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Le Retour de Nordiques


Colin

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i'll believe it when i'll see it. I really hopes it happens tough.

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I would go nutz !! 4-5 of my friends are from Québec. They currently cheer for the Habs, but told me that they would go back to the Nordiques anytime and start to hate Montreal again !

The latest rumors are that Peladeau would be looking to bring a team, the NYI being the one mentioned, to Québec.

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I would go nutz !! 4-5 of my friends are from Québec. They currently cheer for the Habs, but told me that they would go back to the Nordiques anytime and start to hate Montreal again !

The latest rumors are that Peladeau would be looking to bring a team, the NYI being the one mentioned, to Québec.

Doubtful it's the Isles. Wang is posturing for show. Morelikely Phoenix, Atlanta, Nashville, or another struggler like that. Maybe if ownership in Montreal has a tough time, they can relocate to Quebec.

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Let me start by saying I think the Nords fans should never have lost their team...it was just one of Betteman's many mistakes.

However, I think this move is clearly, and entirely, predicated by Betteman trying to keep a team out of Toronto's territory...

In reality, the territory that can best support an NHL team from an economic perspective IS southern Ontario. Their proximity to other NHL teams(ie. rivalry creation against 4 other teams), their population, potential for radio/tv/merchandising is all unmatched in any other part of North America right now. They have already demonstrated that the area can bring in more season ticket sales (over 11,000 IIRC) then likely over half the NHL teams in the league now...and that was just during Balsillie's ATTEMPTS at getting a team...imagine how many would have been sold had it happened.

The shame is that there should be a team in the Hamilton, Mississauga, London, or the Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge-Guelph area (which IMO this Golden Triangle is the prime location: 600,000 people and less then 45 minutes between all those towns, giving it ~2.5M people in the immediate area AND it's an hour away from Betteman's precious MLSE).

Betteman is thinking that he'll appease fans in Canada overall and keep his ownership group happy by protecting their unwritten, and illegal, code of territory protection. He's trying to play Canadian hockey fans as dupes and pit them against each other. It'll probably work too...he just guaranteed that virtually the enitre province of Quebec will be on board with this. Winnipeg fans will say what about us, SWO fans will say we're left out again...and Betteman will laugh as fans fight at the trough and ignore the leagues economic reality and he gets to protect the Laughs.

If Betteman is so openly brazen as to protect the MLSE's ownership to this extent I'm willing to believe that games/draft lotteries/deadline times/etc can be fixed to protect some franchises interests.

The NHL continues to lose integrity IMHO...

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It's sad, but all this return to Quebec City talk is damage control. The league looks anti-canadian in the way it has handled the Jim Balsillie situation, so it allows a meeting with a mayor to look good. Next on the agenda, pretty pictures of plans for a new arena, with those spotlights that interlock at the entrance. Followed by interviews with local restaurant and bar owners excited about potential new business. All this for an arena that'll never be built. People from Quebec City can regale us all they want about metro populations, corporate support, the fact that it's not a government town. It's just not enough.

Consider the start up costs. A 50 million dollar payroll, and a 400 million dollar new arena. I'd love to see it, but in my opinion it's not possible.

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It's sad, but all this return to Quebec City talk is damage control. The league looks anti-canadian in the way it has handled the Jim Balsillie situation, so it allows a meeting with a mayor to look good. Next on the agenda, pretty pictures of plans for a new arena, with those spotlights that interlock at the entrance. Followed by interviews with local restaurant and bar owners excited about potential new business. All this for an arena that'll never be built. People from Quebec City can regale us all they want about metro populations, corporate support, the fact that it's not a government town. It's just not enough.

Consider the start up costs. A 50 million dollar payroll, and a 400 million dollar new arena. I'd love to see it, but in my opinion it's not possible.

yep pretty much sums it up. sorry guys.

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