UPDATE: Return of the Quebec Nordiques? "Possible", say RDS, Corus Sports, other sources

Logic would suggest Les Nordiques would seek to evoke the best aspects of their past, with a jersey that remains popular to this day...

davetherave wrote:Logic would suggest Les Nordiques would seek to evoke the best aspects of their past, with a jersey that remains popular to this day...

Wow, a blast from the past. God, they had some great teams after leaving Quebec. Great GM too, who somehow found a way to add that big piece for the playoff push.

Sakic and Forsberg havent aged since that picture

Foot on the other hand...

With the recent news about serious money backing the return of Nordiques, we now add news of interest in bringing back the Jets...could we see eight Canadian teams in the NHL before long?

davetherave wrote:With the recent news about serious money backing the return of Nordiques, we now add news of interest in bringing back the Jets...could we see eight Canadian teams in the NHL before long?

Not as long as Bettman is running the league.

Hoags wrote:

davetherave wrote:With the recent news about serious money backing the return of Nordiques, we now add news of interest in bringing back the Jets...could we see eight Canadian teams in the NHL before long?

Not as long as Bettman is running the league.

You evidently haven't read this post, nor listened to Bettman say he's now ready to consider it.
http://www.gmhockey.com/member-s-story-breakers-f8/update-return-of-the-quebec-nordiques-possible-say-rds-and-corus-sports-t2402-30.htm?sid=8123857af98f834624cc97d79e10d7ab#111968

NHL Deputy Commish Bill Daly has already visited the investor group in Quebec.

Hoags wrote:

davetherave wrote:With the recent news about serious money backing the return of Nordiques, we now add news of interest in bringing back the Jets...could we see eight Canadian teams in the NHL before long?

Not as long as Bettman is running the league.

Now, hold on. By getting 8 Canadian teams he would be snubbing Jim's "MakeItSeven" campaign. Plus two more Canadian teams while still shutting him out? I can see how this could spark some interest from Gary.

wprager wrote:

Hoags wrote:

davetherave wrote:With the recent news about serious money backing the return of Nordiques, we now add news of interest in bringing back the Jets...could we see eight Canadian teams in the NHL before long?

Not as long as Bettman is running the league.

Now, hold on. By getting 8 Canadian teams he would be snubbing Jim's "MakeItSeven" campaign. Plus two more Canadian teams while still shutting him out? I can see how this could spark some interest from Gary.

Well said. I would tend to agree. I'm sure Lil' Gary has no interest in relocating teams "up there" but sticking it to Ballzebub would tempt him for sure.

SeawaySensFan wrote:

wprager wrote:

Hoags wrote:

davetherave wrote:With the recent news about serious money backing the return of Nordiques, we now add news of interest in bringing back the Jets...could we see eight Canadian teams in the NHL before long?

Not as long as Bettman is running the league.

Now, hold on. By getting 8 Canadian teams he would be snubbing Jim's "MakeItSeven" campaign. Plus two more Canadian teams while still shutting him out? I can see how this could spark some interest from Gary.

Well said. I would tend to agree. I'm sure Lil' Gary has no interest in relocating teams "up there" but sticking it to Ballzebub would tempt him for sure.

You're not saying Gary is looking for revenge...are you?

davetherave wrote:

You're not saying Gary is looking for revenge...are you?

The only way to confirm that he is looking revenge would be if one or two teams were relocated and he was quoted as saying "this isn't about revenge".

davetherave wrote:
You evidently haven't read this post, nor listened to Bettman say he's now ready to consider it.
http://www.gmhockey.com/member-s-story-breakers-f8/update-return-of-the-quebec-nordiques-possible-say-rds-and-corus-sports-t2402-30.htm?sid=8123857af98f834624cc97d79e10d7ab#111968

NHL Deputy Commish Bill Daly has already visited the investor group in Quebec.

I'll believe it when I see it, I think Bettman is still obsessed with his expansion into the southern US.

He'll put a team in New Orleans before he gives Canada another team, but I would love to be wrong on this one.

The return of Les Nordiques looks more and more like a realistic possibility, according to Le Soleil, La Presse Canadienne and RDS.

Gary Bettman has apparently met with the Mayor of Quebec City, and former Nordiques owner and current principal of the investors group Marcel Aubut, to discuss the construction of an NHL arena in the city. As previously noted, the proposal is reportedly already supported by the Quebec Government and the Federal Government, with a subsidy of $175MM being discussed.

The Mayor has stated the new Colisée would be part of a $400MM development project.

Excerpt from RDS' report here:

Le maire de Québec, Régis Labeaume, et l'ancien président des Nordiques de Québec, Marcel Aubut, ont rencontré en catimini le commissaire de la Ligue nationale de hockey, Gary Bettman, vendredi à New York.

Ce bref périple des deux hommes survient au moment où s'intensifie une rumeur à l'effet qu'une annonce importante serait faite la semaine prochaine sur la construction d'un nouvel amphithéâtre à Québec.

Article here:
http://www.rds.ca/hockey/chroniques/283953.html

The report, also confirmed by The Gazette today:

Quebec City’s mayor and the former owner of the Quebec Nordiques met with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman Friday in New York City, the French-language television network LCN has reported.

According to the report, Mayor Régis Labeaume and Marcel Aubut discussed the possibility of Quebec City getting a new NHL team.

The meeting took place as rumours are swirling about a new arena to be built to replace the old Colisée, where the Quebec Nordiques played from the time they were established in the World Hockey Association in 1972 until the franchise was sold and moved to Colorado in 1995. At the time, Aubut wanted the provincial government to chip in the funds needed to build a new arena.

Bettman has said that building a new arena would be a key to establishing a new franchise in Quebec City.

LCN reported an announcement either about the arena or a new NHL franchise could come next week.

http://www.montrealgazette.com/Former+Nordiques+owner+mayor+meet+Commish/2090732/story.html

Exciting news for longtime Nordiques fans, and all hockey fans who want to see more franchises in Canada.

This would be great.... But it's still way's away IMO.

Now Pierre Karl Peladeau, head of Quebecor and most recently mentioned as one of the likely major investors in a return of the Nordiques, has gone on the record with his support.

From an article today by Marc Andre Seguin, syndicated by Sun Media:

Quebecor boss Pierre Karl Peladeau has been keeping an eye out for an NHL franchise to buy and re-locate to Quebec City. According to Peladeau, the "winning conditions" needed to be successful in such an endeavour are "more and more numerous."

After the meeting between Quebec City Mayor Regis Labeaume, former Nordiques owner Marcel Aubut and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman was made public, Peladeau is fuelling the rumours that a NHL hockey club could make a return to the city.

Peladeau said yesterday that he was keeping up on what teams could become for sale "if we decide to re-locate teams to Canada", adding that he was very aware of the financial difficulties facing some American hockey clubs.

The word that Peladeau could become involved in the push for another Canadian franchise comes just as observers are becoming more and more optimistic that Quebec could be next in line for a pro hockey team.

While Peladeau said it will take the involvement of more people to make something this big happen, he said his team was working hard to figure out the "winning recipe".

And while he acknowledged that a new hockey club arriving in Quebec City isn't "for tomorrow, or for next week", the businessman seems nonetheless confident that it could happen.

Peladeau confirmed that he has also "frequently" met with Labeaume, with whom he has discussed the idea of bringing hockey back to the city.

According to several sources, Peladeau is actively searching for partners in the city to bring the plan to fruition.

Peladeau, meanwhile, said he "wasn't specifically" looking for partners but that he had been talking with business people in the area.

"But it's undeniable that forming a group to explore bringing a club to Quebec is desirable," he said.

Peladeau also said he was pleased to see a positive relationship between Labeaume and Bettman, adding that the way they were going about the situation was "appropriate."

"You have to respect the NHL institution," Peladeau said. "We saw what happened with Jim Balsillie."

Full text here: http://www.ottawasun.com/sports/hockey/2009/10/11/11369331-sun.html

Sounds like the possibility is not so remote...

But what if Bettman says 'okay, go build an arena and a team is yours' then when all is said and done he reneges on his promise and the city and investors are out a lot of money. Would he be held liable? Of course I don't think anyone would build an arena unless it was written in paper that thet eam would be in Quebec by a set date.

davetherave wrote:With the recent news about serious money backing the return of Nordiques, we now add news of interest in bringing back the Jets...could we see eight Canadian teams in the NHL before long?

Define long?

5 years? Doubt it.

20 years? Maybe.

I think 5-7 year range is realistic.

shabbs wrote:

davetherave wrote:With the recent news about serious money backing the return of Nordiques, we now add news of interest in bringing back the Jets...could we see eight Canadian teams in the NHL before long?

Define long?

5 years? Doubt it.

20 years? Maybe.

You're just sore because your pal BlackBerry Jim couldn't get his team, aren'tcha? Say, that would have been in your backyard too.

---


Meanwhile, this from the New York Times today:

Quebec City mayor Régis Labeaume confirms that he and former Nordiques owner Marcel Aubut met with N.H.L. commissioner Gary Bettman about the possibility of re-establishing a team in la capitale. Deputy commissioner Bill Daly later says the chances of placing teams in Quebec and Winnipeg have “real potential.”

The news comes amid reports of an impending announcement that a new, N.H.L.-standard rink will be built to replace Le Colisée, the Nordiques’ home from their founding in the W.H.A. in 1972 until they left for Denver in 1995, where the next season they won the Stanley Cup as the Colorado Avalanche.

Story here:
http://slapshot.blogs.nytimes.com/

The momentum around the possible return of Les Nordiques becoming reality, appears to be building.

Quebecor's Pierre Peladeau, former suitor for Le Canadien, came out in an interview this week saying he is actively looking to purchase an existing NHL franchise, and is monitoring the situation closely in co-operation with the league. Peladeau is one the key potential investors in support of the bid.

Now NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly, in an interview with Quebec City radio station CJMF 93.3 FM, says that "Quebec is at the top of list" of cities to be in line for an NHL team, contingent on the building of the new stadium proceeding as envisioned.

Daly states that certain franchises currently experiencing financial difficulty could be candidates for relocation to Quebec. He further emphasized that Quebec City, while a smaller market, has a significant, passionate fanbase that would ensure the support of the team.

Excerpt from the article by RDS' Nicolas Chéné today:

L’équipe du FM 93,3, une radio de Québec, a diffusé ce matin les extraits d'une entrevue avec Bill Daly, le numéro 2 de la Ligue nationale de hockey, sur le dossier du retour de la LNH à Québec.

Si monsieur Daly a tenu à marteler que la Ligue « n’avait pris aucun engagement envers Québec », il a toutefois ajouté qu’à New York, on suivait attentivement le dossier et que l’on connaissait la teneur de l’annonce qui sera faite par le maire Régis Labeaume d’ici la fin de la semaine. Il a même, à deux reprises, mentionné que « Québec est en haut de liste » pour ravoir une concession dans l’éventualité où un nouvel amphithéâtre serait construit.

Se montrant encourageant, il a même spécifié deux scénarios possibles à la venue d’une équipe dans la Vieille Capitale. D’abord, et c’est ce que souhaite la Ligue, c’est que toutes les concessions actuelles se mettent à bien fonctionner, ce qui rendrait des plans d’expansion plus qu’envisageable. Puis, admettant que « certaines franchises sont présentement en difficultés », il a avoué que si leur situation ne s’améliorait pas, un déménagement serait possible.

Questionné à savoir si la ville de Québec comptait suffisamment d’habitants pour faire vivre une concession de la LNH, monsieur Daly a reconnu que la ville est petite, mais que ce qui compte le plus « c’est la grande base de partisans et la riche tradition de hockey qu’il y a à Québec.»

Full text here:

http://www.rds.ca/hockey/chroniques/284166.html

The plan to bring back Les Nordiques continues to progress, with Quebec City Mayor Régis Labaume announcing plans for a new area, starting with a site study by industry heavyweights SNC Lavallin. Several reports have appeared on the subject from a variety of major media sources including Canwest and ESPN. This excerpt from Canwest News Services today:

Quebec City Mayor Regis Labeaume on Friday announced plans to build a $400-million NHL-sized arena in the hope of bringing back a professional hockey team to the city that was home to the Nordiques until 1995.

The mayor laid out plans to build the modern 18,000-seat arena, which will be used as a concert venue and a hockey arena.

He also noted the amphitheatre would be part of an eventual bid for hosting the Winter Olympics.

Link to Canwest article here:
http://www.faceoff.com/story.html?id=fca87bc8-c022-43ce-a73f-51d2e691ee61&add_feed_url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.faceoff.com%2ftopstories.atom

The provincial and federal governments are seen as contributing $350MM in subsidies as a baseline investment.

One key to this bid is the participation of Pierre Péladeau and Quebecor; and the TQS broadcast network. Apparently TV revenues in from Canadian networks contribute significantly to the NHL's bottom line, these being estimated at around $800MM per year (CBC, TSN, and RDS combined).

Peladeau and TQS being able to leverage the Quebec and francophone fan base, the revenue from ticket sales would be augmented sufficiently to make the operation viable.

Based on the information provided to date, it would seem that the elements may now be in place for the second edition of Les Nordiques to succeed.

Timing appears to be forecast as early as the 2012-13 season.

It will interesting to see if and when an existing franchise is considered for relocation to Quebec; and if 'special consideration' sees a team moving to Le Colisée in the interim.