Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Getting a bit off topic, but Columbus has had decent tv ratings, as I'm sure Galileo knows, about a 1.6 rating in recent years. That's with many away games in mountain & pacific time zones, making it hard for even diehards to watch 'til the end. Attendance was impressive the first five years.
The worst U.S. Markets, by comparison, get a 0.15 (Florida) to a 0.59 (Rangers). The Bruins finally hit 3.0 this past season; Celtics & Lakers both get under a 5.0 by comparison.
Columbus, like Phoenix, is worth nurturing but time is running out, no?
If you're interested in the business side of sports, the Blue Jackets are an interesting case. They would never have existed had not the minor league team, The Chill, had great attendance and were very popular. So they built the Arena and procured a team. But earlier minor league teams did not do particularly well. One (the Owls) moved to Dayton then on to Michigan somewhere. Lansing maybe. The Chill very possibly might have been a local sports anomaly. It could be they were nothing more than a short-term amusement. Columbus has Ohio State sports to pull in the sports dollar away. The Buckeyes usually have winning teams and the fan base pretty much expects winning. The Jackets are doomed as a Columbus team unless they recapture the local fans. In my opinion, they have to make the playoffs this year or they can kiss Columbus good-bye. It'll be a lost cause. And as big a fan as I am, if they don't make the playoffs this year, I'll be one of the folks holding the door so they can leave. Ten-plus years is long enough.
Last edited by GalileoSmith; 08-09-2011 at 05:09 PM..
[quote=GalileoSmith;20387115. In my opinion, they have to make the playoffs this year or they can kiss Columbus good-bye. It'll be a lost cause. And as big a fan as I am, if they don't make the playoffs this year, I'll be one of the folks holding the door so they can leave. Ten-plus years is long enough.[/QUOTE]
That's too bad that's it's become so dire for even the faithful. I'd love to see St. Louis & Nashville make the playoffs but not at the expense of the Jackets' viability. Seems almost a miracle to make the playoffs this year for them. The arena has done do much for the downtiwn, I hear, whereas Philips Arena probsbly hasn't rnhanced its surroundings in ATL?
...
Back to ATL (trying to keep them alive in any way), I was just thinking that Denver & Dallas now have worse support than most of the Thrashers' existence -- and that's with winning Cups! See, for so long Denver & Dallas were darlings of the new NHL. Atlanta just never got luck or timing on its side. If the Nords had moved to ATL rather than Denver and won 2 Cups...
You make a valid point, but a comparison between Edmonton and Tampa Bay/Carolina doesn't really work. Edmonton's capacity is less than 16,000. It's a tiny building, and they've sold out every game for the past decade (with an abominable team, no less).
You mean the abominable team that played Carolina to a fierce Cup final series a few years ago?
Having a bigger building doesn't really matter. 15,000-something a game is 15,000-something a game. And no, the Canes aren't that great right now.
As far as where the league is, or was, or is going - if the NBA is locked out, the NHL has a great opportunity to gain some ground this year.
You mean the abominable team that played Carolina to a fierce Cup final series a few years ago?
Having a bigger building doesn't really matter. 15,000-something a game is 15,000-something a game. And no, the Canes aren't that great right now.
As far as where the league is, or was, or is going - if the NBA is locked out, the NHL has a great opportunity to gain some ground this year.
When it comes to major pro sports, the NHL is the stepchild when compared to the NBA the NFL, and MLB. I think an NBA lockout would do them some good. Obviously they would make-out during the lock-out season, but it could be that they could gain a few fans forever. Not every sports-starved NBA fan would turn on college hoops. An NBA lockout certainly couldn't hurt the NHL.
I think one big thing lost in the Thrashers move was that Ted Turner sold out to Time Warner not long after they came into existence if I remember correctly. If they had had the tv support on TNT and TBS that the Braves had before Turner sold out to Time Warner the franchise and the state of hockey in the South might be considerably better off than they are right now.
I don't know about that....Ted Turner had broadcast Braves games across the country on TBS, creating Braves fans around the country, but that still did not translate to good fan support in Atlanta.
Atlanta is a poor sports market all around. Plus, hockey and the South just are not a good mix. They're more into college football and NASCAR down there.
Everything was baseball's stepchild 50 years ago. Point is, things change.
Yeah, that's what I'm figuring. I see Major League soccer overtaking the NHL in about ten years. And the WNBA gaining popularity. I think MLS will move into the upper echelon of pro sports because of changing population demographics. I think the WNBA might need some attractive women to make a signficiant impact, but women's pro basketball could move into the picture too. It may be a woman's sport, but as with all major sports, the fanbase is still largely men. Anyway, I see the NHL as perhaps falling off the radar, or at least having a smaller blip on the screen. We'll see if they significantly contract (as in, drop some teams) in the next ten years or so.
I don't know about that....Ted Turner had broadcast Braves games across the country on TBS, creating Braves fans around the country, but that still did not translate to good fan support in Atlanta.
Atlanta is a poor sports market all around. Plus, hockey and the South just are not a good mix. They're more into college football and NASCAR down there.
This is a myth. Total nonsense.
Facts: From 1991 to 1999, the Braves were in the top 4 in attendance in the major leagues. Since 2000, they've ranged from being in the top 8 to as low as number 16 (one year) in a thirty team league.
People like you think a WEEK-DAY, 1 PM, NLDS (first round) game while kids are at school and people are at work, and even then only a few thousand short of a sellout, denotes a poor sports town.
Meanwhile, most other cities all had NIGHT GAMES on these same WEEKDAYS for their NLDS games. The media loves to highlight anything short of a packed out stadium, in the most unlikely of circumstances for a playoff game, to bash Atlanta. People like you don't know the facts.
Speaking of the Falcons, people are wild about the team. Sell Out every game.
Most people aren't into NASCAR. It is highly popular in North Carolina, but not so much in the Atlanta area. We only have one race now at Atlanta Motor Speedway, and people come from all over the state to attend the ONE race, just as they would at any other place. It's not like you see NASCAR flags or car numbers around town.
College football is popular with a lot of people, but no more popular than the Falcons around most of metro Atlanta. In fact, I'd say the Falcons edge out college football in most areas.
Regarding hockey, if you'll bother to read, I've posted the facts about the Thrashers, and a video is there for to view, which indicates that the Thrashers outdrew a number of northern teams some years. Attendance wasn't the reason for the Thrasher's departure. Rather, it was an inept, horrible ownership that ran the franchise into the ground. Most people did not even know the team was in trouble, given the fact that support was decent.
Yeah, that's what I'm figuring. I see Major League soccer overtaking the NHL in about ten years. And the WNBA gaining popularity. I think MLS will move into the upper echelon of pro sports because of changing population demographics. I think the WNBA might need some attractive women to make a signficiant impact, but women's pro basketball could move into the picture too. It may be a woman's sport, but as with all major sports, the fanbase is still largely men. Anyway, I see the NHL as perhaps falling off the radar, or at least having a smaller blip on the screen. We'll see if they significantly contract (as in, drop some teams) in the next ten years or so.
I don't ever see the WNBA carving out a huge chunk of the pie. I also think soccer in the states won't increase much. I think the NHL and the other 2 will remain close to where they are at now.
You mean the abominable team that played Carolina to a fierce Cup final series a few years ago?
Having a bigger building doesn't really matter. 15,000-something a game is 15,000-something a game. And no, the Canes aren't that great right now.
As far as where the league is, or was, or is going - if the NBA is locked out, the NHL has a great opportunity to gain some ground this year.
I mean the team that finished dead last this past season and hasn't made the playoffs since 05/06.
Having a bigger building absolutely matters. As a percentage of capacity sold, Edmonton does far better. They have to turn people away, whereas Carolina does not.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
