2014 Forbes NHL Franchise Values: Preds Aren't (as) Bad!

While it's best viewed in the context of the full article, the Business of Hockey article on Forbes.com is always a great annual read. Here's the big news:

NASHVILLE IS NOT IN THE BOTTOM 5 THIS YEAR.

#26 - Tampa Bay Lightning

#27 - Arizona Coyotes (Really)

#28 - Carolina Hurricanes

#29 - Columbus Blue Jackets

#30 - Florida Panthers

It's no shock that Florida is dead last. They're the only team that lost value. However, that's an understatement- they lost 21% of their franchise value due to uncertainty, bad ticket revenue, and general apathy in the region. Also, the NHL has shown that they aren't terrified of moving teams which feeds into the panic started when the Panthers ownership group were forthcoming about their team's debt. But...

Still, 29 of the 30 teams rose in value, and the one exception, the Florida Panthers (down 21%), was due to a mistake I made last September in reporting the sale price of the team as $240 million, which we used for our value of the team two months later. But subsequent to the publication of our 2013 valuations I learned that the true sale price was $160 million (the widely reported price of $250 million at the time of the deal included future operating losses that should not be included in calculating an enterprise value). Had we used the correct sale price of $160 million the value of the Panthers would have increased 19%.

Only $160 million for a franchise in one of the largest media markets in the county.

My favorite part about this article: according to Forbes, the Preds are more valuable than the St. Louis Blues. Here's the full list of teams.

Hot Takes:

• 10 teams were reported as running at a loss.
• The Edmonton Oilers are not only running at a profit, which shouldn't shock you, but they're raking in the 7th most operating revenue at $25.3 million. The Senators are right behind them at 8th. The power of Canada, ladies and gents.
• The Islanders had the largest jump in value, likely due to their lease agreement. I'd like to think making sound hockey decisions helped as well. I can think that, I hope.
• Five of the top six teams are all part of the so-called "Original Six". Detroit? #9. That'll be going up when that new building is up.
• The Predators enjoyed a 22% value increase from last year, worth the 11th highest jump in the league. The franchise is worth $250m per Forbes. Not bad.
• The average NHL team is worth $490m, an all-time high. Thanks, NBC and Rogers.
• By comparison, the average NBA team is worth $634 million and the least valuable team is worth $405 million (Milwaukee Bucks). Your Memphis Grizzlies are worth $453 million.

So, that's a ton of numbers and stuff. Hockey is growing in revenue, but the NBA is outpacing it's growth. Both leagues only have 3 teams above the $1 billion mark, so there's that. The league is trending in the right direction, which we can be thankful for that. Well, that and Craig Leipold is still losing money.