NHL needs to get fixed

[DayWalker]

look
i'm not a NHL fan but when i saw drp1zza vid about THE NHL and Gary Bettman cause problems to the NHL about teams
i look into NHL team markets in the area (Although i'm doing business in school)i found that people in canada like ice hockey more then amercians
drp1zza vid about NHL and it's problems :


look at
Winnipeg Jets should come back to NHL and return and look at arizona fanbase it's low And only thing thats arizona is intested is american football,baseball,basketball and i do want arizona coyotes to go back to winepeg jets

Atlanta Thrashers should get move to the north of america or canada the only thing that atlanta is intrested in is the same thing as arizona like

Florida Panthers and any other teams who are in the south of amercan expect for dallas star should get moved to the north of amercian or to canada i think thats it really .
what do you think

[Goldash]

As a lifelong hockey fan, it's a slap in the face to me when I see arenas half-full in non-hockey markets. Despite the relative popularity of the sport more than a decade ago, hockey in the 21st Century has struggled to gain a huge following throughout the non-traditional American hockey markets.

Gary Bettman wants the sport to reach new heights in the States, so that's why he decided to move Hartford, Winnipeg and the former Minnesota North Stars to non-hockey markets. At this point, I agree, his plans have backfired and the teams have failed to gain popularity in these non-traditional markets.

Take the Carolina Hurricanes for example...I apologize to any native Carolinian on these forums, but during their 2006 playoff series against the Buffalo Sabres, tickets were still available in the RBC Center, whereas, in Buffalo, in a traditional hockey market (and a bordertown nonetheless), tickets were nowhere to be found, sold out for weeks in advance. Now, you could chalk that up to Buffalo's overall passion for their sports teams, but take it for what it is: Buffalo is a hockey market, Raleigh isn't. During the season, a hockey game of some sort can be seen 7 nights a week in Buffalo. In Carolina, it's basically FSN, Versus or bust.

I think more Canadian teams would strengthen the league. Of the 6 Canadian NHL teams, all six have strong fan bases and regularly sell out games...you can't say that about Dallas, Tampa Bay, Florida, Atlanta or Phoenix.

However, some of Bettman's experiments have worked very well. Colorado, San Jose and Columbus have been proven to be excellent hockey markets and have surprised many critics. HOWEVER, largely, Bettman's gambles have failed, and for a league begging for mainstream success south of the border, I think I point the finger to the man on top himself.

Hell, I may be completely off my rocker with this statement, but put a team in Stockholm (hockey is huge in Sweden) and it'll bring more fans in than any team in Phoenix would.

Hockey is, in my honest opinion, the best sport in the world. It's a damn shame that the post-lockout NHL isn't as accepted in the mainstream as the pre-lockout NHL was.

[mark294]

First off, I hope the Coyotes do get moved to Hamilton. Secondly, a Stockholm team wouldn't work. Too much travel for the Swedish team. But many of the southern America teams do fail, they should be moved to hockey markets.