The tenuous business of sports

The news today is that the National Hockey League's Atlanta Thrashers are moving from the ATL and heading north to Winnipeg.

The AJC's Jeff Schultz writes: "There are hockey teams in Tampa and San Jose and Raleigh, and I could go on. There’s still one inexplicably in Phoenix, which the NHL is floating for another year, maybe because Bettman plans to retire and open up a pawn shop there one day. Is Atlanta an inferior market to any of those cities?"

Not necessarily, Jeff.

While it would be easy to lob darts at Atlanta for losing its SECOND NHL franchise to Canada, we must remember that, in this day and age, nothing is certain. A few years ago, it could've been our Carolina Hurricanes making the trek somewhere else.

True, the Canes have become somewhat of a poster child for the success of Sun Belt hockey expansion. But even that moniker is tenuous. The fans have been great; the franchise has built some great roots through the area's youth hockey leagues. But it certainly helps to not only make playoffs but actually win a Stanley Cup.

And who knows? Leaving could still happen. The News & Observer has reported for several years about the thin-ice -- financially -- on which the Canes annually find themselves. Winning equals fans which equals sustained success -- at least until the winning stops and the fans stop coming.

I hear Quebec would like another team.