Quote:
Originally Posted by JTSMOOTH
Maybe I'm just wearing my Phoenix Coyotes colored glasses, but I think hockey can and will be successful in Phoenix provided the team gets some decent ownership/management in place and gets some sort of concessions from the horrible lease deal they signed with the city of Glendale.
The team drew fans just fine prior to the lockout and this is considering they played in an arena that was a terrible fit for hockey.
It's not like the team is drawing 5k fans a game ala the Florida baseball teams. Granted they are not selling out, but they are still outdrawing 2 other teams in the NHL.
The reasons the Coyotes are in the mess they are in...
1. Terrible ownership/management over the last few years(Though I do like what GM Don Maloney has done since he came on board).
2. An awful lease deal they signed with the city of Glendale to get the new arena built after other proposals fell through.
3. The lockout.
4. The team has been bad for numerous seasons in a row.
If the team puts a good product on the ice, the team will thrive in Phoenix. I hope they are given the chance to do so.
NHL as a whole is down considerably in popularity since the lockout, which is too bad. I love the game.
|
Overall attendance figures for the NHL have risen steadily each year since the lockout and are above what they were pre-lockout.