Chatham, Ont., likely to set OHL dreams aside

There is a little epilogue to the tale of sadness whereby two Ontario Hockey League teams tore up stakes at the end of the season. As you might remember, Chatham, Ont., was bandied about as a possible destination for a team.

Now it appears that door is closing. City administrators in the southwest Ontario community, showing a grasp for the obvious, have recommended against building an OHL-size arena project.

From Jake Kislinsky (@jake_kislinsky):

There might be some disappointment emanating out of this. In the big picture, where sport is just part of public life, Chatham might be getting off lucky if, indeed, votes against such a project. By and large, regardless of whatever feelings of prestige and prosperity come when a city builds a new arena that also allows the local junior hockey team to keep with the Joneses (or the Hunters, more to the point), the projects don't necessarily make a profit.

So there is that. Meantime, the OHL has to see how returning to Hamilton after a quarter-century will pan out and whether Flint will be as attractive to players and their families as Plymouth, which typically fared very well at securing commitments from players who wanted to use their NCAA option. Those are far from certain.

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @naitSAYger.