New Edmonton Arena Construction will begin in March 2014

[Vinny01]

Originally Posted by Tinordi

I really hope the city calls his bluff. The deal in place is already incredibly generous (too generous) to the Katz group.

Ultimate worst case scenario is the Oilers move and a new Oilers franchise moves to Edmonton within 2 years and the city saves a whack of cash.

I don't think that is even the worst case scenario. I personally think if Katz is so hell bent on improving his deal with the City the league will force him to try and sell the team to a group in Edmonton that is willing to work with the previous deal that Katz was on board with until recently.

I just don't see the league letting an owner move a team from a market like Edmonton when the city has committed plenty of money already to building a new downtown arena.

I think there is no chance the Oilers are moved out of Edmonton over this.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Reanimate

Haha, uh no, Edmonton would have a new franchise within a year.

Why does everyone think that a bleeding heart billionare will swoop in and pay hundreds of millions of dollars for a team to play in one of the oldest buildings in the league without assurances of a new building in it's future? Quebec City has passionate fans and would fill the old Quebec Coliseum but they still would never get a team unless they build a new arena. It's the economics of professional sports in this day and age that facilities are as imporant as the the product.

[WilderPegasus]

Originally Posted by valo403

In the short term they are, over the long term no, they're not. Not in that building.

What is going to change for them over the long term? Is the city of Edmonton going to go bust? Will new rinks make Northlands even more obsolete?

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Vinny01

I just don't see the league letting an owner move a team from a market like Edmonton when the city has committed plenty of money already to building a new downtown arena.

The league is comprised of owners that all look out for their best interests. Rexall is one of the oldest buildings in the league and the owners blocking a fellow owner of moving to a city that would provide a new building wouldn't sit well as Lemiex played the same card with Kansas City and I don't belive the owners would have stepped in there if the city of Pittsburgh didn't get a building done. At the end of the day the ownership group is united and would expect a market to pony up to keep their team and if Edmonton doesn't do that I don't see why the owners would lobby to keep a team in the city. Of course that would be last resort but if Katz could provide a compelling case I just can't see the league blocking him.

[valo403]

Originally Posted by WilderPegasus

What is going to change for them over the long term? Is the city of Edmonton going to go bust? Will new rinks make Northlands even more obsolete?

They'll continue to be stuck in a crumbling dump of a facility

[Cecil Terwilliger]

It just seems weird for a guy who picked those Oilers colors for his entire company and was a self described Oilers fanboy to be such a complete and utter piece of garbage (although that is fitting considering the dump that is Edmonton).

I can't wait until he moves the team and they burn every Rexall in that city to the ground.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Cecil Terwilliger

It just seems weird for a guy who picked those Oilers colors for his entire company and was a self described Oilers fanboy to be such a complete and utter piece of garbage (although that is fitting considering the dump that is Edmonton).

I can't wait until he moves the team and they burn every Rexall in that city to the ground.

Nice guys don't turn into billionares and Katz is conducting his ownership of the Oilers no differently than his Pharmacy Group. You have to have a degree of ruthlessness to be successful in big business and combine that with an ego to match and you can see why things have come to this.

[WilderPegasus]

Originally Posted by valo403

They'll continue to be stuck in a crumbling dump of a facility

Yes but Oiler fans have shown a willingness to shell out large amounts of money to watch terrible games in that crumbling dump of a facility. How do you see that ending?

[Tinordi]

I think Katz has really over played his hand here and shown weakness. The city would be wise to just stall on the arena deal and smoke him out.

[ernie]

While it is clearly a power play to pressure and leverage the lawmakers (see Pengins and Kansas City, The Patriots and Hartford) the Oilers do need a new facility or they will start to sink financially. Now obviously having a team capable of making the playoffs would help in that regard but they are leaving a lot of potential money on the table that they wouldn't with a new facility.

We can argue night and day over if that is the correct thing to do. If it's slimey or not. But the end result for a city like Edmonton (and Calgary), losing the NHL team would be a tremendous blow financially to many many businesses. Due to that these visits to other cities with facilities or soon to be facilities can create significant leverage....but only if you are ready to follow through on it. If he's simply bluffing and won't move the team then it is all for not and pointless. Thing is, I don't tend to think rich business men tend to bluff. Seattle may be a very distant plan B or even C or D but it is likely a plan he is ready to execute if need be.

[Reanimate]

I just have a tough time believing that Gary Bettman would let the Oilers move. I just don't see it. He is fighting tooth and nail to keep that turd of a franchise, the Coyotes, in Phoenix. How would he let the Oilers move. It makes no sense.

[Azure]

Originally Posted by WilderPegasus

What is going to change for them over the long term? Is the city of Edmonton going to go bust? Will new rinks make Northlands even more obsolete?

Well they can't stay in the same arena forever.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

Nice guys don't turn into billionares and Katz is conducting his ownership of the Oilers no differently than his Pharmacy Group. You have to have a degree of ruthlessness to be successful in big business and combine that with an ego to match and you can see why things have come to this.

No I don't see why things come to this and not every rich person alive is a total ruthless POS. Nice guys do become billionaires and if he ran Rexall like he runs the Oilers it wouldn't be one of Canada's biggest drug stores and (most likely) its fastest growing. I'm not even sure how you think a pharmacy can be ruthless. Did they frequently threaten their customers that they wouldn't fill their prescriptions unless they forked over some cash for some new drug stores?

Posturing regarding an arena is common for owners. I would even get it if he released regretful statements or appeared on Edmonton TV/radio to say that his hands are tied and show how sad he is that his boyhood dream of owning the Oilers and helping them return to their glory days is in jeopardy because the city isn't being cooperative regarding a new arena. Sure that would be complete BS but at least it isn't the PR disaster that he's got on his hands now.

I just don't understand how a guy who is clearly bluffing gets off giving his entire city a big middle finger and a #### you. And I do mean his city. He very frequently likes to play up the "I'm just another fan from Edmonton" card a lot.

He's got a market that despite absolute organizational incompetence from top to bottom for the last 5 years has somehow by a sheer miracle ended up as one of the most dillusional fanbases in sports history. He's literally helped run that franchise into the ground (mainly by keeping Lowe and Tambelini) and has been rewarded for his gross incompetence with about 200 consecutive sellouts and a rabid fanbase who are drooling to get more of that 30th place hockey.

And he does what with this miracle good will? Oh right, he tells the city to go #### itself. Good plan Katz.

[ernie]

Originally Posted by Reanimate

I just have a tough time believing that Gary Bettman would let the Oilers move. I just don't see it. He is fighting tooth and nail to keep that turd of a franchise, the Coyotes, in Phoenix. How would he let the Oilers move. It makes no sense.

Tell that to Minnesota North Stars fans. And that move has been very successful AND the NHL then received expansion money from the community later on down the road.

[Reanimate]

Originally Posted by ernie

Tell that to Minnesota North Stars fans. And that move has been very successful AND the NHL then received expansion money from the community later on down the road.

Were the North Stars a turd financially though? Did they sell out the last two straight seasons?

[Vinny01]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

The league is comprised of owners that all look out for their best interests. Rexall is one of the oldest buildings in the league and the owners blocking a fellow owner of moving to a city that would provide a new building wouldn't sit well as Lemiex played the same card with Kansas City and I don't belive the owners would have stepped in there if the city of Pittsburgh didn't get a building done. At the end of the day the ownership group is united and would expect a market to pony up to keep their team and if Edmonton doesn't do that I don't see why the owners would lobby to keep a team in the city. Of course that would be last resort but if Katz could provide a compelling case I just can't see the league blocking him.

Well I apologize for not being fully educated on this particular subject but I thought there was basically a deal in place to build the new downtown arena but Katz has decided that he now needs more money from the city? I am not suggesting that a new owner will play in Rexall just that the new owner would worh within the framwork of the deal that Katz and the city had apparently agreed upon already. I just don't see how there wouldn't be interest in a market like Edmonton where there is a rabid fanbase and building blocks for an elite team in place

Katz appears to be trying to squeeze every last penny out of the city which I don't blame him for but it is really souring the relationship between him and the city council.

If the league won't let Phoneix move without fighting it to the death I would be surprised they would allow a team in a market like Edmonton to move. It is all just a ploy by Katz to get what he wants and he will get what he wants eventually.

[Reanimate]

Originally Posted by Cecil Terwilliger

No I don't see why things come to this and not every rich person alive is a total ruthless POS. Nice guys do become billionaires and if he ran Rexall like he runs the Oilers it wouldn't be one of Canada's biggest drug stores and (most likely) its fastest growing. I'm not even sure how you think a pharmacy can be ruthless. Did they frequently threaten their customers that they wouldn't fill their prescriptions unless they forked over some cash for some new drug stores?

Posturing regarding an arena is common for owners. I would even get it if he released regretful statements or appeared on Edmonton TV/radio to say that his hands are tied and show how sad he is that his boyhood dream of owning the Oilers and helping them return to their glory days is in jeopardy because the city isn't being cooperative regarding a new arena. Sure that would be complete BS but at least it isn't the PR disaster that he's got on his hands now.

I just don't understand how a guy who is clearly bluffing gets off giving his entire city a big middle finger and a #### you. And I do mean his city. He very frequently likes to play up the "I'm just another fan from Edmonton" card a lot.

He's got a market that despite absolute organizational incompetence from top to bottom for the last 5 years has somehow by a sheer miracle ended up as one of the most dillusional fanbases in sports history. He's literally helped run that franchise into the ground (mainly by keeping Lowe and Tambelini) and has been rewarded for his gross incompetence with about 200 consecutive sellouts and a rabid fanbase who are drooling to get more of that 30th place hockey.

And he does what with this miracle good will? Oh right, he tells the city to go #### itself. Good plan Katz.

I agree with Estrada. You don't become a billionaire without stepping on alot of toes. ALOT of toes. The guy is probably a total dirtbag, like most billionaires.

[valo403]

Originally Posted by WilderPegasus

Yes but Oiler fans have shown a willingness to shell out large amounts of money to watch terrible games in that crumbling dump of a facility. How do you see that ending?

I don't see fans willing to do that forever, eventually people won't be shelling out top dollar to sit in an antiquated building, even Edmontonians who are used to be surrounded by garbage.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by Reanimate

I agree with Estrada. You don't become a billionaire without stepping on alot of toes. ALOT of toes. The guy is probably a total dirtbag, like most billionaires.

Ok if we're gonna suddenly just claim that all rich people are pieces of #### I'm gonna need some evidence.

Not just evidence that some rich people are dicks (I'd say about 50% of the population fits into that category regardless of net worth). Evidence that ALL rich people are dicks and specificially that being dicks is the reason they are rich.


Katz's actions indicate to me that he is an ####### and an idiot. Most idiots I know aren't rich. So just like the ####### thing I think it is a coincidence that he is these two things, they aren't the reason he's rich.

Edit: when I say idiot I'm specifically referring to this debacle and his seeming inability to hire any competent PR people to help him avoid becoming the biggest villain since Pocklington.

[WilderPegasus]

Originally Posted by valo403

I don't see fans willing to do that forever, eventually people won't be shelling out top dollar to sit in an antiquated building, even Edmontonians who are used to be surrounded by garbage.

You are grossly overestimating the common sense of Oiler rubes.