Post by NHLWinnipeg on Mar 7, 2015 1:21:51 GMT -6
Manitoba Moose 2.0 in the works
Jets’ AHL franchise likely to return to Winnipeg for next season
By: Tim Campbell
Posted: 03/7/2015 1:00 AM
There's a strong chance the Winnipeg Jets will move their AHL affiliate to the MTS Centre this fall for the 2015-16 hockey season.
True North Sports & Entertainment had granted the group operating the St. John’s IceCaps a one-year extension last September, taking them through the 2015-16 season in the Newfoundland and Labrador capital.
The extension had been given, in part, to afford the group headed by former N.L premier Danny Williams some extra time to find another NHL affiliation agreement to take the place of the Jets-IceCaps deal.
It appears that has happened. The St. John’s group is believed to have struck an arrangement with the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens, who currently operate their AHL affiliate in Hamilton, Ont.
The AHL’s board of governors could approve the new St. John’s deal and the shift of the IceCaps back to Winnipeg at a governors meeting later next week.
It’s not known if True North would return its AHL franchise name to the Manitoba Moose, but it seems likely.
The Moose were members of the AHL from 2001 to 2011.
True North began operating the team, first in the IHL and then in the AHL, when the original Winnipeg Jets franchise left for Phoenix in 1996.
When True North purchased the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers and relocated the team to Winnipeg in 2011, it moved its AHL affiliation to St. John’s. True North maintained ownership of the AHL franchise but leased its business operation to the St. John’s group headed by Williams, to play in the Mile One Centre.
A three-year agreement was struck then, and then extended twice by one year.
Last January, the Jets said that try though they did, the geography had become too problematic, especially in the case of recalling players, and they were looking for a more workable base for their AHL base.
At that time, True North had also confirmed it joined forces with several groups with a proposal to build a new 5,700-seat arena in downtown Thunder Bay, Ont. True North’s part of the deal was that it had agreed to provide a full-time hockey tenant for that facility, hoping to relocate its AHL team there, much closer to home.
But no ground has been broken on the Thunder Bay project and funding for the proposed $106-million arena has still not been announced. It had been reported that the project — hoping to be open in September, 2017 — had a funding deadline at the end of this month or it might die.
All the way back to confirmation of its involvement in the Thunder Bay proposal, and likely earlier, True North has been exploring many options to bring its AHL affiliate into a more geographically friendly location, including Winnipeg on a temporary basis.
That seemed a possibility last summer but then in September, another extension for the IceCaps in St. John’s was announced.
www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/hockey/ahl/Manitoba-Moose-20-in-the-works-295455711.html
Jets’ AHL franchise likely to return to Winnipeg for next season
By: Tim Campbell
Posted: 03/7/2015 1:00 AM
There's a strong chance the Winnipeg Jets will move their AHL affiliate to the MTS Centre this fall for the 2015-16 hockey season.
True North Sports & Entertainment had granted the group operating the St. John’s IceCaps a one-year extension last September, taking them through the 2015-16 season in the Newfoundland and Labrador capital.
The extension had been given, in part, to afford the group headed by former N.L premier Danny Williams some extra time to find another NHL affiliation agreement to take the place of the Jets-IceCaps deal.
It appears that has happened. The St. John’s group is believed to have struck an arrangement with the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens, who currently operate their AHL affiliate in Hamilton, Ont.
The AHL’s board of governors could approve the new St. John’s deal and the shift of the IceCaps back to Winnipeg at a governors meeting later next week.
It’s not known if True North would return its AHL franchise name to the Manitoba Moose, but it seems likely.
The Moose were members of the AHL from 2001 to 2011.
True North began operating the team, first in the IHL and then in the AHL, when the original Winnipeg Jets franchise left for Phoenix in 1996.
When True North purchased the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers and relocated the team to Winnipeg in 2011, it moved its AHL affiliation to St. John’s. True North maintained ownership of the AHL franchise but leased its business operation to the St. John’s group headed by Williams, to play in the Mile One Centre.
A three-year agreement was struck then, and then extended twice by one year.
Last January, the Jets said that try though they did, the geography had become too problematic, especially in the case of recalling players, and they were looking for a more workable base for their AHL base.
At that time, True North had also confirmed it joined forces with several groups with a proposal to build a new 5,700-seat arena in downtown Thunder Bay, Ont. True North’s part of the deal was that it had agreed to provide a full-time hockey tenant for that facility, hoping to relocate its AHL team there, much closer to home.
But no ground has been broken on the Thunder Bay project and funding for the proposed $106-million arena has still not been announced. It had been reported that the project — hoping to be open in September, 2017 — had a funding deadline at the end of this month or it might die.
All the way back to confirmation of its involvement in the Thunder Bay proposal, and likely earlier, True North has been exploring many options to bring its AHL affiliate into a more geographically friendly location, including Winnipeg on a temporary basis.
That seemed a possibility last summer but then in September, another extension for the IceCaps in St. John’s was announced.
www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/hockey/ahl/Manitoba-Moose-20-in-the-works-295455711.html