Now to our last team we’re looking at being vulnerable for a move, the Buffalo Sabres. You had to know this troubled franchise was going to be on the list. Despite not having any issues with their arena, this team has had major attendance issues, not to mention a lot of turmoil and turnovers with GMs, coaches, and players. Plus, there’s the drama that eventually became the Jack Eichel trade. Let’s look at Buffalo.
The Sabres came in the league 52 years ago. In that time, they’ve gone through 5 ownership periods. Seymour Knox III and Northrup Knox were the original owners. John Rigas took the team to near bankruptcy, a point where they almost missed payroll. The NHL had the team for a year. Tom Golisan and Larry Quinn purchased the franchise. Then, Terry and Kim Pegula became owners in 2011 by purchasing the Sabres for $189 million. They were proclaimed saviors at the time because they didn’t have the highest bid, but the higher bidder’s purchase was contingent on moving the team, while the Pegulas were committed to Buffalo.
The Pegulas purchase of the team initially sparked the Sabres. They ended up making the playoffs that season when they were not expected to. But since that 2011 purchase and playoffs, it’s been a playoff drought. The Sabres have gone 11 seasons without a post-season appearance.
Even without a playoff appearance in 9 seasons, the 2019-20 season saw average attendance at 17,167. But then came COVID, the continuing GM/coach carousel, and the Jack Eichel drama and last season’s average was 8,700, approximately 45% of capacity at Key Bank Arena (the worst in the league). Fans seem to be fed up with the franchise, the season ticket base is now at an estimated 6,500, 1/3 of what it was in the 2010s.
In 2020 one fan took to Craigslist to demonstrate frustration with the franchise. Jill Thompson, a fan of the team since the late 80’s, put an ad on the website “…looking for a wealthy owner who actually understands hockey.” But when asked about the Sabres and Pegulas during the 2022 All-Star break, commissioner Gary Bettman told the media he had faith in the Pegulas, and he believed they could revive the franchise.
Around a year ago, former NHL GM and coach Doug MacLean told Nick Kypreos on his podcast he’d heard a friend of John Tortetella’s was linked to purchasing the Sabres. While nothing materialized from that, it’s interesting to note Kypreos commented he’d heard the Pegulas had been looking to move on from the NHL. That would make sense with their ownership of the NFL’s Buffalo Bills. A couple of other things that should be noted is that they run their sports teams from Boca Raton, Florida and Kim Pegula had health issues over the summer that lead her to be hospitalized in the ICU of a Boca Raton hospital. It could very well be that the 71-year-old Terry Pegula and his wife might be looking to lighten the load of their sports empire.
So, with only one playoff appearance right after the purchase and a 281-354-94 record since taking over, maybe it’s time for the Pegulas to move on. It seems like the team would be ripe for a for sale sign, as they do seem to be making some improvements on the ice. Could this be the time? Is there interest? Would there be a no move restriction? My bet is there are billionaires out there that’d love to own a sports franchise of any kind. I’d also bet given how the Pegulas purchased the team and the fact they own the Bills, a sale would contingent on the team staying in upstate New York.
Gary Bettman
NHL Back in Kansas City: Target #2: Calgary Flames
First off, I want to say I’m not going through the teams in any kind of order. And now on to the second team, it might be a shock to some, but the Calgary Flames are on the list. They only averaged 74.1% of capacity this past season (not sure if Canadian COVID regulations were taken into consideration for part of the 2021-22 season when calculating capacity). Of the teams I’m covering in this series, they had the highest percentage of capacity. But, even if the Flames are drawing well and putting a quality product on the ice, there are arena issues. They’ve been looking to get a new home built since 2017 and have had unsuccessful negotiations with the city. Deals have been struck on a couple of occasions, only to be backed out of. Could the Flames be looking for something better than what Calgary has to offer them?
Let’s start off with the history of the organization. The franchise was originally the Atlanta Flames. They started play in 1972, the team was quickly put in place to balance the NHL when they added the New York Islanders franchise to keep the WHA out of the brand-new Nassau Coliseum. The Flames were owned by a group that owned the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, led by real estate developer Tom Cousins. They played in Atlanta’s Omni Coliseum for eight seasons. Eventually Cousins was forced to sell the team to stave off bankruptcy. Former Edmonton Oilers owner Nelson Skalbania and a group of Calgary oil magnates purchased the team for $16 million. They announced on May 21, 1980, they would be moving the team to Calgary, Alberta, Canada. This gave the province of Alberta two NHL teams.
Skalbania sold his interest in 1981. Since then, the Flames have been under complete local ownership. The first three seasons, the team played in the Stampede Corral before moving to the Saddledome in 1983. The Saddledome was not only built to be the home of the Flames, but also to host the 1988 Winter Olympics. The Scotiabank Saddledome is still the home of the Flames, having served in that capacity for almost 40 years. This makes it the second-oldest arena in the NHL after the New York Rangers’ Madison Square Garden. It has been renovated once in 1994. It underwent some repairs due to flooding in 2013.
The team has expressed interest in getting a new arena since 2017. That was when they gave their first proposal to the city, but they eventually threw in the towel. In 2019, the Flames and city had reached an agreement, but it fell apart in 2021. The official termination of that deal happened January 1, 2022. There’s reportedly a $10 million gap between the city and team. In May, it was reported that a group of Calgary businessman was working as a go-between with the city and team in hopes of facilitating a new deal, but nothing has been reported recently.
While it sounds like this team would be ripe for a move, it’s unlikely with the local ownership group the Flames currently have. Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation own the WHL Calgary Hitmen, Calgary Stampeders Lacrosse team, Calgary Roughnecks (CFL), and Calgary Wranglers (AHL affiliate of Flames). They also have managed the Saddledome since 1994. With the group’s major local ties, it seems unlikely they would move. Yet, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has told the media Calgary will not host any NHL events (i.e. Draft, All-Star Game, Awards) unless they get a new building. If ownership and city continue to bicker on building a new arena, it might be possible that ownership gets frustrated enough they decide to sell. Only time will tell what happens with the franchise, but you never know, five years of trying to get a deal done seems like an awful long time for no ground to have been broken, yet.
Kansas City Blades Tribute Site 