The NHL's two previous attempts at putting teams in Atlanta failed
The NHL has had three straight forays into new markets with the expansion Vegas Golden Knights and the Seattle Kraken, as well as the relocated Utah Mammoth, and it looks like the league could be getting closer to once again trying to capture its white whale: Atlanta.
The league, of course, has a history in Atlanta with two separate attempts to put a team there that ultimately failed. The Atlanta Flames played there from 1972 to 1980 before moving to Calgary, while the Atlanta Thrashers played there from 1999 to 2011, at which point they also fled to Canada, settling in Winnipeg as the second incarnation of the Winnipeg Jets.
However, despite NHL hockey failing to take hold on two occasions, there have been rumblings of a third attempt to establish a team in Atlanta.
The latest attempt took a big step forward this week, Forsyth County — an Atlanta suburb — approved The Gathering at South Forsyth, a $3 billion mixed-use project that will include an arena suitable for an NHL team.
"We’re closer than we’ve ever been to bringing NHL hockey back to our region," Vernon Krause, CEO of Krause Sports and Entertainment, which owns the land and is leading the project, said, per Fox 5 Atlanta. "Thank you to everyone who has believed in our vision—hockey belongs in Georgia.
"That was the goal from day one. "I remain very confident."
The hope of bringing a new NHL team to Atlanta took a big step forward with news that a new arena that isn't going to be downtown has been approved. (Getty Images)
Now, why should the NHL consider a return to the market, considering the two previous failed attempts?
Well, one argument is that this time, the arena is in a suburb, not downtown, as was the case for the Flames and Thrashers. The idea is that this is where most of the hockey fans live, and they'd be more likely to go to the arena than if it were downtown.
The Florida Panthers made a similar decision years ago when they left Miami Arena for what is now Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida.
However, every market is different. For instance, the Ottawa Senators have been fighting to build a new arena downtown, despite currently playing in an arena in a suburb.
It's worth noting that the NHL already has a quasi presence in Atlanta as TNT — one of the league's broadcast partners — produces its studio broadcasts from Atlanta.
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