NHL Expansion: Sin City Bound

With NHL attendance declining in various cities, the NHL is looking for opportunities to improve league profit. Teams such as the Florida Panthers and Arizona Coyotes have been mentioned subject to moving out of their current location. Though it is unclear which team will be moving, it is understood that Las Vegas is the prime destination for one of these teams.

With Las Vegas being a tourist city, it is possible that the NHL wouldn't find a niche there. Don Logan, president and chief operating officer of the Las Vegas 51s minor-league baseball team, said every major sports league has eyed Las Vegas. It seems as if major sports leagues continue to overlook Las Vegas as a profitable destination for a team.

Don Logan also said Las Vegas has evolved as a market.

“Back in the old days, you never saw a clock or windows in a casino,” he said. “They fill you up with free drinks and you sit at the machines for hours on end, making your donations. But the market here has evolved. It has the amenities people want. We have the best dining anywhere. Every major celebrity chef has one or more locations up and down the strip. We have the most unbelievable shopping anywhere in the world."

Though Logan is undeniably biased, he has a point. Las Vegas is one of the most rapidly growing cities in America, and appears to be a perfect destination for an NHL franchise. Bill Foley, who is directed by the NHL to gauge the hockey interest in Vegas, told USA Today that his group's marketing research indicates there are 130,000 hockey fans who make $55,000 or more living within 35 miles of downtown Las Vegas. Along with having over 600,000 residents, Vegas reports bringing in 50 million visitors per year. With a strong base of local hockey fans and a steady flow of visitors ready to throw away money, Las Vegas will most likely become the next destination for an NHL team.

Both the Arizona Coyotes and the Florida Panthers struggle to fill half of their arenas, making them susceptible to move, but the Florida Panthers are stuck in a long term contract forcing them to stay in southern Florida. Arizona, however, is the team most likely to move. 

Part of the Coyotes struggles to gain a fan base is due to the location of their arena, Jobing.com Arena. The arena is located in Glendale, a suburb of Phoenix. Glendale's entertainment district is basically nonexistent compared to Las Vegas. There is a 20,000 seat arena being constructed in Vegas's prime entertainment district. This state of the art facility, along with local businesses and casinos pitching for a team, is the driving force for an NHL expansion to Las Vegas. It might not be this year or the next, but expect to see an NHL team in Las Vegas within a few years.

Construction continues on new arena in Las Vegas

Curt Schilling: Hall of Fame Snub

Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, John Smoltz and Craig Biggio

On Tuesday, January 6, 2015, members of the Baseball Writers Association of America voted Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, John Smoltz, and Craig Biggio into the Hall of Fame.They will be officially inducted at the ceremony on July 26 as part of the Hall of Fame Induction Weekend on July 24-27. 549 ballots were cast, with 412 votes (75%) needed to get into the Hall of Fame. Biggio made it in on his third time on the ballot, while the other three are first-ballot inductees. Mike Piazza, Jeff Bagwell, Tim Raines, Curt Schilling and Barry Bonds are notable candidates that missed the cut.

On a pitcher heavy ballot, Curt Schilling was overlooked. He was a much more dominant pitcher than Smoltz, and his stats and accomplishments can prove it. Schilling received 43.7% fewer votes and played in nearly as many seasons as Smoltz, while still posting a career WAR 14.2 points higher. Schilling won 3 World Series rings and was named World Series MVP in 2001. Smoltz, on the other hand, only won the World Series in 1991 and was named NLCS MVP once. That season, Smoltz had an ERA just below 4.00 and went 14-13. Also, he was never closer than 3rd on the Cy Young ballot. Schilling, however, was voted 2nd three times in a four year span, falling just short of teammate and 2015 Hall of Fame inductee, Randy Johnson every time. Schilling has the best strikeout to walk ratio for players with at least 300 K's since Jim Whitney in 1883.


John Smoltz was a great player, but he was inducted into the Hall of Fame, not the Hall of Great Players. Smoltz does not have a signature moment for which all fans remember him. Schilling, on the other hand, is well-known for "the bloody sock game." In game 6 of the 2004 NLCS, Schilling pitched with a lacerated ankle, and his performance saved the Red Sox's Wold Series hopes. Boston eventually won the World Series for the first time in 86 years. Schilling's signature performance will be forever remembered as one of the most clutch performances in sports history. John Smoltz will simply be remembered as a good pitcher. It appears the BBWAA overlooked Schilling when electing Smoltz, because Schilling proves to be a much stronger candidate. Schilling was snubbed this year, but he still has eight more opportunities to be voted in, not including the Golden Era Committee ballot.