The Thrashers didn't have any owners when they were sold to Winnipeg. It was either Winnipeg or the team folded.
The NHL doesn't relocate teams often because it affects their speculative value. Buyers are more willing to pay a higher price if teams aren't moving around every two or three years. Show a commitment to a market with a plan and people will pony up money for franchises.
The NHL did not move Arizona because they're committed to the market (like they are with every market) and moving shows a sign of weakness in the product. Phoenix is one of the fastest growing, largest metro areas in the US, with a vast ethnic community; the NHL isn't walking away from that.
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Originally Posted by drewber
Might want to check your facts there. NHL is a gate driven League not tv driven. Very simple research could of confirmed that for you
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You're incorrect. As two examples, the NYRangers had $270M in revenues in the last season and only $103M of that derived from gate receipts, and Calgary had revenue of $138M with only $62M of it derived from gate receipts. Teams can survive on short-term without fans in stands because a lot of their revenue is derived from commercial sponsorships and media agreements.
https://www.forbes.com/nhl-valuations/list/#tab:overall
Leagues like the CFL and CHL are vastly gate-driven and thus might not come out of COVID unscathed.