/dev/null Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 If your weather does not get cold enough to make ICE then in my opinion you should not have an NHL team. My 2 cents It snowed in Norfolk today Does this mean we can get the next expansion team?
sullim4 Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 Agreed on all counts. Winnipeg would kill for a team and they'd sell out every single night. If Bellevue or Renton approves a new arena for the Sonics, there's been talk of an NHL team moving into the Puget Sound region... so I wouldn't count on the NHL adding any southern teams anytime soon.
Bmwolf21 Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 Actually, if you look at the bottom of the league in total and average attendance, you see such traditional hockey markets as Chicago, New York (Islanders), New Jersey, Boston, St. Louis and Washington. LINK You can change the year at the top of the page, but last year's bottom feeders look pretty similar to this year's. You can look at each market and see reasons why the attendance sucks, such as crappy owners (Chicago) recent or prolonged history of losing (Islanders, Capitals, Blues) crappy arena (Devils, maybe Islanders) and relatively new markets (Phoenix, Nashville.) I don't know what the answer is - I actually think less games and more variety in the schedule would help (this unbalanced schedule sucks, IMO - I can't take watching the Sabres play the Bruins every other game) and I think that getting the league's national TV contract off Vs. and onto ESPN (or pushing for more games on NBC) would also help with the league's visibility.
JimBob2232 Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 Yeah, take a look at those numbers and tell me hockey cant surivive in a town like Tampa
NavyBillsFan Posted January 26, 2007 Author Posted January 26, 2007 i call BS on this, I am in richmond and not a hockey fan, but i know that carolina fans are nuts about thier team, and about walking up and buying tix...several freinds here would be pissed to find that out because they tried and i enlisted my sister in cary nc and the usually 12.00 tickets were going for 75 and there were none to be found. Hockey belongs wherever hockey fans exist, be they northern hockey fans or fans experiencing it for the first time!!! Oh really? PM PTR or Corp about the Carolina ticket situation since they were there with me. Where did you try buying tickets? Farmers Market?
The Poojer Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 yeah really, of course you could go through e-bay or stub hub, but when my sister and my freind tried through the box office they were either sold out or priced out. and he is an active member of this board, so hopefully he will see this and reply....there is a difference between ticket availability and affordibility, you can always get tickets Oh really? PM PTR or Corp about the Carolina ticket situation since they were there with me. Where did you try buying tickets? Farmers Market?
Navy Chief Navy Pride Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 It snowed in Norfolk today Does this mean we can get the next expansion team? I thought Norfolk had an AHL team. Maybe they left cuz it was too warm. My dad lives in Portsmouth and I could have sworn he had mentioned going to a game a while back.
beerme1 Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 That's pretty much the deal around here also. I've been to one hockey game in my life, and it was cool and all, but it was nothing to write home about, don't plan on going again. You guys up north can have hockey, because the south is football country. If you're talkin high school football on a Friday night, please keep it down there.
KD in CA Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 Game seven - Eastern Conf. Finals.... Me and PTR were pissing ourselves laughing at how many tickets were left for the game. On top of that, Buffalo OWNED that parking lot! Great time and a great party! I cant wait to hang with Corp and the guys again... Yup...Sabre Alley was definitely rockin that day. One of my favorite pre-game tailgates ever.
CajunBillsBacker Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 If you're talkin high school football on a Friday night, please keep it down there. Thanks! I'm talking HS and College mostly. Around here, on Friday nights when HS teams are playing, alot of towns are like ghost towns until the game is over. Football is religion here.
beerme1 Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 Thanks! I'm talking HS and College mostly. Around here, on Friday nights when HS teams are playing, alot of towns are like ghost towns until the game is over. Football is religion here. I know. But I have never understood the fascination at the HS level unless it's family. Some people take it real serious there.
buckeyemike Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 Columbus really supports the Blue Jackets. People there were so starved for a professional team that they have taken to the Blue Jackets like pickle juice to retatta. BTW, Winnipeg should have a team. Is there a chance the Penguins would move there? There had been some noise about Cleveland getting an NHL team, but that wouldn't work. The market is stretched with three teams now. But for the diehards, I give you our new AHL team, the Avalanche's top farm team beginning next year... The Lake Erie Monsters.
olivier in france Posted January 26, 2007 Posted January 26, 2007 I agree, i've never understood why they put teams in Carolina, Nashville, Tampa, Atlanta or a second one in LA... Quebec City and Winnipeg should have kept their teams and with the economy in Canada a lot better than it was 10 years ago i hope they'll find a way to have teams back there. If the NHL want a good business plan and make their business grow they'd better make an european division (Stockholm, Prague, Helsinki, Moskow, a german team) than try to sell hockey in the Sun Belt!
JimBob2232 Posted January 27, 2007 Posted January 27, 2007 I thought Norfolk had an AHL team. Maybe they left cuz it was too warm. My dad lives in Portsmouth and I could have sworn he had mentioned going to a game a while back. Umm...yeah. Team is still in Norfolk, and doing QUITE well. Check out this article from the game last night. Sellout crowd, nearly 9,000 in the stands. Tell me hockey cant survive here! Forget Texas...Bring the Pengins to Norfolk! http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.cfm?...&ran=187993
NavyBillsFan Posted January 27, 2007 Author Posted January 27, 2007 Umm...yeah. Team is still in Norfolk, and doing QUITE well. Check out this article from the game last night. Sellout crowd, nearly 9,000 in the stands. Tell me hockey cant survive here! Forget Texas...Bring the Pengins to Norfolk! http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.cfm?...&ran=187993 We tried a couple of years ago Bob, The Rhino's was the name they were playing with I think. The even sold season tickets to prove to the NHL we could support the team but as everything, it failed...
Navy Chief Navy Pride Posted January 27, 2007 Posted January 27, 2007 Umm...yeah. Team is still in Norfolk, and doing QUITE well. Check out this article from the game last night. Sellout crowd, nearly 9,000 in the stands. Tell me hockey cant survive here! Forget Texas...Bring the Pengins to Norfolk! http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.cfm?...&ran=187993 We tried a couple of years ago Bob, The Rhino's was the name they were playing with I think. The even sold season tickets to prove to the NHL we could support the team but as everything, it failed... I lived in the Va Beach area years ago before I was in the Navy. I used to go see the Tides on a regular basis. There are so many people in that area(many are transplanted WNYers) and so much diversity that any Pro team could survive and do well in that area. The Navy population alone could sell out different venues ie: NFL--MLB--NHL--NBA on a consistent basis every night.
mcjeff215 Posted January 28, 2007 Posted January 28, 2007 I know. But I have never understood the fascination at the HS level unless it's family. Some people take it real serious there. Yeah me too. I don't mean to hijack the thread or anything, but what's with the taking to HS football down there? It seems to me that those kids are in school to learn. Isn't the amount of attention they receive a slight distraction from what the real goal of H.S. is? Hell, if the entire town is down there ever Friday night, the pressure alone seems like it would be too much to handle for someone much older than seventeen. Family? Yeah that makes sense. Family, friends, classmates. I'm sure it's just one of those crazy southern things that I just don't understand! -Jeff
Taro T Posted January 28, 2007 Posted January 28, 2007 Good point about Jim Rome as i forgot about that tool as well.... Did it bother me that the Sabres lost to a Canes team that really has no hockey tradition? Somewhat yes...but you know what? There was a time that the Sabres were one of those teams too in the mid 70's and they started to win. But some of these non-traditional markets have some very marketable players: Carolina: Eric Staal Columbus: Rick Nash Tampa Bay: Martin St Louis, Vincent Lecalavier Atlanta: Marian Hossa, Ilya Kovalchuk San Jose: Joe Thornton Anaheim is LOADED with young talent that will florish....Bobby Ryan just to name one... The NHL NEEDS to turn the focus on promoting these players and the NHL media needs to do the same....and stop focusing on not being able to get into the NHL because it is 80 degrees outside. IMO idiots like Cownerd and Rome trash the NHL due to lazy journalism...they do not want to take the time to know about the NHL...so they take the easy road and trash it...hoping for an NHL fan to call up complaining for "good radio" It is a joke, and some NHL fans fall for the bait. Take a look at this article about what Mark Cuban says about the NHL: Cuban Highights: The Sabres not having a hockey tradition in the early '70's is obviously true (they entered the league in '70). But Buffalo not having a hockey tradition is ludicrous. Buffalo had the Bisons in the AHL for many years, winning several Calder Cups and having coaches like Shero (2 SC Championships). Also, the Knoxes were minority owners of the Seals prior to getting their own franchise. How exactly was/is Buffalo a "non-traditional" market?
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