2017-18 NHL Playoffs—all welcome

[kimblebee]

Can you explain why? I'm a die hard NYR fan, but my boyfriend has fallen hard for the Knights. They are the first hockey team he's felt a connection with and was solidified as a true fan when he went to a home game on a business trip. He is a true fan and is loving it!

They’re too gimmicky. If you need all the bells and whistles to keep fans entertained, why bother with a game at all. Gary Bettman is so determined to have as many teams as possible in viewing areas that he doesn’t worry about popularity. Sure, Vegas is having an incredible year and the stands are full but what happens next year or the year after when they have a bad season? Watching a Panthers game is embarrassing, the stands are empty.

Plus, hockey is unnatural in a place that can’t make ice outside. That goes for Florida, Nashville, California too.

I get that it’s great to have a lot of teams..but at what cost?

 

[Adelle Dazeem]

They’re too gimmicky. If you need all the bells and whistles to keep fans entertained, why bother with a game at all. Gary Bettman is so determined to have as many teams as possible in viewing areas that he doesn’t worry about popularity. Sure, Vegas is having an incredible year and the stands are full but what happens next year or the year after when they have a bad season? Watching a Panthers game is embarrassing, the stands are empty.

Plus, hockey is unnatural in a place that can’t make ice outside. That goes for Florida, Nashville, California too.

I get that it’s great to have a lot of teams..but at what cost?

A fan of the game should be happy with anywhere that supports a team. Sure Vegas is having a dream season and let's see what happens with them 5 years down the road. However, to lump in places like LA and San Jose as places that shouldn't have a team, in your opinion, is asinine. I can't speak as much for LA as I don't live in SoCal, but I know the Sharks have had great support their entire existence - even though it doesn't snow in the Bay Area.

 

[bcla]

Plus, hockey is unnatural in a place that can’t make ice outside. That goes for Florida, Nashville, California too.

Vancouver has relatively mild winters, yet they have an NHL team. It's certainly not cold enough there that people are playing hockey on frozen ponds/lakes during the winter. Of course you'll get lots of winter snow and cold temperatures if you travel only a few hours away, but the same can be said for California.

All that's really needed is refrigeration.

 

[klacey1]

They’re too gimmicky. If you need all the bells and whistles to keep fans entertained, why bother with a game at all. Gary Bettman is so determined to have as many teams as possible in viewing areas that he doesn’t worry about popularity. Sure, Vegas is having an incredible year and the stands are full but what happens next year or the year after when they have a bad season? Watching a Panthers game is embarrassing, the stands are empty.

Plus, hockey is unnatural in a place that can’t make ice outside. That goes for Florida, Nashville, California too.

I get that it’s great to have a lot of teams..but at what cost?

Wow. I very strongly disagree. Vegas is all about the show and the fact that they incorporate fanfare in their preshow is just about aligning the team to the city's identity. And it's not like the fans come for the preshow and leave. Those stands are packed for the game and for the incredible hockey that's played. Yes, let's see what happens but I do believe they will continue to enjoy many years of popularity to come.

The idea that warm climates shouldn't be allowed to have their own hockey teams is absolutely ridiculous. Sure, the Panthers are ONE warm climate without a large fan base (and you can obviously throw Carolina in there too). What about the Lightning? Predators? Should we tell the Kings to tear down their Gretzky statue and give back their rings?

 

[bcla]

The idea that warm climates shouldn't be allowed to have their own hockey teams is absolutely ridiculous. Sure, the Panthers are ONE warm climate without a large fan base (and you can obviously throw Carolina in there too). What about the Lightning? Predators? Should we tell the Kings to tear down their Gretzky statue and give back their rings?

Artificial refrigeration has been around for a century and a half, and we generally recognize hockey as an indoor game now. I remember ice rinks from my childhood in the 70s growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area. This is an area where American figure skating champions grew up and trained, including Peggy Fleming, Brian Boitano, Kristi Yamaguchi, Rudy Galindo, and Debi Thomas.

We have technology to create and clean up ice. You're certainly correct that the only thing that should matter is support. I don't know how long Vegas is going to be able to support a team. Right now it's a novelty. In some ways Vegas has the advantage that there are many people who arrived from areas where hockey is played. But then again they do have a tendency to go for the "hot new thing" and quickly move on to the next thing. I certainly don't believe the Raiders will catch on and they'll be stuck footing the bill for a white elephant stadium. The team is banking on fans of visiting teams buying up tickets as an excuse to go to Vegas, and that's kind of a lousy way to market ticket sales compared to building up a local base of support.

 

[design_mom]

Wow. I very strongly disagree. Vegas is all about the show and the fact that they incorporate fanfare in their preshow is just about aligning the team to the city's identity. And it's not like the fans come for the preshow and leave. Those stands are packed for the game and for the incredible hockey that's played. Yes, let's see what happens but I do believe they will continue to enjoy many years of popularity to come.

^^ I agree with you. Vegas *is* flamboyant and theatrical. It fits with the culture/reputation of the city. I wasn't sure whether Vegas had enough of a local fan base to support a team, nor how many tourists would go to games... but they have good attendance this year. Hopefully they will keep it up. I wish them success.

 

[kimblebee]

^^ I agree with you. Vegas *is* flamboyant and theatrical. It fits with the culture/reputation of the city. I wasn't sure whether Vegas had enough of a local fan base to support a team, nor how many tourists would go to games... but they have good attendance this year. Hopefully they will keep it up. I wish them success.

It doesn’t matter if they’re successful. Bettman is so desperate to keep teams in the US that they can play in front of 500 people and they won’t lose their team..look to Florida as a prime example.


Quebec should have been given a team before Las Vegas. Yes, I know they have the Habs, I’m talking about the Nordiques 2.0

I don’t care if everyone disagrees. It’s a playoff thread..chirping is encouraged lol

 

[soccerdad72]

It doesn’t matter if they’re successful. Bettman is so desperate to keep teams in the US that they can play in front of 500 people and they won’t lose their team..look to Florida as a prime example.


Quebec should have been given a team before Las Vegas. Yes, I know they have the Habs, I’m talking about the Nordiques 2.0

You seriously think that Quebec City would be a better market for the NHL than Las Vegas? Set aside your Canadian bias and think about that from a business standpoint.

 

[RedAngie]

A struggling team like Florida or Carolina might be a good candidate for a transfer to Quebec. Maybe even the NY Islanders.

 

[design_mom]

It doesn’t matter if they’re successful. Bettman is so desperate to keep teams in the US that they can play in front of 500 people and they won’t lose their team..look to Florida as a prime example.


Quebec should have been given a team before Las Vegas. Yes, I know they have the Habs, I’m talking about the Nordiques 2.0

I don’t care if everyone disagrees. It’s a playoff thread..chirping is encouraged lol

I agree with you that Bettman is first and foremost a business man. Which fans "deserve a team" is a far second (or lower) on his priority list, I think. He's concerned about who will pay for a team, and where he can build a fan base. Some of those plays pay off, and some do not...but he's looking to build the fan base.

I'm pretty sure the Canadian market is pretty saturated though -- Canadians either *are* hockey fans, or aren't. But it's not because they haven't had exposure to the sport. In many parts of the US, hockey is not considered a major sport. It's NFL, MLB, NBA and "I think there's another one." (I don't think soccer gets counted either, even though there is a major league soccer league, too.)

I'm in Columbus, we've had our team since 2000 (and, yes, they haven't had much success in the playoffs. Sigh.) I was a fan before we got our team. My husband's family is from St. Louis and he grew up watching the Blues. When we got married, we'd watch Detroit games when they were on. We even went to a game in Detroit once. But, I could count on one hand the number of people I knew at the time who gave one whit about hockey. We went to 20 home games the first season and I can't TELL you how many times we explained what icing means or why the play was offsides to the people sitting near us. They didn't know. But now they do. The NHL gained new fans. And new youth players too. In 2000, there wee about 300 kids in Columbus playing youth hockey, and there was ONE high school that had an ice hockey team. Now, they're are about 8,000 kids (and 5000 adults) who play youth hockey, and 33 area schools have teams, and we have a AAA youth team. For the last several years there's been SOMEONE in the draft who has ties to Columbus. That would not have been true twenty years ago.

So putting NHL franchises in these "non-traditional" cities is helping to build the fan base, and the prospect pool, for the NHL. Sometimes the teams take hold and sometimes they don't, but it makes business sense to try to gain NEW fans instead of just redistributing the ones you already have.

 

[kimblebee]

I agree with you that Bettman is first and foremost a business man. Which fans "deserve a team" is a far second (or lower) on his priority list, I think. He's concerned about who will pay for a team, and where he can build a fan base. Some of those plays pay off, and some do not...but he's looking to build the fan base.

I'm pretty sure the Canadian market is pretty saturated though -- Canadians either *are* hockey fans, or aren't. But it's not because they haven't had exposure to the sport. In many parts of the US, hockey is not considered a major sport. It's NFL, MLB, NBA and "I think there's another one." (I don't think soccer gets counted either, even though there is a major league soccer league, too.)

I'm in Columbus, we've had our team since 2000 (and, yes, they haven't had much success in the playoffs. Sigh.) I was a fan before we got our team. My husband's family is from St. Louis and he grew up watching the Blues. When we got married, we'd watch Detroit games when they were on. We even went to a game in Detroit once. But, I could count on one hand the number of people I knew at the time who gave one whit about hockey. We went to 20 home games the first season and I can't TELL you how many times we explained what icing means or why the play was offsides to the people sitting near us. They didn't know. But now they do. The NHL gained new fans. And new youth players too. In 2000, there wee about 300 kids in Columbus playing youth hockey, and there was ONE high school that had an ice hockey team. Now, they're are about 8,000 kids (and 5000 adults) who play youth hockey, and 33 area schools have teams, and we have a AAA youth team. For the last several years there's been SOMEONE in the draft who has ties to Columbus. That would not have been true twenty years ago.

So putting NHL franchises in these "non-traditional" cities is helping to build the fan base, and the prospect pool, for the NHL. Sometimes the teams take hold and sometimes they don't, but it makes business sense to try to gain NEW fans instead of just redistributing the ones you already have.

I agree 100%, the NHL is a business and needs to be concerned with their bottom line. It’s great to get people exposed to new things, too. I’m teaching my husband about hockey and all the terms and plays. He did not grow up watching sports but I’ve watched enough Star Wars movies with him that he owes me lol

I don’t have an actual problem with any team and where they are located. I just wish that the same conditions applied for Canadian teams as they do American. I get that it’s a bigger population and has a bigger market but Winnipeg had way stricter rules (for lack of a better word) when it came to selling season tickets and all of that when there was a possibility of getting a relocation team.

Either way, I’m glad that this thread has mostly stayed about the playoffs.
Tomorrow, before Game 3, 2 Royal Canadian Air Force CF-18 Hornet fighter jets are going to fly over the arena and the street party. No drinking beer out of fish required. What’s that even about?

 

[bcla]

I'm pretty sure the Canadian market is pretty saturated though -- Canadians either *are* hockey fans, or aren't. But it's not because they haven't had exposure to the sport. In many parts of the US, hockey is not considered a major sport. It's NFL, MLB, NBA and "I think there's another one." (I don't think soccer gets counted either, even though there is a major league soccer league, too.)

What are the revenue sources? National television, local television, and tickets. I don't necessarily see having another team based in a small city in Canada improving the national revenue. The contract with Sportsnet is supposed to be the NHL's biggest revenue stream. Certainly before the original Jets moved out of Winnipeg, didn't they have some of the lowest ticket prices in the NHL?

And you're absolutely correct that growing the game is probably one of the bigger concerns for the NHL. I remember when Matt Nieto was particularly popular with Sharks fans because he was from California.

As a tangent, there have been a lot of ice sports athletes who started off inline skating, including speed skaters and roller hockey. On visit to Disneyland I remember my hotel (Hilton Anaheim) had a lot of people from around the world who were in the area for some international roller hockey tournament. If they can transition to playing on the ice, I think that really helps the sport of ice hockey.

 

[bcla]

I agree 100%, the NHL is a business and needs to be concerned with their bottom line. It’s great to get people exposed to new things, too. I’m teaching my husband about hockey and all the terms and plays. He did not grow up watching sports but I’ve watched enough Star Wars movies with him that he owes me lol

I don’t have an actual problem with any team and where they are located. I just wish that the same conditions applied for Canadian teams as they do American. I get that it’s a bigger population and has a bigger market but Winnipeg had way stricter rules (for lack of a better word) when it came to selling season tickets and all of that when there was a possibility of getting a relocation team.

The problem is getting any team to relocate. A lot of teams are happy where they are, and a lot of professional sports owners treat their ownership as vanity projects. Turning a profit or having a more successful team may be secondary to being "part of the club".

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

A long distance dedication to those Canadians that think warm weather cities don't deserve hockey.

1993

last year

A Canadian

Team won

The Stanley Cup.

 

[kimblebee]

A long distance dedication to those Canadians that think warm weather cities don't deserve hockey.

1993

last year

A Canadian

Team won

The Stanley Cup.

LOL

You’re welcome for all the Canadian players on your teams. Yes, it’s ironic that our star goalie is an American.

 

[bcla]

LOL

You’re welcome for all the Canadian players on your teams. Yes, it’s ironic that our star goalie is an American.

Nothing ironic about it. We love Canadian players. And Finns. And Swedes. And Czechs. And Russians. They come to the US and marry American women. And settle down in the US. Maybe even become US citizens.

Would you consider Brett Hull to be American or Canadian?

 

[NFLDERS]

I'm yelling at the TV again Marchand and, Pastrnak Power play with a 2 man advantage.


Good work and good luck, Tampa Bay.

 

[kimblebee]

Nothing ironic about it. We love Canadian players. And Finns. And Swedes. And Czechs. And Russians. They come to the US and marry American women. And settle down in the US. Maybe even become US citizens.

Would you consider Brett Hull to be American or Canadian?

Brett Hull is a disgrace and you can have him.

A better example would be Wayne Gretzky. He is Canadian. Same as Mark Messier.

 

[bcla]

Brett Hull is a disgrace and you can have him.

A better example would be Wayne Gretzky. He is Canadian. Same as Mark Messier.

Yeah, I know I’m a bad boy for bringing him up. But he was born a dual-citizen. Gretzky chose to be one.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Brett Hull is a disgrace and you can have him.

A better example would be Wayne Gretzky. He is Canadian. Same as Mark Messier.

Gretzky Tikkanen and Kurri. What a line. Messier, Coffey, Anderson, Fuhr. That team was loaded.