A couple days ago, Atlanta Thrashers owner and True North Sports and Entertainment Venture CEO Mark Chipman stated that he had been in contact with the league about bringing back a team to Winnipeg, but did not mention any specifics of what was going on or if they were close to making a deal happen.

However, True North has been in contact with the league about getting another team into the MTS Centre after they were able to sell 13,000 tickets for a preseason game against the Pittsburgh Penguins for just $20 per ticket.”The Thrashers had serious attendance problems during their time in Atlanta, but Winnipeg has demonstrated an incredible passion for the game, hosting 16 consecutive sellouts before the team moved to become the Coyotes.”

Does atlanta have a hockey team

The Atlanta Thrashers team played in the NHL from 1999 to 2011, but moved to become the Coyotes. So there is no longer a team in Atlanta and won’t be one for a while possibly. However if you look at the article above it states that there were some talks between True North and the league which can mean that an NHL team could possibly return to Atlanta. Stay tuned for more updates!

Good question. I do not know, but it would be nice to have a hockey team in the south because we only have South Carolina and Florida which is not much compared to Canada, Minnesota, Chicago and other places that love and embrace the game of hockey. We also need more teams in the southern states because we only have 3 and the most northern part of North Carolina.

The history of hockey in Atlanta

The history of hockey in Atlanta dates back to 1972 where the Atlanta Flames began play in the National Hockey League. During their time in Atlanta, they reached the Stanley Cup semi-final round twice in 1980 and 1989. In 1995, the team was sold to a group of 10 businessmen who were determined to keep hockey alive in Atlanta even if it meant moving the team where they did so to Calgary, Alberta. Since the Flames moved to Calgary, Atlanta has not had a hockey team.

The current state of hockey in Atlanta

Currently, the only professional hockey players in Atlanta are located in the ECHL where they play for the Atlanta Gladiators. The reason why there is still an ice rink in Atlanta is because it is played by many high school teams and colleges in Georgia so they do have a team playing on the ice but not at the professional level. Atlanta is a huge sports city with many different teams to support such as the Atlanta Falcons, Hawks and Braves just to name a few so I would not be surprised if another hockey team came into place in the next 10 years.

How a new team could impact the city

A new hockey team would not only benefit the city of Atlanta, but also impact other businesses such as hotels that typically get booked up fast when a big event is in town. A new hockey team coming into place would most likely require another arena upgrade if they are to play their home games somewhere else. There are many arenas in Atlanta that could be a potential home for a new hockey team and it would be interesting to see who would open their doors to them if they decided to make Atlanta their new home.

What needs to happen for the team to be successful

If Atlanta were to get a hockey team back, they would need to support them like crazy and prove to the NHL that they are an expansion city. They would also most likely need to work with another arena until they can build their own or renovate one of the older arenas around Atlanta.