The Toronto Maple Leafs are under new management, and the Newfoundland Growlers have already lost some key names to retirement and overseas this offseason; with that being said, is it time for the Newfoundland Growlers to move? The Growlers had their arena dispute back in 2021, which forced the team to play their first six games in Conception Bay South before the two parties came to an agreement, and the Growlers agreed to finish out their lease at Mary Brown’s Centre, but what happens when the lease ends at the end of this year? Conception Bay Arena only holds a little over 1000 people, and the team only played six games during the COVID season, so I doubt that’s a viable option. I believe that it is time for the team to move, and it will benefit the two biggest parties involved, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the ECHL. The obvious destination would be Toronto, but any city that would be easier to reach, do I dare say Quebec City? That’s an option, but Toronto would be the best fit for all the parties involved.
How it Benefits the Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs already have their AHL team playing in Toronto as well, which allows for easy access of players between the AHL and NHL club, however between the AHL and ECHL currently, for the Marlies and Growlers, players have to get on a flight, which would involve planning and most importantly extra time. If players could get between the AHL and ECHL clubs more efficiently, we may see more movement between the AHL and ECHL in the Maple Leaf organization. It’s not a surprise that the Growlers have been one of the heaviest ECHL teams, as they always seem to have a majority of AHL contracts on their ECHL club. There are a few options in arenas for the Growlers if they move to Toronto, but the obvious choice is Coca-Cola Coliseum, which is also home to the Marlies.
How This Benefits The ECHL
There’s no question that St.Johns, Newfoundland, is a nice place to visit, but it’s one of those trips that teams dread having due to the travel. Let’s take Adirondack, for example; most of their trips involve them driving to Montreal and then flying out to Newfoundland from there. Newfoundland isn’t near any other ECHL city, which is the biggest issue because if you look at the other divisions, almost all the other teams have at least one team within a reasonable distance of them. Moving Newfoundland to Toronto would cut down on travel costs for ECHL teams and allow that money to be used in other ways. In the Kelly Cup Playoffs, it’s shown that teams only want to make one trip out to Newfoundland, which is understandable but takes the 2-3-2 format out of play and instead gives you the 3-4 format, which is incredibly rare in any level of hockey.
Moving Forwards
Yes, the Growlers will be playing in Newfoundland next season, so the move isn’t imminent, but it is something that all three parties will be considering. But with the change in management and a lot of key Growlers going overseas, it’s begun to raise questions about the team’s future in Newfoundland. Regardless of the situation, the Maple Leafs and Marlies would want to keep a relationship with their ECHL club as it has proved pivotal for the organization moving forward; what do you think? Will the Growlers be on the move, or will they be playing elsewhere in a few years?
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Pretty poor research when you can’t even spell the name of the arena correctly. Not comment about attendance, community reaction, etc. St. John’s too far away? Awwww, breaks my heart. Yep, flying on a plane is a real discomfort. Get real.
Yeah, no one’s going to the games bud. Attendance is not going to support an argument to stay.
I agree with you on this he is a terrible writer doesn’t double check his facts. I was going to a game in glens falls NY and he pushed my daughter out of his way with no I’m sorry or excuse me. I yelled at him but he just keep going. He is a jerk!!!
Why not Halifax, still give the east coast something. 2 hour flight to Boston, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal.
7-10k fans for major junior….
Hockey has been and will be in Newfoundland for a long time, going back to the 1992 AHL finals against your beloved Adirondack. The Growlers have great support from fans and from the Maple Leaf organization. For more than a decade, the St. John’s was the AHL franchise for the Leafs so having the ECHL Leafs’ franchise in St. John’s was a perfect choice. Given that the Growlers have won one Kelly Cup and made to the semi-finals twice in all three of its play-off runs just shows how great the organimation is and the fact that former Growlers have moved up to coaching and player positions in the Leaf organization demonstrates how well it is filling its role as a developmental team. Finally, do some journalism next time. Did you reach out to speak to anyone from the Growlers, Leafs, or ECHL? You didn’t quote anyone from any of those organizations. You mentioned the issue of the lease but failed to mention that the City of St. John’s has completely changed how it runs facilities like the Mary Brown Centre to avoid previous issues from reoccurring. If you want to be a journalist, DO YOUR JOB. This just sounds like someone complaining about their favorite teams travel arrangements.