Nordiques Nation

[Weave]

With the richest owner in Thompson and the 4th busiest rink in North America. Its not only about hockey in that rink its about entertainment.

 

I didn't realize that their rink was so busy. That certainly helps overcome the population size.

 

Economically Manitoba has been doing very well for over the past 10 years, throw in the high Canadian dollar and with a new arena and solid ownership they will do well.

 

The high Canadian dollar won't last forever (at least I hope that is the case because it will mean the Amrican economy has improved alot). And a wealthy owner is a huge plus. But that doesn't eliminate the small population as a factor. It does help cushion it though.

 

I hope Winnipeg as an NHL city comes back and lasts this time. I'm just acknowledging that the population is small and that might impact their ability to bring in revenue. If their owner is like ours and doesn't care about losing money it'll hopefully work out.

[MillerTime5]

Honestly? I don't know. One of the reasons the Jets ended up calling home in the desert was because of poor attendance. The weak Canadian dollar didn't help, but that team wasn't getting fan support either.If Winnipeg gets its' franchise back it will be the smallest market in the league (at least I think that's right). It will be at a disadvantage right from the start.

 

Fan support wont be an issue. The dollar was worth .60 cents in 1996 which meant they had to charge way more for tickets to compete. Even with that I STILL remember Kris King in tears at the "Save the Jets" rally that shut down Portage and Main. I still remember every McDonalds having a donation set up for "Save the Jets". I still remember seeing them play the Boston Bruins and the New York Islanders the last year they were here. I still remember the headlines the day they trade Selanne and the tears in his eyes when he was about to board his plane to Anaheim. My Uncle still has season tickets framed on his wall from their last season. Jets jersey are STILL among the best selling across the league.

 

The Manitoba Moose moved in right after the Jets left and support has never been an issue. They have the highest attendance and have for a long time and are probably the best run AHL franchise in the league.

 

The economic climate priced the franchise out of Winnipeg plain and simple. The league now has a salary cap to prevent that from ever happening again and the owners here have the money to back a team. They have run the Moose for 14 years and know exactly what they need to do to make it profitable in Winnipeg and they know it will be.