#FBF: Should The NHL Award Minneapolis With Being A Hub City?

The NHL has narrowed down its list of possible hub cities to ten–Columbus, Las Vegas, Chicago, Dallas, Minneapolis, Edmonton, Vancouver, Los Angeles, Toronto and Pittsburgh. The biggest hurdles for a city to be selected are COVID-19 testing, government regulations regarding social gatherings and distancing, and available on-ice and off-ice accommodations.

But there is one other consideration which should be included in the search for a hub city. That consideration is whether awarding a city the hub designation will properly impact the overall well-being of that city as well as the NHL. Meaning, the city would benefit not only economically and in fame but all of its citizens would benefit.

In light of the recent murder of a Black an–George Floyd–by the city police, one may think Minneapolis should be excluded from the list of potential hub cities with all of the current protests and rioting. It could be seen as awarding a city for its ills of injustice stemming from racism. But here’s an opportunity for the NHL to grab unlike the NFL that missed a similar one with the Ferguson situation. Here is an opportunity for the NHL to truly impact society by awarding Minneapolis the hub city designation.

First, let’s consider the NHL’s original criteria for choosing a hub city. Minneapolis is home to the best hospital in the country–Mayo Clinic–which should help with COVID-19 testing. Further, if there is an outbreak of COVID-19 amongst the players or respective teams’ staff, then they would also have the best infectious disease doctors available as those also belong to the Mayo Clinic. With Minnesota being a strong hockey state from youth to adult, Minneapolis has plenty of hotel rooms and practice arenas in the area to support players and teams’ staff.

That leaves social gathering regulations.That leaves social gathering regulations. Minnesota is in Phase 2 of opening the state after being locked down due to the coronavirus. Small social gatherings are now allowed outside with mandatory mask wearing in public spaces. So, that is moving in the right direction which is perfect for some of the things the NHL could do to help rebuild Minneapolis as well as obtain its own goals.

Source: Minnesota CBS 4 WCCO

Looks like all of the NHL’s criteria is being met, so now the NHL can focus on meeting some of goals of the City of Minneapolis. The economic and logistical goals are things Minneapolis and NHL can hammer out for themselves. That leaves goals the citizens of Minneapolis need.

Let me say, I am not citizen of Minneapolis. However, in this instance, I do not believe that matters and at the same time it may be more beneficial that I am not. There are certain things all citizens need from the place where they lay their heads to sleep, work and play. Those things are liberty, peace and safety and those things are accomplished through understanding, compromise and respect.

Minneapolis’ Citizens of Color and much of its citizens of the majority like all of the cities the NHL are reviewing as potential hubs–Columbus, Las Vegas, Toronto except Edmonton which has one scheduled for June 6–are fed up with police brutality and protesting. And now since President Trump called the military into it, a Black man who supported his local police department was killed in Louisville last night by the Kentucky National Guard.

By default, the NHL has an obligation to try to bridge the gap between those parties. It has ties to both the fans and the police departments and military personnel it so highly honors throughout the season. The NHL can start by creating programs to start the healing process in Minneapolis as it chooses that City as one of the two hub cities to restart the NHL playoffs.

Source: ESPN First Take

**Ideas to bridge the gap in tomorrow’s blog article.**