Kansas City Scouts

Ever wonder why Kansas City has had trouble as far as attracting a pro hockey team? Whether it was the Penguins back in 2005 before they reached an agreement for a new arena in Pittsburgh or the Predators, who may still be a reality if ownership follows through (this also goes for the Islanders), Kansas City just simply cannot get a hockey team. When they have had a hockey team, they fail after a specific period of time, whether the reason is the league folding (the Blades of the IHL), or just being set up to fail (Outlaws of the UHL), the city just simply has some hard luck with hockey teams.

Now, the failures haven't been limited to just hockey, with the Athletics calling Kansas City home before leaving for Oakland in baseball and the Kings moving to Sacramento in basketball. However, no pro team failure looms larger than the NHL team that the city had called the Scouts. That team lasted only two years (1974-1976) before moving to Denver to become the Colorado Rockies. Of course, that incarnation didn't last long either before moving to New Jersey to become the Devils. Poor attendance and poor on-ice performance were cited as the biggest reasons for the failed stint in the NHL pool for Kansas City. However, one could surmise that the jerseys that the team wore were an ugly combination of the primary colors. Now, look at the jersey and ask yourself if the combination would have benefitted from one less color. Perhaps, but that's a moot point now, as the Scouts are merely a footnote in the now-New Jersey Devils history.