While it may be chic and cliché to bash the NHL for its Sun Belt expansion under Commissioner Gary Bettman, a deeper look reveals that it is a good idea if it is done with solid ownership that can put a winning team on the ice. Tampa Bay, Nashville, Dallas, Carolina, and, yes, even the Miami-based Florida Panthers have shown that winning hockey will sell out buildings in the Sun Belt. Even the dearly departed Atlanta Thrashers drew well in their playoff season of 2006-07. All of which leads to an exciting possibility in the gambling mecca of the universe.
The National Hockey League has the opportunity to be the first major professional sports league in history to place a team in Las Vegas, Nevada. What was once considered taboo is now a 50/50 roll of the dice. The major professional sports leagues have all been leery about placing a team in Las Vegas due to the gambling element, but the NHL has warmed up to the idea in recent years and now holds its annual awards banquet in Sin City each summer.
Billionaire title insurance businessman Bill Foley leads an ownership group that will launch a season ticket reservation drive next February with the goal of proving to the NHL that there is enough interest in Sin City to gain admittance to the NHL.
Mutual Interest
Foley stated that, “Las Vegas is a sports town. If we can deliver the right product on the ice, people will support it.
“The NHL is very interested in Las Vegas,” he added. “They want to make sure that if it comes to Las Vegas it will be supported by locals, not just out-of-towners.”
Therein lies the big question that offsets the theory of why the NHL would work in Las Vegas. It is believed that the casinos would offset any lack of local ticket sales by buying out the tickets to NHL games in which they would distribute to high rollers. The reality is that a strong base of local support will be needed to make hockey fly in the desert.
The Case for Vegas
The city of Las Vegas has familiarity with the world’s fastest sport. The NHL Los Angeles Kings play two exhibition games there each September at the MGM Grand in what is known as the “Frozen Fury.” The Las Vegas Wranglers had a decade long run in the East Coast Hockey League until The Orleans casino decided to get out of the hockey business last year.
Las Vegas recently broke ground on a new $375 million arena that will be perfectly located on the strip near New York New York and the Monte Carlo with a seating capacity of 20,000. NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly recently inspected the construction site.
Although Las Vegas ranks 42nd in the United States for TV market size there would be no other major league franchises to compete with.
Corporate sponsorship is a given with the casinos certainly wanting to support the potential NHL team and there is no doubt that visiting teams will bring in thousands of fans when they visit. The economy is finally picking up in Las Vegas after it was battered badly with the 2008 crash. There is no state income tax which will certainly be an attraction to players.
There are plenty of reasons why NHL hockey could work in Sin City.
The Case against Vegas
The best city to compare Las Vegas to is Miami, Florida, home of the NHL Florida Panthers. Las Vegas is a transient city populated by few locals with long term ties to the community and sports loyalties in other parts of the USA. Much of the workforce works during evening hours when games would take place.
The city itself is overloaded with entertainment and shopping opportunities that would compete for the top dollars required to attend NHL games. A team in Vegas would have to win and be a perennial contender to receive consistent fan support from a base that looks fickle compared to other markets.
After the Sugar Rush?
All Sun Belt hockey cities originally supported their new NHL teams with sellout crowds and enthusiasm. They also have proven willing to support winning teams that make the playoffs. But a losing team will rock empty barns after the first couple of years when the novelty of hockey wears off.
Final Verdict
Hockey is a guarantee to be big in Las Vegas for the first few years. But by year three or four the team had better be winning or casinos will be holding comp tickets that nobody will want. Do not underestimate the appeal of visiting teams and bringing huge packs of fans with them on special trips to the games that are tied into the local casino resorts. That will help offset any dip in the local market.
Expansion in Las Vegas is a revolutionary concept with a great chance for success if run the right way.
Go for it, NHL.
