Sports
Odds Are Good Your Team Will Never Win A Title In Your Lifetime
“There’s no failure in sports. There’s good days, bad days, some days you’re able to be successful, some days you’re not. Some days it’s your turn, some days it’s not your turn. That’s what sports is about. You don’t always win. Some other people’s going to win. And this year somebody else is going to win. Simple as that.” Milwaukee star Giannis Antetokounmpo on losing in the playoffs last spring.
Antetokounmpo was simply stating the obvious math. In a time where leagues are 30 or 32 teams, media expectations are rooted in the odds of a 12- or 14-team league when playoffs were just two rounds. There’s luck and sheer numbers working against your team. Fans follow this standard that your team must win titles or be forever damned. The closer a club gets the greater the expectations.
Still reporters demanded accountability from the man who’d helped the Bucks to the 2021 NBA title. But Giannis turned it back on reporter Eric Nehm . “Oh my god. You asked me the same question last year, Eric. Do you get a promotion every year on your job? No, right? So, every year your work is a failure? Yes or no? No. Every year you work, you work toward something, toward a goal, right? Which is to get a promotion, to be able to take care of your family, provide a house for them or take care of your parents. It’s not a failure, it’s steps to success.
He has a point. In the modern age failure is relative. The traditional poster boys for “failure” are the Buffalo Bills from 1992 to 1996. After wining the AFC every one of those years Marv Levy’s team went to four Super Bowls and lost every one of them, branding them forever in the media and fan perspective as losers.
No other team has ever made four consecutive Super Bowls. Kansas City made four title games in five years. None have made it to three straight Super Bowls. The Detroit Lions have zero Super Bowl appearances before this season and have won just three times in the postseason since their NFL championship in 1957.
Even in a league with 28 teams, the Bills’ feat was remarkable. Unprecedented. And yet, because they lost all four consecutive championship games they’re an avatar of failure. When compared to dynasties such as the 1970s Miami Dolphins (two Super bowls) or the 1980s-90s San Francisco 49ers (5 Super Bowls) the Bills are seen as chokers or losers. The New England Patriots’ winning six SBs from 2002-2016 are the real outlier.)
The current poster boys for hockey failure are the Toronto Maple Leafs, without an NHL championship since 1967. That year was also the last time the Leafs appeared in the Final series. They have since made the final four five times, the most recent being 2002 when Boston dispatched them. Most fans of the team, as well as most hockey fans, see them as a punchline. But in these times of bloated leagues, a semifinal appearance is the equivalent of making it to the Finals in the six-team league of 1967.
Fans and contemporary media still think they we are living in a time when every club, given a little luck and a good draft, will reward its fans with a champions parade. That’s what the mania for parity and salary caps was about. Balancing the draft would give everyone a shot at a star who’d take them to the holy land. But with 30 or 32 teams that formula doesn’t work. There’s just one Stanley Cup. One Lombardi Trophy. And 31 disappointed fan bases.
Where the 1955-60 Montreal Canadiens, 1976-80 Habs, 1981-84 New York Islanders and 1984-1988 Edmonton Oilers defined clutch with multiple Cups in consecutive or near-consecutive seasons, today’s gold standard is closer to two and done. Detroit won four Cups but it was between 1997 and 2008. Chicago won three Cups in five years (2010-2015). Pittsburgh had three Cups in eight years (2009-2017) .
Basketball (with its smaller rosters) still has super teams dominated by LeBron James and Steph Curry. But the NFL and MLB lack the traditional domination by repeat champions. Since 2000 only the San Francisco Giants have three titles and those were from 2010-2014). While the big-budget Dodgers and Yankees have been perennial playoff teams they haven’t dominated the current 30-team league as they did in the 1970s-1990s.
It’s likely that with the NHL talking about 36 teams fans of many of those clubs will not see their team win a title in their lifetime. Parity will sound nice coming from the league, but after decades of coming up short, the odds say fans shouldn’t be praying for a title.
As Giannis says, we need a new standard of success. Michael Jordan’s great accomplishment wasn’t simply the title he brought to the Bulls, it was the totality of seasons in which his club was a viable contender. “There’s always steps to it,” said Antetokounmpo. “Michael Jordan played 15 years, won six championships. The other nine years was a failure? That’s what you’re telling me?
In our book Ice Storm on the 2008-2013 Vancouver Canucks, GM Mike Gillis made the same point when describing his formula for success with a team that has gone longest without a Cup. Understanding the place luck and injuries play, he said his description for success was having a contending team that had a puncher’s chance every year and, eventually, a title winner. Yes, there would be down years. On average, however, it would reap tiles and profits for owners.
But Gillis’ owner, Francesco Aquilini, who’d originally subscribed to this formula, panicked when a near-miss for the Cup in 2011 was followed by two first-round eliminations in subsequent years. The bleating of disappointed season-ticket holders and the criticism from hostile media moved Aquilini to replace Gills with local hero Trevor Linden. The Canucks then missed the playoffs in eight of the next eleven seasons.
Setting too high a bar is a recipe for failure to any management. Explaining the rarity of a semifinal appearance— as Giannis did— can lessen the stress. But until media cite a more realistic standard it’s unlikely anyone will cut teams losing in the playoff any slack. They may well ask what’s in it for them when owners cash a fat expansion fee and push a Cup that much further away.
Bruce Dowbiggin @dowbboy is the editor of Not The Public Broadcaster A two-time winner of the Gemini Award as Canada’s top television sports broadcaster, he’s a regular contributor to Sirius XM Canada Talks Ch. 167. His new book Deal With It: The Trades That Stunned The NHL And Changed hockey is now available on Amazon. Inexact Science: The Six Most Compelling Draft Years In NHL History, his previous book with his son Evan, was voted the seventh-best professional hockey book of all time by bookauthority.org . His 2004 book Money Players was voted sixth best on the same list, and is available via brucedowbigginbooks.ca.
“The more you learn, the more you realize how much you don’t know.”— George Foreman
For those who thought Donald Trump’s role progression (in WWE terms) from face to heel to face again was remarkable, George Foreman had already written the media book on going from the Baddest Man in the World to Gentle Giant.
It’s hard for those who saw him as the genial Grill Master or the smiling man with seven sons all named George (he also had seven daughters, each named differently) to conjure up the Foreman of the 1970s. He emerged as a star at the 1968 Olympics, winning the gold medal in heavyweight boxing. His destruction of a veteran Soviet fighter made him a political hero. In an age that already boasted a remarkable heavyweights Foreman was something unique.
Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Ken Norton, Ron Lyle and Jimmy Ellis were still bankable household names for boxing fans— but on the downside of famous careers. They each had their niche. Foreman was something altogether different. Violent and pitiless in the ring. Unsmiling as he dismantled the boxers he met on his way to the top. He was the ultimate black hat.
With the inimitable Howard Cosell as his background track , he entered the ring in 1973 against the favoured ex-champ Frazier, coming off his three epic fights with Ali. While everyone gave Foreman a chance it was thought that the indomitable Frazier, possessor of a lethal left hook, would tame the young bull.
Instead, in under two rounds of savagery , Foreman sent Frazier to the canvas six times. Cosell yelled himself horse crying, “Down goes Frazier! Down goes Frazier!” This was a whole new level of brutality as the poker-faced Foreman returned to his corner as the most feared boxer on the planet. For good measure Foreman destroyed Norton in 1974.
Fans of Ali quaked when they heard that he would face Foreman’s awesome power in Africa in the summer of 1974. They knew how much the trio of Frazier brawls had taken from him. The prospect of seeing the beloved heavyweight champ lifted off his feet by Foreman’s power left them sick to their stomach. Foreman played up his bad-boy image, wearing black leather, snarling at the press and leading a German shepherd on a leash.
Everyone knows what happened next. We were travelling the time in the era before internet/ cell phones. Anticipating the worst we blinked hard at the headline showing the next day that it was a thoroughly exhausted Foreman who crumbled in the seventh round. The brilliant documentary When We Were Kings is the historical record of that night/ morning in Kinshasa. The cultural clash of Ali, the world’s most famous man, and the brute against the background of music and third-world politics made it an Oscar winner.
But it’s largely about Ali. It doesn’t do justice to the enormity of Foreman’s collapse. Of course the humiliation of that night sent Foreman on a spiritual quest to find himself, a quest that took the prime of his career from him. It wasn’t till 1987 that he re-emerged as a Baptist minister/ boxer. With peace in his soul he climbed the ranks again, defiantly trading blows in the centre of the ring with opponents who finally succumbed to his “old-man” power.
Instead of the dour character who was felled by Ali, this Foreman was transformed in the public’s eye when he captured the heavyweight title in 1994, beating Michael Moore, a man 20 years his junior. He smiled. He teased Cosell and other media types. He fought till he was 48, although he tried to comeback when he was 55 (his wife intervened)
And, yes, for anyone who stayed up late watching TV there was the George Foreman Grill, a pitchman’s delight that earned him more money than his boxing career. HBO boxing commentator Larry Merchant commented that “There was a transformation from a young, hard character who felt a heavyweight champion should carry himself with menace to a very affectionate personality.”
There was a short-lived TV show called George. There was The Masked Singer as “Venus Fly Trap”. And there were the cameos on Home Improvement, King Of The Hill and Fast ’N Loud, delighting audiences who’d once reviled him. He cracked up Johnny Carson.
Foreman’s rebound story was uniquely American. Where Canadians are enthusiastically damning Bobby Orr and Wayne Gretzky for political reasons, Foreman never became a captive of angry radicals or corporate America. He went his own way, thumping the bible and the grill. Rest easy, big man.
Bruce Dowbiggin @dowbboy is the editor of Not The Public Broadcaster A two-time winner of the Gemini Award as Canada’s top television sports broadcaster, his new book Deal With It: The Trades That Stunned The NHL And Changed hockey is now available on Amazon. Inexact Science: The Six Most Compelling Draft Years In NHL History, his previous book with his son Evan, was voted the seventh-best professional hockey book of all time by bookauthority.org . His 2004 book Money Players was voted sixth best on the same list, and is available via brucedowbigginbooks.ca.
News release from the Western Hockey League
The Western Hockey League announced today the awarding of an expansion franchise to the Penticton Vees for the 2025-26 WHL season along with the initiation of a franchise application process for the City of Chilliwack, to begin play in the 2026-27 WHL season.
“This is an exciting day, as the Western Hockey League takes its next step as the world’s finest development league for junior hockey players,” commented WHL Commissioner Dan Near. “Communities within B.C. produce talented young players from thriving grassroots hockey programs and we’re pleased to deliver WHL franchises to two important centres in the province – Penticton and Chilliwack. In each market the WHL operates in, we aim to serve as role models within the local hockey community, business community, and beyond. We look forward to the opportunity to continue these efforts in Penticton and Chilliwack.”
Penticton possesses an incredibly rich hockey history, a strong commitment from its municipal government, outstanding facilities, community support, and is also home to high-performance competition, including the Canadian Sports School Hockey League (CSSHL) Championships.
“We’re thrilled with the announcement that the Western Hockey League is bringing the top tier of junior hockey to Penticton,” said Julius Bloomfield, Mayor of the City of Penticton. “Our community has a long, proud hockey tradition and this represents the next chapter in our story. The WHL will bring excitement, excellence and economic activity to our town and we can’t wait for the first training camp to open.”
Chilliwack is a longstanding outpost for junior hockey in the Lower Mainland. As a growing and thriving community with dedicated municipal government, Chilliwack will quickly establish itself as a pillar of strength in the WHL.
“Having the WHL select Chilliwack for expansion is exciting for our community,” said Jason Lum, Acting Mayor of the City of Chilliwack. “The league has a strong track record of supporting youth programs and local charities while boosting the economy in its home cities. Along with the high calibre of play, the WHL also plays a crucial role in developing future NHL stars.”
Hockey Canada has granted approval for the Penticton Vees to join the WHL and return to sanctioned hockey activities.
“Today’s announcement is an exciting moment for hockey in British Columbia and Western Canada, and we are thrilled that fans in Penticton and Chilliwack will get to experience elite-level junior hockey in their communities,” said Katherine Henderson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hockey Canada. “Providing Canadian athletes with premier development opportunities in our country is of the utmost importance to Hockey Canada and our Members, and we anticipate the WHL’s expansion will have a positive impact on our efforts with BC Hockey to grow the game in a hockey system that prioritizes the safety and wellness of participants. We congratulate the WHL and the cities of Penticton and Chilliwack for their roles in ensuring the sport of hockey continues to thrive and unite communities across our country.”
The expansion of the WHL to Penticton and Chilliwack will increase the WHL footprint to 24 member Clubs by 2026-27, including 18 throughout Western Canada and six in the Pacific Northwest United States.
“As we evaluate the everchanging landscape of hockey, this marks a critical opportunity for the WHL to invest in enhancing the WHL Player Experience across all 24 WHL markets,” Near said. “The WHL remains committed to offering a world-class player experience for hockey’s elite junior-aged players, and with that, we will continually raise our standards across the board to adapt to the changing landscape.”
Strategically, these two key markets fit perfectly within the WHL’s existing footprint in the Western Conference, particularly as it pertains to B.C.’s Lower Mainland, Okanagan, and South Thompson Valley regions. Penticton will join the WHL’s B.C. Division and Western Conference for 2025-26.
Penticton, British Columbia (2025-26)
The WHL Penticton franchise will be owned and operated by Graham Fraser, who has been the majority owner of the BCHL’s Penticton Vees since June 2008. Fraser will migrate the Vees franchise to the WHL.
Joining Fraser as partners are Winnipeg Jets forward and Ontario Hockey League alumnus Mark Scheifele, former New York Rangers goaltender Mike Richter, and prominent Penticton businessmen Joe Walters and Gord Kovacik.
“We are excited to welcome Graham Fraser and the entire Penticton Vees ownership group, along with Fred Harbinson, to the WHL,” commented WHL Commissioner Dan Near. “Following productive conversations with BC Hockey and Hockey Canada, we collectively agree that the repatriation of the Penticton Vees is good for the game of hockey in Canada.”
Harbinson will serve as the President, General Manager, and Head Coach of the WHL’s Penticton Vees.
The WHL’s Penticton Vees franchise will join the B.C. Division in the Western Conference for the 2025-26 regular season.
“It’s a very exciting time for our community and the Penticton Vees,” Fraser said. “We feel the city and hockey team are ready to take the next step and join the WHL. With Fred Harbinson, Dean Clarke, and our staffs, we will be in a great place to have continued success. I would like to thank our ownership group of Mark Scheifele, Mike Richter, Joe Walters, and Gord Kovacik for their support in making this a reality.”
The Penticton Vees will be bound by Hockey Canada’s existing player transfer regulations as well as WHL regulations. The Vees will participate in the 2025 WHL Expansion Draft, which is scheduled for Wednesday, May 7. They will also participate in the 2025 WHL Prospects Draft, 2025 WHL U.S. Priority Draft, and 2025 CHL Import Draft. The Vees have begun recruiting a 15-player list, which will expand to the WHL standard 50-player list May 7.
“This is a monumental moment in our franchise’s history, starting as an iconic senior team in the 1950s, to being a premier Junior ‘A’ team for the past 65 years,” Harbinson said. “The move to the WHL is the next chapter in the legacy of hockey in Penticton. I look forward to this new challenge, while competing against the best players and coaches in junior hockey.”
Penticton’s South Okanagan Events Centre – a WHL-ready, multi-purpose facility that seats 5,000 – has been home to the Penticton Vees since 2008.
“Penticton’s South Okanagan Events Centre is WHL ready and is one of the best amateur sports facilities in all of Western Canada,” Near said. “It is only natural that this gem houses a franchise in the WHL. We eagerly anticipate the opportunity to bring WHL hockey to Penticton for the 2025-26 WHL season.”
Opened in 2008, the South Okanagan Events Centre is owned by the City of Penticton and managed by Oak View Group. The Okanagan’s premier sports and entertainment venue, the South Okanagan Events Centre has played host to world-class concerts and events and houses the Okanagan Hockey School along with the B.C. Hockey Hall of Fame.
The 95,000-square-foot facility includes three ice rinks, modern dressing rooms, food and beverage service, team merchandise store, and 27 luxury suites. The South Okanagan Events Centre is also connected to the 60,000-square-foot Penticton Trade and Convention Centre – one of the largest trade show and convention facilities in B.C.
The greater Penticton region is home to nearly 45,000 people. Penticton represents a natural, geographical rival for the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets and Kamloops Blazers.
Chilliwack, British Columbia (2026-27)
The City of Chilliwack is home to the Chilliwack Coliseum – a WHL-ready, multi-purpose facility that seats 5,000. Opened in 2004, the Chilliwack Coliseum is owned and operated by the City of Chilliwack. The Chilliwack Coliseum has played host to world-class concerts and events, including trade shows and conventions.
The City of Chilliwack is set to invest $3.7 million in upgrades to the Chilliwack Coliseum prior to the arrival of a WHL franchise in 2026-27, including enhancements to the scoreboard, lighting system, NHL-standard boards, and more.
The 144,000-square-foot facility includes two NHL-sized ice rinks, modern dressing rooms, food and beverage service, team merchandise store, and 13 luxury suites.
Chilliwack has an estimated population over 107,000, with expectations for it to see the largest population growth in the Fraser Valley in the next five years. Chilliwack also represents a natural, geographical rival for the WHL’s Vancouver Giants.
The WHL will immediately launch a franchise application process where interested parties will be invited to present a plan including a vision for hockey operations, community integration, and business operations, which will be evaluated by the WHL Commissioner and Executive Committee.
The WHL anticipates announcing the outcome of the franchise application process prior to the start of the 2025-26 WHL season, subject to the approval of the WHL Board of Governors.
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