Quote:
Originally Posted by Locke
No Kidding. To this day I dont see how Atlanta got moved so easily but the NHL will scratch and claw to keep Phoenix in the league.
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Because there were always groups interested in operating a team in Phoenix.
There was no serious interest in Atlanta.
The same situation played out in Winnipeg in the 90s. 1994-95 was supposed to be the last year before the Jets moved to Minnesota. But when a credible opportunity for ownership opened up, the league held off. When that opportunity failed and no serious interest had replaced it, off to Phoenix the Jets went.
The other large difference is merely optics. the NHL was working behind the scenes for a long time to find an owner for the Thrashers. Atlanta Spirit never wanted the hockey team in the first place, and it was seven years from that purchase until the team relocated. Phoenix would have played out the same way except for Jim Balsillie's bankruptcy stunt. Much of the NHL's public fight for the Coyotes had to do with quashing the threat Balsillie's plan represented to every league's ability to control where their teams operate.