ST. LOUIS – A new report from Forbes ranked all 32 NHL teams in value and showed an encouraging trend for the St. Louis Blues.
The Blues finished near the middle of the pack (19th) with the franchise valued at $880 million. More notably, St. Louis had the second-largest one-year jump in value among all NHL teams, soaring 38% in value over the past year.
According to Forbes, “our valuations are enterprise values [equity plus net debt] and include the economics of each team’s current arena deal but not the value of the real estate itself.”
Forbes also notes a handful of transactions during the past 12 months illustrate some middle-sized NHL markets, like St. Louis, Colorado and Ottawa, noticed significant increases in value. TV deals, like the partnership that the Blues have with Bally Sports Midwest, and team sponsors, like the Blues sporting Stifel advertising on their jerseys, also help a team generate more value.
Over the past decade, the St. Louis Blues’ value has grown from nearly five times from its $185 million value mark in 2013, per Forbes.
The New York Rangers finished as the top-valued franchise in Forbes’ rankings for a fourth consecutive year at $2.2 billion. The Arizona Coyotes finished last at $450 million.