Friday night will mark the beginning of a bittersweet end for hockey fans in Houston when their Aeros host the Grand Rapids Griffins in the first game of their 2013 Calder Cup playoff run.
Friday’s faceoff will come on the heels of the parent Minnesota Wild confirming that they will pluck their prospects out of the Toyota Center and bring them closer to home in Iowa for the 2013-14 season.
In turn, once they are eliminated or are raising the Cup, the Aeros will end a 19-year run of Triple-A puck action in the IHL and AHL.
Could this create an opening for the NHL? There are certainly enough reasons to put it on the table.
Houston is the only U.S. city with a population exceeding two million (per city-data.com) that is not represented in all four of the major sports circuits. It is in slim company with San Diego as the only cities exceeding one million in locals but lacking an NHL franchise.
Similarly, the state of Texas has multiple teams in the NFL, NBA and Major League Baseball, yet the Dallas Stars have always been the Lone Star State’s sole NHL branch.
With two recent developments on the Houston ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Al Daniel
With AHL Aeros Leaving, Should the NHL Consider Adding a Team in Houston?
April 25th, 2013 by Al Daniel Leave a reply »
Advertisement