It looks as though more expansion is on the horizon. Kevin Weekes has been all over expansion for a while, even before Utah. And now, it seems more likely that up to four new teams will join the NHL, most likely one for each division.
It looks like Houston will get a team and most likely will join Dallas in the Central Division. Atlanta has been mentioned quite a bit, and I believe they’d join former Southeastern Division teams Carolina Hurricanes and Washington Capitals in the Metropolitan Division. They could’ve joined the two teams in Florida in the Atlantic Division, but I believe it may be the best time to bring back the Nordiques to the joy of everyone in the hockey world.
So, that leaves the Pacific Division. Of course, if the Coyotes can get an arena, they will most likely just slide back with the Pacific, but if they don’t get an arena done in five years, I believe I know where the NHL should go in the West.
Portland, Oregon has one professional team in the Big Four North American leagues, the Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA. It’s time for professional hockey to come back to the city. Yes, come back, and they have a great name to match: Rosebuds! I know, I know, Rosebuds isn’t the coolest name, but it has history and a connection to the NHL. Also, Rosebuds connects to the city’s nickname “City of Roses”.
The first iteration of the Portland Rosebuds was in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) and was around for four seasons from 1914-15 to 1917-18. They are most notable for being the first American team to play for the Stanley Cup when they lost to the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey Association (NHA). Of course, the Seattle Metropolitans won it the next year to become the first American team to win the Cup.
The second iteration of the Rosebuds was in the Western Hockey League (WHL) for their final 1925-26 season. They had a losing record and missed the playoffs, but when Frank Patrick sold the rights to the players in the league to the NHL to fill the three new franchises the New York Rangers, the Detroit Cougars, and the Chicago Black Hawks. The Chicago Black Hawks roster was largely made up of players from the Rosebuds.
As much as I would love them to be the first men’s professional team in the Big Four to wear pink, which they should definitely include in their color scheme, they could pull a New York Mets trick and use the colors from the two previous Rosebuds teams. The PCHA team wore navy blue and white, most likely from their time as the New Westminster Royals before relocating. The WHL Rosbuds used black and yellow, but that does not come from the Regina Capitals, whom they relocated from, who wore red, white, and blue. We could see a blue and yellow team, but I do think a red, pink, and white color scheme could look very nice and clean.
Additionally, this would strengthen the hockey culture in the Pacific Northwest. For over 50 years, the Vancouver Canucks were the only team in the region that was quite barren with professional hockey teams while being surrounded by pro basketball, baseball, and football. The previous hockey leagues in western Canada, and into the US’s Pacific Northwest region, were pillars of hockey and were a competitor for the NHL, leading to their push to move westward. If the NHL is serious about adding four new teams soon, you’re going to need to put them in popular places for hockey. The reception to Seattle finally getting an NHL team was immediate, and I think that the recent move to Utah, a city with only an NBA team, could be the right precedent for one of these next four teams. Portland has been home to the Portland Winterhawks (or Winter Hawks until 2009) since 1976. Portland should be the next NHL team in the Pacific Division.
By Noah Caplan (@Phlyers24)
Photo credit: CHL
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