As another week is well underway another familiar and becoming increasingly boring story continues to make headlines as talk picks up regarding the possible return of the National Hockey League to Winnipeg. Let first start by saying that adding another club to a Canadian city will be a boon for success if and/or when the NHL decides to make it official, but at the same time I am nauseas from the repeated story that goes absolutely nowhere time and time again. I have no idea how many times I have had to listen to Darren Dreger, Bob McKenzie, Nick Kypreos and Doug McLean, amongst many others, discuss this story with really nothing coming from each segment other than time being filled on another light day in the world of sports and the splattering of die hard hockey fans across the country hoping that one day the story will be for real.
Many shake their heads when Gary Bettman and Bill Daly speak about trying to keep a franchise in the city it presently resides over bringing them to Winnipeg, Quebec or even in a surrounding city in Southern Ontario. It is easy to wonder why the NHL is slow in returning or bringing hockey into these specific markets, but after seeing the league stand by and help Edmonton, Calgary and Ottawa survive during the unstable moments each of those franchises faced, you have to give Bettman some credibility in doing what is right. When the stars align and the best option for relocating a club appears to be in the Great White North, I am sure the NHL will be sure it is the best move across the board.
With rumours floating around that the possibility of the league having an announcement regarding the state of the Atlanta Thrashers coming as early as the end of the week or perhaps as late as the end of the Stanley Cup Finals, I would presume the latter will end up being timeline for any announcement. The League would not want to take away from the coverage surrounding the four remaining clubs vying for the Stanley Cup and in keeping any announcement until mid June will keep the league in the media headlines that much longer. It will be attention the league will certainly welcome as they know very well that adding another franchise in a Canadian market will benefit the league and will kick start interests in all markets across the country.
Until the day comes when the National Hockey League announces a press conference in which Commissioner Bettman stands at a podium and makes the return to Winnipeg official, you won’t find me sitting with batted breath listening to a panel of insiders talk about not really anything more than rumours and hearsay.
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