Name the Sister Franchise

[Funkhouser]

So, seeing a comment that Buffalo is the Edmonton of the East, it got me wondering who some other sister franchises are in the NHL?

Lets get this started...

EDM = BUF (could also be Islanders)
this one is obvious. Franchise centre (probably unhappy and wants to leave). Walking in the desert for years with high picks but no real results. Crappy, but stable ownership.

ARZ = FLO
Sun belt franchises that won't die despite their lack of fans and success.

SJ = TAM
Sun belt franchises that have established themselves and regularly have success and a strong fan base.

ANA = CAR
Both have won a cup, have fickle fanbases, and are considered a joke by much of the league.

VAN = TOR
Passionate fan bases, teams that haven't won a cup in decades (or ever), but have the young pieces in place to potentially win in the future.

CGY = PHI
Both franchises have had strong teams in their history but little success and inconsistent playoff berths. Both seem to go through a lot of goalies. Both have natural geographic rivals that always seem to have generational players.

MIN = CLB
Franchises established in 2000 who are middling and have had zero playoff success

CHI = PIT
Teams that had recent success and are keeping their aging stars together for another shot.

Other??
Who is Ottawa?? Islanders?

[SeanCharles]

I agree with PHI!

Ottawa = WPG

Somewhat forgotten Canadian org who always seem to draft well but it never amounts to anything?

[Poe969]

As much as I hate to say it, I think the Flames sister team is the leafs. My buddy is a leafs fan and whenever we're talking about hockey, it seems like both teams are in the same position. They were good a long time ago and have since mired in the sea of mediocrity since. Both teams have had a good stretch here or there but they're not really contenders or a true powerhouse. Both need a lot of work to take the next step.

I do agree with the Philly comparison though. To me Ottawa and NJ are a lot alike.

[Crown Royal]

Edmonton is more like the Islanders IMO. Dynasties in the 80s, were poorly run for for many years by former players and have seemingly righted the ship by hiring a GM without ties to the organization.

Leafs are like the Rangers, O6 teams with little to no success post-expansion despite having massive payrolls pre-salary cap

[Roof-Daddy]

Chicago - Pittsburgh

[CalgaryFan1988]

I agree with the Philly comparison too.

One opposite though is our best playoff performance in the last 20 years the goalie was the anchor, while theirs were always the Achilles heel.

[BrennyBaller]

Another thing that makes us and Philly good sister teams is that we have heated rivalries with interstate (province) teams that have the "star" players and tend to be more successful and marketed. Gretzky/Messier & Lemieux/Jagr and McDavid/Draisaitl & Crosby/Malkin.

[getbak]

Even the Flames and Flyers logos are similar in that they're the city's initial with something coming off the left side that represents the team's name.

[PepsiFree]

Yup, Calgary is Philly west.

Edmonton and NYI makes more sense to me, WPG is probably a better BUF sister.

LA = MON

CHI = PIT

BOS = COL

MIN = NJ

NAS = STL

LV = CLB

[Scroopy Noopers]

I understand the points being made... but Philly? Polar opposite fan bases.

[Funkhouser]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

Yup, Calgary is Philly west.

Edmonton and NYI makes more sense to me, WPG is probably a better BUF sister.

LA = MON

CHI = PIT

BOS = COL

MIN = NJ

NAS = STL

LV = CLB

Please elaborate (I agree w Chi - Pit)

[Sylvanfan]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

MIN = NJ

Maybe in the past 10 years, but prior to that the Devils had been a strong franchise for a lot of years. To me Dallas and New Jersey are more similar.

Minnesota is a lot more Columbus to me.

[Monahammer]

Originally Posted by Crown Royal

Edmonton is more like the Islanders IMO. Dynasties in the 80s, were poorly run for for many years by former players and have seemingly righted the ship by hiring a GM without ties to the organization.

Leafs are like the Rangers, O6 teams with little to no success post-expansion despite having massive payrolls pre-salary cap

I'll have some of what you're smoking please

[ForeverFlameFan]

Add to the CGY-PHI comparisons of inconsistent playoff berths. IIRC they’ve been switching off since 2014 of whoever makes it in. Calgary with odd years and Philly with evens. This may be the final year where we both make it.

[Funkhouser]

Ok, I'm editing the list to add some of the ideas here.

Keep 'em coming!

[Funkhouser]

nm

[FlamesAddiction]

Philly was the one that came to mind for me immediately as well. They always have to work harder for their success than their state rival who was handed generational talent twice.

Pittsburgh is actually a nice city though, so I wouldn't compare them to Edmonton.

[MrMike]

Originally Posted by Funkhouser

Please elaborate (I agree w Chi - Pit)

Without him elaborating, I actually agree with most of those. They do mirror each other in a lot of ways, especially Bos-Col

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Sylvanfan

Maybe in the past 10 years, but prior to that the Devils had been a strong franchise for a lot of years. To me Dallas and New Jersey are more similar.

Minnesota is a lot more Columbus to me.

I could see that.

Without getting into too much detail (of my completely subjective comparisons lol) I tried to look at franchises with similar appeal, success/failures, makeup, and prestige in the last 15 or so years (not exact, just recent history).

The reason for that being the complete disparity in franchise ages and how older teams shift their identity and success over time, so it's harder to pick who Vegas compares to, for example. I also found that I couldn't really name sister franchises for every team, because there are some that really are in their own little strange world (like the unique tire fire in Ottawa).

Either way, it's a pretty fun exercise. CGY/PHI, EDM/NYI, WPG/BUF, and CHI/PIT were definitely the easiest comparisons for me.

[CSharp]

I would almost say that the St Louis Blues is the Flames sister team. They have dealt with each other through trades numerous times in the past. As well, both have only one 1 Stanley Cup in their whole entire existence in the NHL. Both teams seem to suck in the playoffs, especially getting out of the first rounds. Flames won in 1989 and Blues won in 2019 - exactly 30 years apart. The jersey color and logo seem to be the exact reverse - red vs blue and the logo seems like a reverse image on a mirror.