The NHL is back in Winnipeg, Manitoba and hockey fever has gripped this city. The Winnipeg Jets, previously in the NHL when the old WHA merged with the NHL, left town and moved to Phoenix in 1996. Ever since that black day, Winnipeg hotels downtown, in particular, and accommodations throughout the city have relied on visitors coming into the city to catch the AHL’s, Manitoba Moose. Of course, there’s still business convention and arts and culture types who checked into Winnipeg hotels, but this exciting announcement should attract a lot more people to come and stay in downtown Winnipeg.

Remember the busloads of visitors who came to see the Toronto SkyDome in the early 90s? Mind you, that level of popularity was definitely helped by the fact the Blue Jays were perennial contenders, and back to back World Series Champions.

Nevertheless, True North Sports and Entertainment has revived the dream of having NHL hockey back again in downtown Winnipeg. The MTS Centre, which will be the new home for the Winnipeg franchise (will they be the Jets again?) is a beautiful state of the art arena, and the recent season ticket drive exceeded all expectations. This has downtown hotels, restaurants, bars and a host of other merchants eager to reap the rewards of major league hockey fever.

A recent analysis came up with the following pros and cons that the NHL will have on the Winnipeg economy.

1. Jobs created
   
   • Cons: The city’s AHL hockey team, the Manitoba Moose, which had been keeping hockey fans entertained for the past 15 years, will be sent packing in order to make room for the big leagues.
   • Pros: New local jobs will be created to support the NHL team, including office and administrative departments, marketing and publicity positions.

2. Family entertainment for more
   
   • Cons: Hockey games as a form of family fun and nights out just got a whole lot more expensive. Tickets for Moose games averaged around $30 each, while tickets for the new NHL team will be $82 on average.
   • Pros: The theory goes that as local fans spend more of their cash on hockey games, then that money will stay in Winnipeg rather than being spent on trips to resorts or US outlet malls, etc.

3. Sky-high salaries
   • Cons: It’s very costly to run a hockey team. The salary cap (the maximum amount of money that NHL teams are allowed to pay their players) keeps rising and this year it will be around $62 million. This means every team in the league can expect to pay at least $46 million in salaries.
   • Pros: At least the NHL has a cap, and the new model is one of the reasons hockey in Canada is viable again.

4. NHL Salaries = real estate boom
   • Cons: The team comes with a few salary commitments already. Experts are suspecting that the payroll for the new Winnipeg team could top $50 million USD, a substantial amount of money that local ticket sales will need to cover.
   • Pros: A whole team of multi-millionaires is moving in and will make this their home. This means monster homes, fancy cars, swimming pools and parties. This will give a mega-boost to the local economy and property values.

5. Sell-outs are needed for 82 games
   
   • Cons: To stay profitable, games must be sold out every night, according to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.
   • Pros: A commitment to pre-sell 13,000 season’s tickets sold out in 17 minutes. Analysts are saying that Winnipeg will likely be in the top 10 across the league when it comes to selling out their tickets.

6. Luxury boxes will be expensive
   
   • Cons: The cost of a luxury box at MTS Centre ranges between $105,000 to $197,000 a season.
   • Pros: Corporate suites are aimed at big businesses and their travelling executives, who should extend their business trips to the city longer in order to attend an NHL game. Expense accounts will be good news for Winnipeg hotels, restaurants and bars.

7. Branding Boost
   
   • Cons: The 15,015 seat MTS Centre will be the smallest rink in the league and tickets will be hard to get if most of them are taken by season ticketholders.
   • Pros: The city of Wnnipeg gets a branding boost, as NHL viewers all across Canada and the US watch televised games from the MTS Centre, and the players market the spirit of Winnipeg with them on the road.

8. The Jets, again?
   
   • Cons: Most people are rooting for the team to be re-named The Jets, but hopefully it’s not the Thrashers or something like the Rushing Flood Waters.
   • Pros: There will be an instant rivalry with the Canadian teams, especially Edmonton, Calgary and Toronto, plus the Minnesota Wild. This will produce a rise in tourist spending. The team will attract hockey fans from all over Manitoba, as well as Saskatchewan, the northern states and all those in Ontario who are fed up with the Leafs losing ways.

9. Fundraising will be a new sport
   
   • Cons: Locals better brush up on their golf game; as a lot more charity golf tournaments will be popping up next summer.
   • Pros: NHL teams spend a lot of money on promotions and advertising. Local sponsorships and community donations will get a boost and players also donate their time back into the community. Their visible profiles will help local charities raise money for lots of new projects.

Overall, this should be a positive and exciting development for the city and for Winnipeg’s downtown hotels and merchants. Another spin off effect will be the challenge for the football Blue Bombers to get competitive and go deep into the playoffs, offering real sports diehards a chance to cheer at sports doubleheaders in the Fall.