***Official 2010-2011 Hockey Thread***

[Rams Fan]

Originally Posted by Unleash_the_Phury

If it's not at the minimum, it's barely above it. 15,105 I believe. But it has 20 or 30 luxury boxes, and it's a solid venue. I think you're gonna see more hockey rinks moving towards smaller capacities. The Devils new building is only 17K. In baseball, a lot of newer buildings are less than 45,000 seats. (Pittsburgh, Philly, St Louis and the Mets all moved into smaller facilities than the ones they were playing in before).

Can't speak for the other baseball stadiums, but I know Busch has less seats because it has more luxury boxes than the old stadium.

In my heart of hearts, I hope the Islanders stay where they are. That team suffers from appalling ownership, and they play in an awful building. But they were a dynasty at one point. They shouldn't be forced to leave.

Wang's an idiot. And they really need a new arena. Nasseau or whatever isn't that good.

After Phoenix and Atlanta, I'd say Florida's probably the next in line to go to a healthy hockey market. That's a team that has almost no history and no real hope to get better. Leave now.

I doubt the Panthers will relocate considering that Bernie Kosar owns them and played for the Dolphins at one point in his career.

Beyond those three, I think the league gets remarkably healthier. Nashville is having a great year financially, and they're growing the game well there. Dallas is a good hockey market, but it can't be underscored just how much the fans in Dallas hate Tom Hicks. Once the ownership situation is sorted (rumors abound about Cuban plunking down 200M for the team) you'd see the fans come back.

Agreed.

Columbus needs to get its act together. Find a centre for Rick Nash, solidify the defense, and allow Steve Mason to develop at a normal pace. They're the only game in town, professionally speaking, and they had excellent attendance up until recently. They need to learn to win, or they'd be a team in trouble IMO.

Yep. Aren't they losing $12 million or so per year?

In a perfect world, any teams relocating would go (In order) to Winnipeg, QC, southern Ontario, Hartford, Milwaukee and on down the list. Just, no more non-traditional hockey markets for now.

Milwaukee isn't going to get a team unless a new arena is built. Hartford needs a new arena. I think QC and Winnipeg are locks in terms of getting new teams.