Come 2021 there will be 32 teams in the National Hockey League when Seattle’s yet unnamed team takes the ice. The team will join the Pacific Division of the Western Conference and the Arizona Coyotes will move to the Central Conference to keep numbers even. The team will be based out of the KeyArena, which it will share with the WNBA’s Seattle Storms.
ESPN has speculated thirteen names for the future team, including the Seattle Cougars, the Seattle Firebirds and the Seattle Sea Lions. Missing from the list is the Seattle Metropolitans, which isn’t surprising since in 1917 the Pacific Coast Hockey Association’s Seattle Metropolitans were the first team from the United States to win the Stanley cup, defeating the defending champions, the Montreal Canadiens. The Pacific Coast Hockey Association merged with the Western Canada Hockey League in 1924 but the league disbanded in 1926, leaving the NHL the only professional hockey league in North America.
 |
| Photo from Business Insider |
Last season the NHL franchise expanded with the Las Vegas Golden Knights, the first team to join the league since the 2000-2001 season. The Golden Knights joined under new expansion draft rules which allowed the team to choose one player from each team currently in the league to create their team. The draft allows teams to protect players in one of two ways - they may protect seven forwards, three defensemen and one goaltender, or a combination of eight skaters and one goaltender. Any player operating under a “No Movement” clause must be protected by the team and any first or second year professionals, and unsigned draft choices, are exempt from selection and don’t count against the teams protection list. For more information on the draft rules, visit the NHL website.
The Golden Knights made their name known when they became the first expansion team in any sport to reach the championship round since the St. Luis Blues (NHL) did it in 1968. Unlike the Golden Knights, the Blues were one of six expansion teams in 1968, which offered them better odds of making the finals. The Golden Knights were the only expansion team in 2017 and battled through 30 seasoned teams to reach the Stanley Cup Finals against the Washington Capitals.
Despite Vegas' rousing success, the league vowed to give the Seattle franchise the same opportunity as Vegas in creating their team. The Golden Knights won't expose any of their players during the Seattle draft due to the agreement they signed when joining the league. They also won't get a cut of Seattle's entry fee.
The staff roster is currently small for the future Seattle team, with no sense of urgency to hire a coach since the team won't be active for two more years. The team's CEO, Tod Leiweke, says they are taking their time and looking for the right fit. However, former Coyotes coach, Dave Tippett, joined as a senior advisor for the team over the summer.
While the Seattle Sea Lions/Firebirds/Cougars/who-knows-whats won't take the ice for nearly three years, Seattle residents are looking forward to cheering them on and Tippett is already fielding the same two questions from people.
"One, 'What's the name going to be?' and two, 'Where do I get my tickets?'" Tippett told USA Today.
Despite Vegas' rousing success, the league vowed to give the Seattle franchise the same opportunity as Vegas in creating their team. The Golden Knights won't expose any of their players during the Seattle draft due to the agreement they signed when joining the league. They also won't get a cut of Seattle's entry fee.
The staff roster is currently small for the future Seattle team, with no sense of urgency to hire a coach since the team won't be active for two more years. The team's CEO, Tod Leiweke, says they are taking their time and looking for the right fit. However, former Coyotes coach, Dave Tippett, joined as a senior advisor for the team over the summer.
While the Seattle Sea Lions/Firebirds/Cougars/who-knows-whats won't take the ice for nearly three years, Seattle residents are looking forward to cheering them on and Tippett is already fielding the same two questions from people.
"One, 'What's the name going to be?' and two, 'Where do I get my tickets?'" Tippett told USA Today.
No comments:
Post a Comment