NBC Sports considers the potential future destinations for the Arizona team, and tops on that list right now is Seattle, Washington. Kansas City gets a passing mention alongside Las Vegas, but neither is suggested as a realistic possibility. In fact, Kansas City is routinely brought into the discussion for one reason, which is oft-mentioned on sports blogs, and that reason is the state-of-the-art Sprint Center.
But it's been five years since the Sprint Center opened, and the accepted useful economic life of a stadium is only 30 years total. The first five years might even be the best, the honeymoon period when people are still enamored of the amenities because somebody hasn't yet gone and built a 160-foot-wide screen. At what point is the Sprint Center too old to be attractive to potential pro franchises looking to jump ship or owners of a new expansion team?
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Yes I can see the star-studded list of fans sitting court side at the games of our new Kansas City NBA team ...
uhh
George Brett, Danni Boatwright, David Cook, Melissa Etheridge, Darren Sproles, Don Cheadle, Eddie Griffin, Tom Watson, Courtney McCool, Donald Hall, Russel Stover and Rob Riggle.
uhh
No ownership group. No team. It's as simple as that. QC has an ownership group and may build an arena.
The NYI will move to Brooklyn and be fine. Brooklyn is still on the Island, after all.
The Columbus Blue Jackets just restructured their lease making it far more favorable to the franchise. They aren't going anywhere (even though it's currently the worst franchise in the four major sports).
@Vog. People get heated about hockey, not a problem. That said, civility is always appreciated. It's sadly in too short supply on here.
I know that Winnipeg had to sell 13,000 season tickets last year for their 15,000 seat arena. You had to buy a 5 year season ticket package, so I know several people who chipped in and are sharing it.
Show me a local ownership group and 12,000 people willing to spend an average of $2k per seat for season tickets and I'll buy KC's viability as an NHL market. Until then, we are a pawn for existing owners to use to get improvements to their existing situations.
Of course, the "tried it before, didn't work" argument doesn't really apply because of a large number of factors, such as arena quality, location of the arena, a winning team, other supporting components, and so on. Denver is a good example of that. The Scouts/Avalanche/Devils and New Avalanche were successful when they had the resources and record to consistently bring in the crowds. To compare KC with any Canadian city is also a useless argument: Look at how rabid the fans for even Junior hockey is up there; the crowds at an Ottawa '67s game would give you pause.
The Mavericks are a small example of why I think NHL would now work in KC. I, for one, would seriously consider selling my left kidney for season tickets if an NHL team landed here.
I moved to KC from Winnipeg this past summer, this is round 2 for this in the local news for me.
The dollar definitely makes a difference, as well as it being in Canada. I'm curious to see how the Bombers' attendance numbers turn out this year, since it'll be the first year with Jets & Bombers. That being said, the CFL season (July-Nov) has very little overlap with the NHL season, and the stadiums are much smaller than NFL stadiums (~30k).
I also believe that Winnipeg had an owner in place a while before they bought the Thrashers, patiently waiting for a team to go up for sale.
I do believe (from my limited KC knowledge), that there's potentially more money in KC. But there's also more large pro sports teams here. Winnipeg also has the Goldeyes for baseball, but the T-Bones are in the same league.
One of the greatest impediments to locating a team in Kansas City is the fact that it has been tired before and did not work. I know, Winnipeg and Quebec had teams before and they got back into the game, but so did Atlanta. How'd that work out? Winnipeg and Quebec are different in that (a) they are in Canada where the population craves hockey over all else, and (b) a major factor in losing their teams was a ridiculously low Canadian Dollar and unrestrained salaries.
Dollar? Check. Salary Cap? Check. Demand? Check.
Sorry KC - QC is up next. Your arena does look pretty slick though.
m.
Anony mouse Hockey is king in Canada. Winnipeg also supports the Blue Bombers(CFL) football. Granted it's not paying as much to the players but that being said it is a passionate town about all of it's sports. They just moved to a new Stadium despite not having won a Grey Cup since 1990. It's a small (700,000) metro area as compared to (2.2 million) Kansas City. (Source Wikipedia) I would think that with metro KC being 3 times the size of Winnipeg that the city would be able to support the team.
Anon You say Blue Jackets and Florida aren't losing money? I'd like to see your source. The most recent stories all point to bad times in Columbus. Florida on the other hand I'm unsure of. At the end of last season they were one of the teams being marked for relocation. If Dave Talon as GM continues to work his magic there that may very well change.
http://www.thecheapseats.ca/2011/11/columb…
I think the previous comments about the arena owners not being interested are the biggest hindrance to moving a team to KC are correct. Also an apology to Jonathan Bender, I enjoy your stories and it was wrong for me to call you out on not researching the subject. I get testy without my morning coffee. I do however stand by my opinion that your reasoning is wrong in this particular article.
Vog, I think you're comparing apples to oranges when you're comparing Kansas City's ability to handle an NHL team vs Winnipeg. You have to consider the fact that Winnipeg is in Canada, hockey is god there, Winnipeg wouldn't be able to keep an NFL team.
Columbus and Florida are not hemorrhaging money.
New Jersey however, is, as of this year.
Kansas City residents were hoodwinked by Kay Barnes and her conflict-of-interest best male pal, Phil Anschutz. Lied to would be the proper terminology as we were told time and time again that the minute the stadium was approved that KC would have both a NBA and NHL team. Sadly, this is the last thing on the agenda for Anschutz as it is more profitable to run music venues in the facility. Face up to it Kansas Citians you were swindled.
Supposedly, the Sprint Center is one of the most profitable and busy arenas in the country without a major tenant. Why bring in a mediocre pro team that'll reserve the venue fifty nights a winter (and fill half the arena), when you can get music acts to sell out the place at $60 a ticket?
Jonathan, you should do more homework before posting articles.
Firstly there is more than one team that is not profitable in its current location. The Phoenix Coyotes, the New York Islanders, Florida Panthers and Columbus Blue jackets all are hemorrhaging money. Out of those four teams I would bet that at least 2 of them will have to move.
Second, Quebec City is the next city to get a team, but as long as their new arena isn't completed, no team for them. Seattle, same issue, no arena, no team.
Considering these things where else can you go? Kansas City has the corporate base, the required population, and a facility in a good location in a downtown recognized as being top notch. If Winnepeg Manitoba can support a team so can Kansas City.
I don't think there's frankly enough entertainment money in KC to cover an NBA or NHL franchise. Tickets cost too much, period.
KC will never get an NBA or NHL team. The fact that it's still discussed shows how dumb most people in this city are. Show me the guy worth a few hundred million that would invest in a franchise? Show me the corporation that would invest in a franchise? Cerner already has Sporting KC.
This is a pro soccer town now. That is our alternative to NBA and NHL. Go support Sporting KC and forget about this pipedream.
Judging from the results I would say the minute it opened without an NHL (or NBA) team under contract.
It is already time to replace the fixtures in the bathrooms because the quality isn't that good. They saved money by using cheap.
Seattle doesn't have an NHL-ready arena. That's why the Supersonics are now in OKC. Key Arena is antiquated and even less suitable for the NHL than it was for the NBA. The only advantage that Seattle has over KC for landing the Coyotes is potential for a local owner/owners.
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