The New York Rangers have played a lot of playoff hockey over the past four years, and while they don't have a Stanley Cup to show for it, they can hang their hat on this: The club is the NHL's most valuable franchise, according to Forbes Magazine.
The Rangers are valued at $1.2 billion, topping the list of the most valuable NHL teams for the first time since 2004. The magazine cites trips to the Stanley Cup Final and Eastern Conference finals over the past two years, as well as recent Madison Square Garden renovations worth $1 billion, as major sources of revenue for the club.
The Rangers brought in $229 million in revenue in 2014-15 - the most in the NHL.
The Montreal Canadiens moved up from third to second with a valuation of $1.18 billion - an 18 percent increase over last year, thanks in part to a new television deal.
The Toronto Maple Leafs dropped from first to third at $1.15 billion, down 12 percent. Three playoff wins in 10 years have hurt the franchise.
The average value of an NHL team has gone up three percent to $505 million.
Montreal is the only Canadian franchise to see an increase in value, as a falling Canadian dollar has hurt teams north of the border.
On the other end, if you've got $186 million lying around, you can buy the Florida Panthers.
Here's the full list of Forbes' valuations:
Rank | Team | Value |
---|---|---|
1 | New York Rangers | $1.2B |
2 | Montreal Canadiens | $1.18B |
3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | $1.15B |
4 | Chicago Blackhawks | $925M |
5 | Boston Bruins | $750M |
6 | Vancouver Canucks | $745M |
7 | Philadelphia Flyers | $660M |
8 | Detroit Red Wings | $600M |
9 | Los Angeles Kings | $580M |
10 | Washington Capitals | $565M |
11 | Pittsburgh Penguins | $560M |
12 | Edmonton Oilers | $455M |
13 | Dallas Stars | $450M |
14 | San Jose Sharks | $445M |
15 | Calgary Flames | $435M |
16 | Anaheim Ducks | $400M |
17 | Minnesota Wild | $380M |
18 | Ottawa Senators | $370M |
19 | Colorado Avalanche | $360M |
20 | Winnipeg Jets | $350M |
21 | New Jersey Devils | $330M |
22 | New York Islanders | $325M |
23 | Buffalo Sabres | $300M |
24 | St. Louis Blues | $270M |
25 | Tampa Bay Lightning | $260M |
26 | Nashville Predators | $255M |
27 | Columbus Blue Jackets | $255M |
28 | Carolina Hurricanes | $225M |
29 | Arizona Coyotes | $220M |
30 | Florida Panthers | $186M |