The Edmonton Oilers franchise value has sky-rocketed over the last year, according to a new report from Sportico.
After a season that saw the Oilers come within a single victory of the Stanley Cup, it appears that Connor McDavid and company have done wonders for the team’s value. The new report has Edmonton as the seventh most valuable franchise in the NHL at $2.4 billion, an increase of around 51% from last year’s valuation of $1.59 billion.
When you compare that with their provincial rival Calgary Flames, who sit in 18th with a valuation of $1.58 billion (an increase of 39% from last year), that means the Oilers are worth about 52% more.
Say what you will about the play on the ice, but the Alberta capital is running away with the competition off of it.
The Nashville Predators are the NHL’s 23rd-most valuable team at $1.32 billion according to @Sportico‘s latest valuation. pic.twitter.com/Eo2vUqsIn3
— Nick Kieser🏒 (@KieserNick) October 30, 2024
It’s obvious why a major difference in value exists between the two Alberta NHL franchises. For one, the Oilers have gone on multiple long playoff runs over the past several seasons, while the Flames have missed the playoffs in each of the last two seasons.
The Oilers also have a lot more marketable players, with McDavid and Leon Draisaitl among the very best in the league. Add that to a state-of-the-art arena that is less than 10 years old in Rogers Place compared to an outdated Saddledome, and the Flames didn’t stand much of a chance in this battle.
Though it may be lower down than you would expect a Canadian team to be, the Flames were not last place in that category. That honour belongs to the Winnipeg Jets, whose $1.1 billion valuation landed them second-last in the NHL.
Elsewhere in the league, the Toronto Maple Leafs have held onto the top spot as the NHL’s most valuable franchise, with a valuation of $3.66 billion. The Columbus Blue Jackets came in last, with a valuation of just $1.06 billion.
Sportico calculates each franchise’s value through several different data sets, including team revenue and interviews with people familiar with team transactions and finances. These figures were also vetted by multiple team owners.