'Mississauga Hurricanes': Mayoral candidate wants to bring NHL team to the city
A Mississauga mayoral candidate wants to bring an NHL team to the city, saying it’s time for Toronto to pass the puck and share the benefits that come with housing a major hockey club.
Peter McCallion, son of former Mississauga mayor Hazel McCallion, made the announcement Monday and pledged to draft a bid for a team if he wins the byelection on June 10.
It should be noted that Mississauga currently lacks an NHL-sized arena, with the 5,420 seat Paramount Fine Foods Centre currently the largest indoor facility in the city.
“It’s time to get a team of our own,” McCallion said in a news release. “Mississauga is no longer the little brother or sister of Toronto. It’s an idea whose time has come.”
McCallion said he would tap members of the business community to put the NHL pitch together and rely on the private sector to build an arena.
He notes that Mississauga has a bigger population now - an estimated 717,961 people - than Toronto did when it got the Maple Leafs – then the Arenas – in 1917.
Mississauga is currently home to an Ontario Hockey League team – the Steelheads - but that franchise previously announced that it would relocate to Brampton in time for next season.
“A Toronto/Mississauga rivalry would keep a lot of the sports entertainment dollars in the GTA,” McCallion said in the release.
The mayoral hopeful acknowledged there are “a lot of hurdles” that come with securing an NHL team and he’s right. Back in 2009, Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie of BlackBerry fame tried to relocate the bankrupt Phoenix Coyotes to Hamilton but was caught up in a legal fight with a U.S. bankruptcy court that eventually rejected the bid.
Despite that, McCallion said the city needs “bold vision and new ideas” to address some of its core issues, specifically the housing shortage.
“Just look at what has been built around the Scotiabank Arena and you get an idea of how mixed land use can be integrated to develop a complete community,” he wrote.
McCallion said the city presents an “ideal location” for an NHL franchise as its near highways and transit. If elected, he said he would use Ontario’s so-called strong mayor powers to get the project shovel-ready faster.
As for what the hypothetical team will be called, McCallion thinks the Mississauga Hurricanes has a nice ring to it, an ode to his mother, often described lovingly as “Hurricane Hazel.” That would likely be a tough sell for the NHL though, as the Carolina Hurricanes currently have the rights to the tropical cyclone name.
Mississauga residents will head to the polls on June 10. The byelection was called after former mayor Bonnie Crombie vacated the seat on Jan. 12 to become the leader of the Ontario Liberal Party.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Winnipeg man admits to killing four women, argues he's not criminally responsible
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.
NDP calls out Conservatives for effort to quash pharmacare legislation
The federal New Democrats are calling out Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and his party for trying to block the bill that could pave the way for millions of Canadians to access birth control and diabetes coverage.
Mediterranean staple may lower your risk of death from dementia, study finds
A daily spoonful of olive oil could lower your risk of dying from dementia, according to a new study by Harvard scientists.
DEVELOPING Hamas accepts Gaza ceasefire proposal from Egypt and Qatar
Hamas said it has accepted a ceasefire deal proposed by Egypt and Qatar which seeks to halt the seven-month war with Israel in Gaza.
An El Nino-less summer is coming. Here's what that could mean for Canada
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
For the first time, researchers have identified a genetic form of late-in-life Alzheimer's disease
For the first time, researchers have identified a genetic form of late-in-life Alzheimer’s disease — in people who inherit two copies of a worrisome gene.
Manitoba Court of Appeal dismisses Peter Nygard's appeal of extradition order
The Manitoba Court of Appeal has dismissed Peter Nygard's application for a judicial review of an order to extradite the former fashion mogul to the United States, where he faces sex trafficking and racketeering charges.
Man banned from owning animals after fatal Calgary dog attack
The owner of three Calgary dogs that got loose and mauled a woman to death in 2022 has been ordered to pay a $15,000 fine within one year and banned from owning any animal for 15 years.
B.C. court date set for 3 accused of murdering Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Three suspects accused of murdering British Columbia Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar last year are scheduled to appear in court in Surrey on Tuesday.