Misconduct
NHL Expansion Coming?
The Forechecker has an interesting bit posted that may prove that expansion is coming to the NHL again.
Apparently "Boots" Del Biaggio, the now-bankrupt member of Nashville's ownership group, had a nice little tid-bit in the document he used to recruit members into that ownership group. Page 11 of said document includes projected season-by-season financials for the team. For the 2010-2011 season a $15 million chunk of revenue from expansion fees is assumed.
Now, Del Biaggio is bankrupt and being investigated for fraud, so that could have just been a creative bit of speculative accounting used to bring in more money. He could add that "expected" revenue in and then when expansion doesn't happen just say "Sorry, we thought it would."
Or it could show that the league has something up its sleeve that we're not being told about. We'll see.
User Comments
Posted by klaitinen on 7/15/2008 at 2:14 PM
If anything at least 2 teams should be contracted.....
Posted by drwmike33 on 7/15/2008 at 3:35 PM
Adding any more teams makes little sense. There's a perfect number of teams in each division. Why screw that up?
Posted by Britishwingsfan on 7/15/2008 at 3:49 PM
If this is true, which is obviously in serious doubt, there's no way the NHL could support another 2 teams. The talent pool is diluted enough as it is. The European talent pool has been fully tapped already, so all the extra 45 or so players will be of sub-NHL quality, spread across the league. That's before we get into all the other issues....
Posted by YzerFan19 on 7/15/2008 at 5:57 PM
Why is it in doubt? I don't doubt for a minute that the league would go for the money-grab, future of the game be damned.
Don't forget that not only will it dilute the talent pool but it'll raise player salaries since now the 45 new players who should have been AHLers are now making NHL money, which raises everyone better than them to a higher level.
Posted by Britishwingsfan on 7/15/2008 at 7:33 PM
True, they are money-grabbers, and I wouldn't put it past them in the future, but until I've seen further evidence that doesn't come from someone who's up on fraud charges, I'll remain doutful that it will happen in the 2010-2011 season like it says. I'm still not 100% sure it will happen.
And as for the salary issue, the NY post article linked in the article makes the point that if the expansion were to happen under the current CBA agreement, due to end after the 2010-2011 season (convieniently after the supposed expansion would take place, the salary cap would get lower for every team in the league, so that could complicate matters on top of the point you made.
Also under the CBA the players would get none of the money from the expansion, so if there is a vote on expansion, if you look at the short term it's obviously a win-win stuation for the owners. $15m that they can keep all for themselves? A no-brainer for any money grabbing owners that don't care about hockey and the long-term health of the league *cough* Anschutz *cough*. It's just a question of whether or not those owners have the majority of those owners that care about the long term implications.
Posted by YzerFan19 on 7/16/2008 at 11:56 AM
True, they are money-grabbers, and I wouldn't put it past them in the future, but until I've seen further evidence that doesn't come from someone who's up on fraud charges, I'll remain doutful that it will happen in the 2010-2011 season like it says. I'm still not 100% sure it will happen.
We've also heard buzzing about KC and Vegas before. Apparently Jerry Bruckheimer wants to own a team in Vegas and, conveniently, the proposed arena would open in 2010. So there is other evidence but of course the league wouldn't make any official annoucement.
And as for the salary issue, the NY post article linked in the article makes the point that if the expansion were to happen under the current CBA agreement, due to end after the 2010-2011 season (convieniently after the supposed expansion would take place, the salary cap would get lower for every team in the league, so that could complicate matters on top of the point you made.
Or it would be a convenient out since the small-market teams are already complaining about the cap being too high. A way to lower it without renegotiating the CBA
Also under the CBA the players would get none of the money from the expansion, so if there is a vote on expansion, if you look at the short term it's obviously a win-win stuation for the owners. $15m that they can keep all for themselves? A no-brainer for any money grabbing owners that don't care about hockey and the long-term health of the league *cough* Anschutz *cough*. It's just a question of whether or not those owners have the majority of those owners that care about the long term implications.
When have they ever cared about long-term implications?
Posted by Britishwingsfan on 7/16/2008 at 2:20 PM
We've also heard buzzing about KC and Vegas before. Apparently Jerry Bruckheimer wants to own a team in Vegas and, conveniently, the proposed arena would open in 2010. So there is other evidence but of course the league wouldn't make any official annoucement.
Suppose. I think it's just that I've got a bit of an aversion to conspiracy theories, and I didn't want to get carried away with it. I suppose with KC's Sprint Center being owned by the AEG, plus Vegas's new arena being built in partnership with AEG, they're obviously the frontrunners, and Anschutz is going to get as many of his fellow team owners onside. It seems so simple.
Or it would be a convenient out since the small-market teams are already complaining about the cap being too high. A way to lower it without renegotiating the CBA
They'd be courting disaster when the current CBA comes to an end though of course.........
When have they ever cared about long-term implications?
Too true.
Also, another thing. Of course if, as is most likely, the two expansion teams go into the Western Conference, one existing Western Conference team would have to move into the Eastern Conference. I wonder who that could possibly be?..... 
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