Today's post comes from an email that was sent to me asking if the league would ever consider contraction, specifically to 26 teams. The idea being that with contraction you would have less financially struggling teams and thus a more profitable league. The simple answer is no.
Contraction is never going to happen unless of course aliens from outer space wage a galactic war or there is a nuclear apocalypse (sorry I watched Book of Eli the other day, great movie). Seriously though, the NHL wouldn't contract because doing so would destroy any profit the league is currently making. If you have less teams and less marketing, TV ratings would go down, which means TV rights would become less expensive. Of course everything else would take a hit too. What advertiser is going to want to pay the same price for a sponsorship if fewer eyeballs are seeing their message? Less arenas also means less revenue from corporate boxes, season subs, fan clubs, you name it. The financial implications would be far worse than having several teams that don’t perform to the bottom line.
I feel like the whole notion of contraction was invented by members of the media. Hockey writers, like every other writer, need web hits and newspapers to be sold. The best way to generate buzz is to be controversial and what's more controversial than suggesting that the NHL whack your favorite hockey team?
Look, several years ago writers wanted to get rid of the Capitals and the Penguins for the same reasons everyone wants to oust the Coyotes, Thrashers, Panthers, Predators, and Blue Jackets. They see bad attendance numbers and they react. Where are the Caps and Penguins now? The arenas are packed, ratings are through the roof, and more importantly they're profitable.
Hockey can work in Nashville, Phoenix and Columbus too; they just need better lease agreements, better buildings, and teams that can produce consistently. The Panthers and Thrashers I am not so sure about given the demographics of their markets, but having them fold isn't the answer. They just need to be relocated to either the Pacific Northwest or Canada; places where hockey can actually thrive.
Personally, I am a big fan of relocating a team to the Pacific Northwest. There are a lot of sponsors located in that region of the country, there is a thirst for hockey, it's a major TV market and it's geographically close to Vancouver, so an awesome rivalry could form without breaching territorial marketing rights.
Every sports league has its ugly ducks, hockey is no different. So before the press goes and wipes the Coyotes out of existence, which they've been doing since their inception, realize they are trying to get your attention and not necessary expand the game in practical matters.
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