Toronto Maple Leafs Next Rivals: 3 Potential Expansion Cities

If the Toronto Maple Leafs ever want the salary cap to rise, they should be telling the National Hockey League to add another franchise or two.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are one of the oldest hockey teams in NHL history, but it’s time for some fresh franchises.

In recent years, we’ve already seen how much of an impact a new franchise brings to the NHL and to that city.

For example, when Las Vegas arrived, they made the Stanley Cup Finals in their first year of existence and their in-game experience is one of the best in the league. Many thought that nobody would show up to a game in Vegas, but boy, were they ever wrong.

The same thing can be said about Winnipeg.

Having lost an NHL franchise in the 1990s due to financial issues, Winnipeg was able to take over the struggling Atlanta Thrashers and re-brand the team back to the Jets.

Since the NHL is in such a tough situation right now, the easiest way to make money is to bring in a new NHL franchise.

It cost the Seattle team $650 million just to enter the NHL, so you’d have to expect that number would only rise for the next franchise to be established.

After Seattle arrives, the NHL would now have 32 franchises, so to make it even, it always makes sense to add two more teams instead of one. With that being said, if the NHL up-charged their expansion fee, we could be looking at roughly a $1.5 billion fee combined for two new teams to enter the league.

If you split that money equally, that’s an extra $46.875 million per team, which would be so important in a world where there may not be fans for two years.

Let’s take a look at three potential cities that would be perfect for expansion:

#3. Houston

Houston already has an NFL, NBA, MLS and MLB team, so the only thing they’re missing is an NHL team.

The NHL is already in the state of Texas, so if Houston joined the league, they could build off a state-rivalry with the Dallas Stars.

The main reason the NHL should go to Houston is because of the market. They’re largest populated city in the U.S. that doesn’t have a complete set of the Big Four sports franchises. Also, in terms of a corporate dollar, Houston businesses will be able to back the franchise.

There are a number of NHL teams that don’t have the backing that Houston would have. For example, if Houston joined the NHL today, they should be able to sell out every night, compared to some franchises like the Florida Panthers, Arizona Coyotes, Ottawa Senators or New York Islanders.

Houston also has an arena that could easily be converted to NHL hockey. The Toyota Center is home to the NBA’s Houston Rockets, but like many NBA teams, they typically share their space if the city has an NHL team as well.

Scotiabank Arena in Toronto is home to both the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors and although some complain about the ice at times, the building is easily changeable from an ice rink to a basketball court in a matter of hours.

Not only do they have the arena and corporate dollar, but Houston has a strong hockey background going back to the WHA when Gordie Howe helped win back-to-back championships with the Houston Aeros.

They also most recently won a Calder Cup in the 2002-03 season, so the city is used to winning with their hockey teams.

#2. Quebec City

There’s probably no city more deserving for an NHL franchise than Quebec City.

Having been in the NHL from 1979-1995, the Nordiques had some of the best jerseys in league history. Not only that, but they’d built up a nice rivalry with the Montreal Canadiens for the years in attendance.

The worst thing about the Nordiques originally leaving town is what happened one year after they left.

After having a solid young core of Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, Adam Foote and Mike Ricci, Patrick Roy would get traded to the newly named Colorado Avalanche and the team formerly known as the Quebec Nordiques would win the Stanley Cup in 1996.

That’s a tough pill to swallow if you were a Nordiques fan.

Imagine the Toronto Maple Leafs moved to a new city and they finally won a Stanley Cup with all of the same players you love, but in a new town? That’s gotta hurt.

Ever since the city lost its franchise, it’s been trying to get one back.

Every time the word expansion or relocation comes up, Quebec City’s name is always brought up, but they never seem to truly be in the mix.

A few years ago, Quebec City even invested in a new arena that would be perfect for an NHL team, but for whatever reason the league has yet to make Quebec City a serious contender for a franchise.

For Toronto Maple Leafs fans, another Canadian team in a close proximity would be awesome for road-trips for fans and to create another rival, but until Gary Bettman is done being the Commissioner of the NHL, this may be a pipe-dream.