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The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was keep. (non-admin closure)Davey2010 Talk 23:38, 11 December 2015 (UTC) reply

St. Albert Merchants

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There is no indication this lower league ice hockey team comes anywhere close to meeting WP:CORP, as is required for articles about sports teams. RichardOSmith ( talk) 20:42, 28 November 2015 (UTC) reply

Note: This debate has been included in the list of Sports-related deletion discussions. Musa  Talk  20:43, 28 November 2015 (UTC) reply
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Ice hockey-related deletion discussions. Musa  Talk  20:44, 28 November 2015 (UTC) reply
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Canada-related deletion discussions. Musa  Talk  20:45, 28 November 2015 (UTC) reply

Why has this discussion not surfaced with other articles I have created for similar teams, or for teams of even lower levels? The St. Albert Merchants are multi-time provincial and Western Canada champions, and articles about lesser teams exist across many leagues. Some articles of similar notability but with fewer or no citations, not to mention less importance, include: Junior B:

And other Junior C teams:

These are all articles about much lower level junior hockey teams, with a less time of existence and less success over the years, yet they, and countless others, still exist and are not challenged. I see no reason why the page for the St. Albert Merchants is not notable. ~~ Iheartthestrals ( talk - contribs) 20:56, 28 November 2015 (UTC) reply

Me again. I'm curious as to how there is no evidence presented in this article that could deem it notable. Surely a team with their established history and success is notable? If they were a recently established team of the same league, say, from 2010, then I might be inclined to agree, but they were founded in 1983, and have won many provincial championships. I see no reason why deletion is necessary. Surely there is no harm done to Wikipedia for having this article? It is also, if I may be so bold, properly sourced, which many articles akin to it are not. However, if the consensus of Wikipedia editors are against me, I shall concede and not return the argument, though I still think the existence of far less notable articles alone makes the page for the Merchants a notable article. Thank you. ~~ Iheartthestrals ( talk - contribs) 21:16, 28 November 2015 (UTC)~~ reply

Comparing against other articles isn't really a valid argument to make (see WP:WAX), nor is saying that inclusion does not harm ( WP:NOHARM). Wikipedia:Notability (sports)#Teams states that sports teams are assessed as any other company and that provides the inclusion requirements. That the team has existed since 1983 and had provincial success does not of itself indicate notability, but if can be shown that those things have attracted sufficient coverage in reliable independent sources then notability requirements probably have been met. I have not seen that such coverage exists, which is why I nominated the article for deletion. RichardOSmith ( talk) 23:13, 28 November 2015 (UTC) reply
I'm simply curious as to why this article in particular has been nominated for deletion when countless others of lower coverage and notability have remained unchallenged. As for coverage in reliable independent sources, the highest coverage comes from city newspapers in the cities of which the majority of teams in the Capital Junior Hockey League play. I have included some links here from varying sources, hoping it appeases you, but I must make my point that this team receives about as much coverage as any Junior B hockey team. They all mention or discuss the Merchants in some way, some more than others.

I have more if you need them. God bless. ~~ Iheartthestrals ( talk - contribs) 19:18, 29 November 2015 (UTC)~~ reply

Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus.
Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, clpo13( talk) 17:06, 5 December 2015 (UTC) reply
  • Keep Junior B teams that have existed for a lengthy period have typically been found to be notable. You can usually find sources for them in papers. Some sources are already linked in this discussion for example. - DJSasso ( talk) 13:20, 8 December 2015 (UTC) reply
  • Keep Thank you, DJSasso. I'm glad someone agrees with me. I said before as well that this team is highly notable within its respective category, and much less noteworthy teams exist. I understand that comparing is not an argument, but I was convinced of the notability of this article. ~~ Iheartthestrals ( talk - contribs) 18:31, 8 December 2015 (UTC)~~ reply
  • Keep Notable team. Has sources. Competes for Keystone Cup. DMighton ( talk) 22:11, 8 December 2015 (UTC) reply
  • Keep - plenty of coverage to meet notability guidelines. Rlendog ( talk) 16:42, 10 December 2015 (UTC) reply
The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.