Quote:
Originally Posted by mistercorporate
Quebec built an expensive NHL-calibre ice rink in Quebec City, yet no franchise years later.
Montreal's been pushing hard for an MLB baseball team, yet nothing to show for it, not even the new stadium.
Toronto's MLSE made a bid for an NFL team, yet no luck so far.
CFL fans have been talking about a Halifax team for as long as I can remember, and yet still nothing, not even a stadium.
Is yet another rumour meaningful? I'll believe it when people exchange money and sign contracts.
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NHL to Quebec
MLB to Montreal
NBA to Montreal
NFL to Toronto
CFL to Halifax
NBA to Vancouver
So which of those scenarios is most likely?
IMO NHL to Quebec is hands down the most likely given that they have the market, and they have the building. The only question is whether they can get a leg up on bigger American cities.
I have a hard time with the NBA to Vancouver/Montreal scenarios. The buildings exist so it's obviously feasible, but I'm not convinced that there is much depth in those markets, especially Montreal. Does basketball fandom run deep enough to support a NBA team? That's a lot of $150 game tickets you need to hustle. I'm not sure it would work.
The baseball/football scenarios are obviously thwarted by lack of appropriate venues. I think MLB in Montreal, NFL in Toronto and CFL in Halifax would all be an easier sell than NBA in Vancouver/Montreal. But it could be a while before any of those get to play out, mainly because you're looking at well over a half billion for a MLB/NFL stadium, and probably around $200 million for a CFL stadium.