Monday February 10, 2003
According to a study done by Buffalo Business First, yes Orlando is the most able "new" market to support an NHL franchise, atleast money wise that is. Here's some of what this very interesting article had to say:
If the NHL eventually opts for relocation, there is no shortage of prospective sites. Twenty-six U.S. markets have the economic potential to support a major-league hockey team, according to a Business First analysis.
The list ranges from obvious contenders like Orlando, Houston and Portland, Ore., to unexpected choices like Des Moines, Fresno and Jackson, Miss.
Business First crunched the numbers for 151 U.S. markets that currently are outside the NHL.
Our first step was to use data on team revenues and ticket prices to estimate the total personal income (TPI) that a market would need to support an NHL team � a minimum of $25.95 billion. TPI is the sum of all money earned by all residents of an area in a given year.
We then calculated each market's capacity for an NHL franchise by taking the area's TPI and subtracting the amounts needed to support existing major-league baseball, football, basketball and soccer teams, as well as major-college football and basketball teams.
The study aimed to determine only if a given market's income base was strong enough for the NHL. It did not focus on a myriad of other factors that would influence the selection of a new home for the Sabres, such as a willing buyer, a satisfactory arena and a good supply of hockey fans.
Orlando ended up with the highest score, 2.31, indicating that it has the economic capacity for 2.31 NHL franchises.
The Top 10:
1. Orlando (2.31) � Orlando's residents have enough money to comfortably support another team besides the Magic of the National Basketball Association. And the city attracts millions of tourists who have even more millions of dollars to spend.
2. Houston (2.23) � The National Football League returned to Houston last year, but there's still space available for another newcomer. The NHL is intrigued by the large size of the market, which has 4.8 million residents, many of whom are transplanted Northerners.
3. Portland (1.91) � The NBA has been in Portland for more than 30 years. The simple question is who will get there next. Portland has more than enough money to support a hockey, football or soccer team, perhaps even two of the three.
4. Grand Rapids (1.77) � Michigan's second-largest city is unknown to the big leagues, but has made its mark in the minors, supporting farm teams avidly in hockey and baseball. Also impressive is Grand Rapids' income base, 80 percent larger than an NHL team would need.
5. Norfolk (1.72) � The interest is there. Hampton Roads, as the Norfolk region is known, tried and failed to land an NHL expansion team in the late 1990s. The metro area has 1.6 million people, nearly half-a-million more than Buffalo does.
6. Richmond (1.63) � Richmond has minor-league hockey, but is hardly a hotbed. It also would be a step down in population, with 125,000 fewer residents than the Buffalo area.
7. Rochester (1.56) � Rochester has 1.1 million people, a strong income base, and major corporations like Eastman Kodak, Xerox and Bausch & Lomb. It's also the home of B. Thomas Golisano, who remains interested in buying the Sabres.
8. Greensboro (1.55) � Greensboro already has had a taste of the NHL, having served as temporary home of the Carolina Hurricanes, who now reside in Raleigh. Attendance was so poor that the league won't be coming back.
9. Las Vegas (1.43) � Las Vegas is America's fastest-growing metro. It clearly has the money to support a team in almost any sport. The issue is who will take a gamble (weak pun intended) on a city dominated by the gaming industry.
10. Little Rock (1.41) � The NHL in a small Southern metro (population: 600,000) with no hockey tradition? The income data may say yes, but logic says otherwise.
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