All those fun rumors about the New York Islanders settling down in the Sprint Center have been quashed once and for all by team owner Charles Wang. Well, for the next four-plus years anyway. Wang has spent the past three years trying to convince Hempstead, New York, to build a massive development with a hockey arena for his team, but he hasn't accomplished much more than pissing off the local government.
Now Wang is trying another tactic: being reasonable. He announced
yesterday that he's friggin' overjoyed to keep his team in the 38-year-old
Nassau Veterans Coliseum in Long Island until the lease runs out in
2015. Then, he'll look up Kansas City in his little black
book of desperate cities with empty arenas, and we'll fall breathlessly in love with the idea of the Islanders again ... and then he'll get the stadium he wants.
Wang's arena frustration led him to use the Pittsburgh Penguin
Method of attempting to force a city to pony up public stadium financing
by convincing fans that the team is on the move to KC. Wang even went so
far as to bring the Isles to the Sprint Center for an exhibition game
last year. Turns out Hempstead's will is stronger than Pittsburgh's,
because they have yet to cave. Or Long Island just doesn't care about its NHL team. They're not exactly good.
Speaking
of those dastardly Penguins, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review decided
the best way to cover the opening of the team's training camp would be
to rip our wounds open and rub
salt in them. The cruel article teases:
... asthe Pens play their first exhibition game at Consol Energy Center
tonight against the Detroit Red Wings, would-be fans in Hartford, Kansas
City, Hamilton, Ontario, and a few other places can think only about
what could have been.
All would have been glad to cheer on SidneyCrosby and his teammates
on their ice.
Ooh, that smarts.
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wrong, shoddy journalism, you have no understanding of the New York Islanders situation, it is not about getting nassau to build them a new arena.
PucKChaser -
Your point about the promise that was made to us (permanent NHL or NBA tenant) is, of course, spot on.
I have a somewhat irrational need to correct the notion that the Sprint Center was a bad deal for KC. It's been a positive even with the unfulfilled promise of a franchise to call our own.
I've been saying that no NHL teams are coming to KC for years on various blogs.
PucKChaser.com is still alive and well.
"The Sprint Center is not part of the P&L District, which IS funded by KCMO taxpayers and IS NOT making a profit."
No, it isn't, but part of the "promise" was to have 41 dates with 13,000+ fans. Never going to happen and P&L will always struggle.
By the way, is Paul McGannon even a credible source anymore?
Chris, you're actually incorrect as well. The Coliseum is not in Uniondale proper; it's in an unincorporated portion of the Town of Hempstead (for the uninitiated, NY has a hierarchy of villages/cities within towns within counties).
Therefore, all legal maneuverings relate directly to the Town of Hempstead. I know that's different from "Hempstead, NY" (which is construed to be the village, not the town).
It's standard operating procedure - owner wants something, threatens to move elsewhere, and 95% of the time a deal gets worked out. No one was beyond pie-in-the-sky hopes that the Isles would come here.
"Wang has spent the past three years trying to convince Hempstead, New York, to build a massive development with a hockey arena for his team..."
Wrong. The Isles are not in Hempstead NY, first off- they are in Uniondale NY. But they (among many others) are located in a particular district called the Town of Hempstead. Contrary to your statements, the Islanders have not asked the town to build them anything- nor will they.
Ive been telling you people that Charles Wang is not moving the Islanders out of their cable region... but instead of believing it, you chose to continue perpetuating delusions of your own making. Hope it was worth it for you.
Agree with Matt.
And for the jillionth time, KC-area residents are paying next to nothing for the Sprint Center. It's funded with rental car and hotel taxes, the vast majority of which are paid by visitors. Plus, the arena actually turns a profit.
The Sprint Center is not part of the P&L District, which IS funded by KCMO taxpayers and IS NOT making a profit.
Meh, it was never going to happen anyway. KC has it's chance with the Scouts, then with the Blades... and now it's the Mavericks ! They did quite well last season (their inaugural) and are on par to do well again this year.
As much as I would love to get an NHL team here, I just don't think KC has the fan base necessary to support them. The Sprint Center will continue to be used for motivational speakers and Miley Cyrus concerts.
"All would have been glad to cheer on Sidney Crosby and his teammates on their ice."
No, we would have been glad to cheer anyone on the ice to at least give some justification for spending $300M of taxpayer money so that the guy who runs AEG can avoid paying taxes because he files as an S-corp. Remember these are the same guys they want you to think need tax cuts so they can spur job growth...
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