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2023-24 NHL Misc. Thread

HeyKurtz said:
A potential stumbling block in the Caps' (and Wizards') planned move to Virginia...

www.sportico.com

D.C. Attorney General Warns Caps, Wizards Against Virginia Move

The Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards have developing plans to move to Virginia, but D.C Attorney General Brian Schwalb says not so fast.
www.sportico.com www.sportico.com
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BTW ... a lot of these reports and even more of the comments from the public make it sound like they're moving to Richmond or something. The proposed site at Potomac Yards in Alexandria is roughly 12 miles away from Capital One Arena and immediately adjacent to Reagan Airport. It would definitely be bad for Downtown DC but the $50 million they put into the building back in 2007 was mostly band aid stuff that has already worn off and the public environment around the arena has gotten dramatically worse in recent years. I'm not a huge fan of private owners of these franchises basically extorting public funds to get new buildings, but there's an obligation to be more proactive to modernize facilities. A lot of the same conditions that caused the Caps and (then) Bullets to flee for Landover MD in the 70s are sadly at play again.
 
jeffbear said:
BTW ... a lot of these reports and even more of the comments from the public make it sound like they're moving to Richmond or something. The proposed site at Potomac Yards in Alexandria is roughly 12 miles away from Capital One Arena and immediately adjacent to Reagan Airport. It would definitely be bad for Downtown DC but the $50 million they put into the building back in 2007 was mostly band aid stuff that has already worn off and the public environment around the arena has gotten dramatically worse in recent years. I'm not a huge fan of private owners of these franchises basically extorting public funds to get new buildings, but there's an obligation to be more proactive to modernize facilities. A lot of the same conditions that caused the Caps and (then) Bullets to flee for Landover MD in the 70s are sadly at play again.
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For people that live in the northern or western suburbs, it might as well be Richmond. Capital One Arene is a short walk from Metro Center, where all metro lines converge and across the street from Gallery Place/Chinatown. The new location will only be accessible to the yellow and blue lines. Anyone that currently uses the orange, red, green or sliver lines now has to change trains. But they’re going to have parking at the new location! Ever seen DC traffic at rush hour? Even when I’m in my office in Loudon County, west of Dulles Airport, it’s nightmarish, even travelling back toward DC.
 
ThinIce said:
Kinda makes one think all the outrage about building the NCSU/Canes arena near Carter Finley wasn't such a bad idea after all.
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There is already a parking shortage downtown. Could you imagine how bad it would be with a PNC-sized arena somewhere?

I got a parking ticket in Oakwood last night, across the street from Krispy Kreme, because I didn’t see the spot I parked in around the corner from the restaurant was permit only until midnight.
 
andyt said:
For people that live in the northern or western suburbs, it might as well be Richmond. Capital One Arene is a short walk from Metro Center, where all metro lines converge and across the street from Gallery Place/Chinatown. The new location will only be accessible to the yellow and blue lines. Anyone that currently uses the orange, red, green or sliver lines now has to change trains. But they’re going to have parking at the new location! Ever seen DC traffic at rush hour? Even when I’m in my office in Loudon County, west of Dulles Airport, it’s nightmarish, even travelling back toward DC.
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So ... since DC traffic is horrific no matter where you start or finish ... how should they approach this? The city refuses to partner on concerns about basic public safety in the area and has been VERY slow to commit to renovation funding. I talked to people who went to the ACC tourney this year who hadn't been there since the last one in 2016 and they all said the building is in obvious decline. Caps fans have told me the same. Staying where they are in a building that is not up to modern standards isn't an option and the last three mayoral administrations have done little more than jerk the clubs around while making empty promises. I'm not saying Leonsis is some kind of hero in this mess, but the more I get into it the more I see where he's coming from.
 
I lived a few blocks from the Capital One Arena for four years. The area is fine, although there's no question its restaurant scene has been hurting lately. There's no parking to speak of - but it sits right over the Gallery Place Metro station, so it's very convenient for mass transit. The arena itself is dismal: dark, narrow corridors, mediocre concessions. It feels like a product of an earlier era, and it suffers from excess compression in order to fit a small footprint. I'm not sure it can be salvaged, even with a massive infusion of money. However, the Metro access is a real plus. It's on the Red, Yellow, and Green lines, and one stop away from Blue, Orange, and Silver (at Metro Center).
 
jeffbear said:
So ... since DC traffic is horrific no matter where you start or finish ... how should they approach this? The city refuses to partner on concerns about basic public safety in the area and has been VERY slow to commit to renovation funding. I talked to people who went to the ACC tourney this year who hadn't been there since the last one in 2016 and they all said the building is in obvious decline. Caps fans have told me the same. Staying where they are in a building that is not up to modern standards isn't an option and the last three mayoral administrations have done little more than jerk the clubs around while making empty promises. I'm not saying Leonsis is some kind of hero in this mess, but the more I get into it the more I see where he's coming from.
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He asked the mayor for $600 million for renovations, the city offered $500 million, a not insurmountable difference. Public safety is an issue and that won’t solve itself. But I don’t think the answer is making it more difficult for a not insignicant part of your fan base to get to games.
 
andyt said:
There is already a parking shortage downtown. Could you imagine how bad it would be with a PNC-sized arena somewhere?
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The ironic part of this is that there was hardly anything else going on in downtown Raleigh at that point in time. But a downtown pro sports venue in DTR nowadays? Woof! Bad idea. The present location works better on many levels, but the big one was that at the time, most Canes fans were located in Cary and Apex. I would accept a DTR pro sports venue much more readily if there was a mass transit system that could get me from DTC to DTR without many headaches.
 
andyt said:
He asked the mayor for $600 million for renovations, the city offered $500 million, a not insurmountable difference. Public safety is an issue and that won’t solve itself. But I don’t think the answer is making it more difficult for a not insignicant part of your fan base to get to games.
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Yeah, but they played brinksmanship on that offer to the point where Leonsis no longer trusts that the money will actually be forthcoming. Remember, the same Mayor had promised a solid plan MONTHS before one actually showed up ... as had the two prior Mayors, both of whom managed to produce nothing, not even an empty promise. I get that Alexandria ain't a perfect solution, but I also get why Leonsis is fed up with playing political games with DC.
 
Panthers at Rangers tonight at 8 on ABC if you’re not watching NC State hoops. A Panthers regulation win means the Canes will move into first in the division with a win over the Leafs tomorrow. The Panthers are playing without Barkov though.
 
Wilson and the NHLPA declined to appeal his suspension, so he’ll serve the entire 6 games.
 
andyt said:
Josh Doan, son of franchise legend Shane, scored his first (and second) NHL goal in his first game.


View: https://x.com/sportsnet/status/1772829586797052139?s=61&t=ZT8KDHkGMyk7V3JAuh5_agj
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And then the Coyotes were immediately eliminated from playoff contention. In other futility news, according the most trusted information source—ChatGPT—the record for most games played before playing a playoff game is 1004, held by Andy Culligan, who made his playoff debut with the Bruins in 2004. Our old friend Jeff Skinner currently sits at 996 and could tie the record in the Sabres’ final home game this year and break it on the road in Florida. Congrats Jeff!
 
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