Dallas Stars Daily Links: Hockey in Houston?
With the Arizona Coyotes looking for a new arena, could a relocation to Houston be an option? Plus, next year’s free agency class, Lundqvist’s retirement, and more.
The biggest news in the NHL last week was that the city of Glendale will not renew the Arizona Coyote’s arena lease. Now that they need a new home, will the Coyotes consider a move out of state, perhaps to Houston, Texas?
Saad Yousuf approached Dallas Stars CEO Brad Alberts about the subject, who thinks the possibility is rather unlikely:
There has been no discussion at the league level about a team in Houston... obviously, things change and the world changes very fast nowadays so I can’t speak with certainty on that but I do not believe those are the plans. I do not believe the NHL wants to abandon the Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe market. I think they’re going to try to figure out every way to make a franchise work there.
The Stars have enjoyed being the sole NHL team in the Lone Star state, although Alberts does wish there were more teams in the lower leagues. For instance, the Texas Stars are the only AHL team left in Texas and the neighboring states:
No, from an AHL perspective, not having any teams in the state is a real downer.... When we put that team (Texas Stars) in Cedar Park, there was a team in San Antonio, there was a team in Houston and there was a team in Oklahoma City, so you had a regional bus tour that made minor-league hockey really feasible and really good. Now, I think the closest team might be in Tucson, Arizona... I wish we had more (AHL) teams in the region to really support minor-league hockey down here in Texas and the southwest region.
You can read more from Alberts, including ads on jerseys and the Sinclair television fiasco, in Saad’s interview here.
Around the League
More women’s hockey is nothing but a good thing:
Next month, the International Ice Hockey Federation is expected to add a women’s world hockey championship to the same calendar year as the Winter Olympics.
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) August 23, 2021
The men play a world championship in an Olympic year, but the women currently don’t.https://t.co/UCXObbieYN
Greg Wyshynski talked to Auston Matthews, who is the cover athlete for the next NHL game. Again. For some reason...
Some more reading: My chat with #NHL22 cover boy Auston Matthews about video games, chess and @MapleLeafs playoff disasters. https://t.co/e018MfLSVn
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) August 20, 2021
John Klingberg isn’t the only big name defensemen hitting the market this next offseason:
It's never too early to look ahead at the next free agent class. Here's a look at some of the top defensemen and goaltenders slated to hit the market next summer.@JasonChen16 has more:https://t.co/hhyklo09G0
— The Hockey News (@TheHockeyNews) August 22, 2021
Scott Wheeler reevaluates his 2018 Draft board in his annual draft redo:
Who goes first in a 2018 NHL Draft redo? And how do their pre-draft rankings hold up today?
— The Athletic NHL (@TheAthleticNHL) August 20, 2021
From Quinn Hughes to Rasmus Dahlin, @scottcwheeler evaluates the players from the 2018 class and projects where they would be taken in a redraft ⤵️https://t.co/FHMqxvhdfS
Henrik Lundqvist has decided to hang up his hockey skates:
— Henrik Lundqvist (@hlundqvist35) August 20, 2021
...and the New York Rangers chimed right in. Long live the King:
This season... pic.twitter.com/tcVtTKZ1sJ
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) August 20, 2021
Finally, we’ll end on a more somber note:
The NHL sends its love and deepest condolences to the families of junior hockey players Caleb Reimer, Ronin Sharma and Parker Magnuson who tragically passed away in a car accident on Saturday.
— NHL (@NHL) August 22, 2021
Rest in peace boys. ❤️🙏
