The Moose Jaw situation . . .

The WHL has been talking the talk to Moose Jaw for a long time. Now, however, it sounds as though the league is reaching into the tool chest for the hammer. . . . The Moose Jaw Civic Centre (aka the Crushed Can), the home of the Warriors, no longer is a laughingstock throughout the WHL; unfortunately, it is past that. . . . And, according to a story that appears in Friday’s Regina Leader-Post, WHL commissioner Ron Robison is making no bones about the fact that the league thinks it’s time for the good citizens of Moose Jaw to fish or cut bait. . . . Robison’s message in the story, a terrific piece by The Leader-Post’s Rob Vanstone, is simple: Build a new rink, refurbish the Civic Centre or run the risk of losing your franchise. . . . This story is part of a series that is appearing in The Leader-Post this week. It appears here with Vanstone’s permission. . . .

By ROB VANSTONE
Regina Leader-Post
REGINA — Small markets have become a big issue in the Western Hockey League.
That is especially true with regard to the Moose Jaw Warriors’ situation.
The WHL has made it clear to the Warriors and Moose Jaw civic officials that the league’s facility standards must be adhered to. The 2,705-seat Civic Centre falls far short of the standards.
“We’re obviously under the gun, time-wise,” said Warriors governor Darin Chow, who also is a Moose Jaw city councillor. “The window of opportunity gets narrower all the time because of the cost of construction that keeps going up.”
When a plebiscite was held late in 2006, Moose Jaw voters gave their assent to a proposed. 4,500-seat Multiplex. The city has committed $15 million to the project — the cost of which was initially quoted at $36 million — with the proviso that another $5 million be raised in the community.
In addition, the provincial government has committed $8.3 million, with the federal government likely to match that amount. The aforementioned pledges would put the amount of funds raised in the vicinity of $36 million.
However, projected construction costs have since soared to between $55
million and $60 million. Moreover, a site for the multi-purpose facility has
yet to be selected.
“Obviously, it’s taking considerably longer than anticipated to arrive at a
decision on a new facility,” WHL commissioner Ron Robison said.
The league has presented Moose Jaw with two options: (1) Build a new arena; or, (2) renovate the Civic Centre to the point where it complies with the standard. The latter option is widely perceived to be cost-ineffective.
“We are allowing them the time that it takes to get back to them on what
their plans will be,” Robison said.
“However, we’re getting very concerned, given the fact that there’s a
commitment to have a new facility, or a facility of standard, by 2009-10.
It’s apparent that they∂re going to be coming back to us with a request for an extension.”
Chow appreciates the WHL’s patience, but is himself getting antsy.
“I have frustrations about the way the process has gone to date,” Chow
said. “I’ve been involved in this for at least 10 years now, trying to get a
new facility.
“It does cause me some concern but, that being said, I still hold out a lot
of hope that people will realize that this is our last and best opportunity
to do something not only to ensure the long-term viability of the Warriors, but also to do something for the community overall.
“Our current facility is approaching five decades old and if it hadn’t have
been for the people having the foresight back at the time they were building the Civic Centre to do something about it, we’d still be playing outside.”
Robison has indicated to the Warriors and the city that “a very clear
position and a full commitment” must be in place by the time the league
holds its annual meeting in June.
“If there’s a firm commitment with an immediate time frame attached to it, we are prepared to consider that,” Robison said. “We are not prepared to consider something that would be indefinite . . . If it goes beyond our June meeting, I think the situation becomes very much a concern.”
And what happens if the concerns are not allayed?
“We’ll have to consider whether this franchise is relocated to another
market,” the commissioner stated.
“They have an obligation to have a facility of standard and if they’re not
in compliance with the league bylaws and constitution, then we would take steps to have the franchise relocated.”
Warriors GM Chad Lang must field and contend with the questions.
“From our perspective, it’s starting to have its effect,” Lang said. “It
has its effect when it comes to recruiting staff and personnel. It’s going
to continue to have some effect as far as your recruiting of hockey players.
“With the (bantam) draft (approaching), that’s a comment when we have our interviews with parents. They ask ‘What’s the status of the new facility?’ or ‘Is there going to be a new facility?’ At the end of the day, you get tired of trying to continually say where you’re at or defend what’s going on.
“I’m a big believer that the business sector and the community at large here in Moose Jaw are fully supportive of a Western Hockey League team. I think they deserve a Western Hockey League team. I think if they’re given an opportunity with a new facility, I think it’s going to be very successful.”
But what if it doesn’t come to that?
“It would be sad to see them gone but, to be perfectly blunt, if they’re too
stupid to get a rink built, they deserve whatever they get,” Regina Pats GM
Brent Parker said. “I’m not talking about their fans and I’m not talking
about their management. If their city council is too stupid to build a rink,
then they get what they deserve. It would be a shame, but see you later. The fans in Swift Current hate us enough, anyways. They’ll take over.”
Parker is optimistic that the worst-case scenario will not materialize.
“I think they’ll get something done but, boy, it certainly has gone on for a
while,” he said. “If they don’t think we’re serious when we say that if
it’s not done by the deadline that has been imposed, then the franchise will be revoked, they’re going to get a real rude awakening.
“Their fans deserve a lot of credit for going to that dump for as long as
they have and supporting that team as well as they have. The only bonus of that rink is you only have to look at three rows of their fans on the other
side as opposed to having to look at all of them. That’s the only good side
about that rink. Having said that, their visitors’ dressing room is better
than ours.
“They’ve done as much as they can. Am I worried about them? Naah. It would be wrong for me to worry about them, but I would be disappointed if they left.”
Despite what the WHL deems to be an inadequate facility, the Warriors are viable — as are the Swift Current Broncos and Prince Albert Raiders.
Saskatchewan’s three community-owned, small-market franchises all have surpluses.
Swift Current and Prince Albert recently renovated their facilities to meet
the WHL’s standard.
“It was absolutely key,” Broncos governor Ben Wiebe said. “We had
identified that five years ago, that things had to change. We had to be able to increase our ability to raise revenue. The city stepped up. We had to have that done to survive.”
The Broncos have not merely survived. They are the only East Division team that remains in the WHL playoffs.
But even in times of prosperity, the small-market teams must battle to stay afloat.
“There’s not a lot of margin for error,” Robison said. “They must maximize
revenue streams in terms of attendance and sponsorship — local support being so important.
“The league will do its part with respect to controlling its costs. We have
a business model in place that we want to preserve, and we do so to protect the small markets in particular. But it’s incumbent on those markets to ensure that those markets are near capacity every night and that the corporate support is there for the club on an ongoing basis. If that’s the case, then our commitment is to maintain the business model and attempt to maintain those franchises.”
That includes Moose Jaw, providing that a new complex can eventually be
erected.
“This is a pretty significant project for a community of our size,” Lang
said. “At the end of the day, I’d rather us be in a position where we’ve
done our due diligence and made sure that we built and went about a new facility right the first time rather than being in a situation where three or four years down the road, we’re questioning the facility that we’ve constructed.
“You get one opportunity to make the facility work and be beneficial for the community as a whole.”