Blackhawks to open next season in Prague?

[SportsWorld]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/ho ... 8447.story

The Blackhawks were on display on a North American stage for the Winter Classic at Wrigley Field. Next season, they look to go global. Hawks Team President John McDonough revealed during Thursday's game that the NHL has invited the Hawks to open the 2009-10 season by playing games in Europe.

McDonough said, "nothing has been finalized, we'll know sometime in the near future," but a source said the Hawks would play in Prague, Czech Republic, likely against the Florida Panthers.

The Hawks have played in Europe before, when they took on the Montreal Canadiens in two preseason games in London in 1992.

The New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning opened this season with two games in Prague, while the Ottawa Senators and Pittsburgh Penguins faced off in Stockholm, Sweden.

[WEFFPIM]

If the NHL wants to broaden it's fanbase to Europe, picking a team that plans (hopes) to be a future dynasty, or at the very least a strong contender for the next handful of years would be a good team to pick. Pair them with a team with a small fanbase like Florida and you're not just exposing them to superstars, but actual teams.

I'm fine with it because it's a great idea by the NHL to do it like this.