/2 million market that may make the 3/4 hour drive to Hamilton when the team returns to its new stadium...
Smart decision.
So, if this situation happened to a NHL franchise that was looking to move, they would definitely be wise to "test-market" Seattle, K.C., or Houston. (Quebec is a given).
If, like the Cats, the situation is temporary, and the team WILL be returning home, the smart move would be to relocate within commuting distance, IMO.
