 In both cases, the team moved from Atlanta to a Western Canadian city; the city's previous NHL team (the Atlanta Flames) moved to Calgary, Alberta, in 1980 to become the Calgary Flames.After the departure of the International Hockey League (IHL)'s Atlanta Knights (1992–1996) to become the Quebec Rafales, the city of Atlanta was awarded an NHL franchise on June 25, 1997, as part of a four-team tiered expansion.This also included teams in Nashville, Columbus and St. Paul, in which each new franchise would begin play as its respective new arena was completed.