FTB: Calgary Flames get a new arena, paid for by the public

Good morning Toronto Maple Leafs fans!

The Leafs are off today, and won't play again until 7PM tomorrow, giving us almost two full days of nothing new to talk about Leafs-wise.

However! The Calgary Flames were kind enough to give us something to chat about today, a replacement arena for the Saddledome!

Yes, the arena that was built for the Calgary Olympics in 1988, opened in 1983, may be replaced. Calgarians have been asking for a new venue for a few years so they can enjoy concerts, hockey games, and other events in more modern comforts.

Of course, as most projects like these go, it won't be paid for by the team, or the billionaires who own it. No, don't be silly. They'll pitch in enough to act like they're doing everyone a favour, but the majority will come from the city and province.

$1.2B deal reached on Calgary arena project that replaces Saddledome — mostly with public funds | CBC News

City officials, the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation (CSEC) and Premier Danielle Smith were on hand to make the announcement about a future event centre.

CBCFollow Joel on Twitter

The current Premier of Alberta was at the announcement but hold on, oh no, they aren't committing to the funding at all. A quarter of the money is being held back until after the upcoming provincial election. Essentially, this is a dangling carrot to get the people of Calgary to vote for the UCP. You don't hate hockey do you?

Really, it should motivate Oilers fans to vote against them, because who wouldn't want to deny their rivals an arena?

Public funds for private arenas is stupid. Unless the city has 100% control of the profits, leases, and use of the project, it's just buying toys for the ultra-rich.

Gross.

So, for the Leafs, we will discuss Michael Bunting and where he'll fit into the lineup for way too much time, so let's distract ourselves with more news.

Like how Blue Jays fans love hot dogs.

Or the Leafs fan who was screaming into his phone after the Leafs won in overtime against Tampa.

The Hockey News found him!

The provincial opposition spoke out about the shady practices done by Greater Toronto Hockey League owners, and want things like this looked into.

Prospective buyer says he was coached to skirt GTHL’s rules on organization sales | TSN

A prospective buyer who says he had a deal in place to purchase a Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL) organization for $375,000 alleges he was coached on how to skirt the league’s rules prohibiting such sales.

TSNRick Westhead

Cale Makar got one third the suspension that Bunting got for a worse hit.

Here's last night's scores:

New York Islanders 3 - Carolina Hurricanes 1
Hurricanes lead series 3-2

Dallas Stars 4 - Minnesota Wild 0
Dallas leads series 3-2

Edmonton Oilers 6 - Los Angeles Kings 3
Edmonton leads series 3-2

Tonight's games:

Florida Panthers at Boston Bruins
Bruins lead series 3-1

Seattle Kraken at Colorado Avalanche
Series tied 2-2

Enjoy your Leafs-free day everyone!

Go Leafs Go!