Quote:
Originally Posted by esquire
Even just 1,000 more seats would probably elevate it to legitimate permanent WHL arena standards but that would cost a ton of money for seats that would almost never be used if Steinbach failed to land a WHL team. I'm not sure the residents of Steinbach would want to throw down that kind of money to take a chance on a bit of a long shot bet.
There are bigger places in WHL territory that would conceivably stand a better chance than Steinbach of landing a team. Places like Fort McMurray, Lloydminster, Grande Prairie, Nanaimo, Chilliwack, Vernon, Vancouver, WA, Yakima, Pasco, Eugene, etc. Not saying they couldn't do it, but competition would be pretty stiff for Steinbach.
|
I agree all those destinations are much larger than Steinbach, the WHL is only interested in adding 2 new teams (one in the USA and one most likely in BC), to balance the divisions out.
Fort McMurray is too far north, and travel would be an issue. Lloydminster would only get a team in a franchise east of BC moved. I can see a team working in Grande Prairie (70,000), considering it is close to the BC border and would make a good rivalry with Prince George.
Chilliwack was given a team, but it failed and moved a decade ago. Vernon is too close to Kelowna. Vancouver, WA is too close to Portland, and a longshot. I can see Eugene or Salem working, as they are fairly close to Portland. The Pasco area already has a team (Tri-Cities Americans). Nanaimo may be a good bet, as the population in the city is 90,000, although I am unsure if they have a big enough arena.