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Expansion, Contraction, Relocation... Hear Me Out

Mar. 24, 2021 at 8:23 a.m.
#1
MakingMoves121
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Here's a crazy idea.... hear me out.

2022 - The Sabres and Coyotes contract. Players enter a dispersal draft.

2024 - Florida relocates to Buffalo.

2026 - NHL awards expansion teams to Quebec City and Houston.



Players in Buffalo and Arizona get a fresh start on new teams. Dispersal draft is one round, no limit on who can get picked from where. Non-selected players enter waivers. Those not picked at the end become free agents. All non-picked players under 20 enter upcoming NHL Draft for reselection. Order of dispersal draft will be contingent on multiple factors, including record in the last 10 seasons, playoff appearances, Cups won, first-overall draft selections, etc.

Panthers finally leave Florida to bring hockey back to Buffalo.

Two new teams join the league, league benefits from additional expansion money. Coin flip determines who picks first.
Mar. 24, 2021 at 8:41 a.m.
#2
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Quoting: MakingMoves121
Here's a crazy idea.... hear me out.

2022 - The Sabres and Coyotes contract. Players enter a dispersal draft.

2024 - Florida relocates to Buffalo.

2026 - NHL awards expansion teams to Quebec City and Houston.



Players in Buffalo and Arizona get a fresh start on new teams. Dispersal draft is one round, no limit on who can get picked from where. Non-selected players enter waivers. Those not picked at the end become free agents. All non-picked players under 20 enter upcoming NHL Draft for reselection. Order of dispersal draft will be contingent on multiple factors, including record in the last 10 seasons, playoff appearances, Cups won, first-overall draft selections, etc.

Panthers finally leave Florida to bring hockey back to Buffalo.

Two new teams join the league, league benefits from additional expansion money. Coin flip determines who picks first.


The NHL will not let teams fold, but i could see Buffalo relocating to somehwere else
Mar. 24, 2021 at 2:45 p.m.
#3
torontos finest
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I strongly doubt Arizona and Buffalo move. Contracting rarely happens and it's usually because the owner can't pay the revenue to continue funding the team. Nowadays in that case, it would simply just be sold off. The NHL will move hell and earth to keep a franchise in Phoenix and Buffalo has a strong enough market to keep the team in place.

Florida's issues have a lot to blame on the location of their arena. It's 10 miles from downtown Fort Lauderdale and almost 30 miles from downtown Miami. The latter is the distance of driving from Washington to Baltimore. They'd be better off retrofitting the AAA to accommodate hockey that move out of the state. Which leads me to my next point, relocating the Panthers to Buffalo and calling them the Sabres wouldn't be the "Sabres". This is kind of what happened with the Cleveland Browns, the real Browns moved to Balitmore, and the current "Browns" is an expansion franchise. The Sabres have a long enough history where them losing their team and it getting replaced entirely just wouldn't feel right.
A_Habs_fan liked this.
Mar. 25, 2021 at 1:44 p.m.
#4
LongtimeLeafsufferer
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IMO, the NHL has been pretty unsuccessful in having viable franchises in many cities. And there isn't really any more cities that could support NHL franchises long term.
The majority of current owners don't want contraction because it effect it makes the value of some their franchises virtually nothing.
Mar. 25, 2021 at 4:41 p.m.
#5
Former Hockey Fan
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Quoting: A_Habs_fan
The NHL will not let teams fold, but i could see Buffalo relocating to somehwere else


The problem in Buffalo isn’t the market. The problem is that the team has been miserable for over a decade. Relocating the team changes none of their issues.
Mar. 25, 2021 at 4:47 p.m.
#6
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Quoting: Kotkaniemi15
The problem in Buffalo isn’t the market. The problem is that the team has been miserable for over a decade. Relocating the team changes none of their issues.


Problem with Buffalo is ownership
 
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