Why aren't they selling out games?.There the best team in the NHL?. If this keep up they will like the Montreal Expos of baseball and move to another city.
We are selling out games, not all of them, but more than you'd think. Our attendance is higher than New Jersey, Boston, and Chicago. Attendance is growing from year to year here. We'll average over 15k for the year.
You'll never hear about that stuff though.
What your hearing is some sort of grudge that the local paper has against the Preds, and the fact that the media in some traditional hockey markets cant stand the fact that another non-traditional market is doing so well. There's really nothing else they can pick on.
we've had some weeknight games that didn't sell out....that has been the entire focus of this media blitz on our attendance. They never mention all the sellouts and the increase in attendance this year. Makes me want to hurl.
The title of the thread should be "What's wrong with the businesses of Nashville?" There's nothing wrong with the fans. It's corporate support. A big chunk of the people you see in the stands are true fans who bought their tickets with their money. The fan support is there. Corporate support is horrible.
I've probably posted on this more then enough times throughout this board. But I'll try to do it concise.
Nashville is a non-traditional market. It takes time to grow the game. So far the seeds have been planted. Hockey leagues have cropped up around the area. New rinks being built. I have kids in my neighborhood who have played football or baseball all their life, only now all I see them doing is playing roller hockey with their Paul Kariya jerseys on.
There are a ton of factors as to why the team's attendance is where it is. First and foremost, our corporate support is terrible. Its about 70/30% individual/corporate fans. That is a reverse from mostly every other market. Supposedly a few bridges have been burned between the Predators and the corporate community, to the tune of us losing a lot of our early support. Our individual fanbase is not big enough yet to cover the lacking in corporate support.
Add in numerous other factors. Hockey is not as popular as it once was (and even then..). The NHL just went through a year long lockout. Hockey is not shown on national TV alot. Our local media's coverage is terrible and has not made up for the national media's ignorance. Our team needs to do a much better job in marketing.
Simply put, the average Joe in Nashville probably has no idea how good our team is. While you may scoff and say, well if he was a true hockey fan... But those people are the ones we need to reach. What if they find that hey, this team isn't so bad. They go and watch the game and they fall in love with the sport. Then they purchase tickets.
There are a ton of factors. Are we making excuses? No. Most of the Predators fans are displeased with our attendance figures. Our fanbase is there and its growing. Right now we need the corporations to step up and support this team until our fan base grows enough to cover their shortcomings.
Its a long, risky battle. Only time will tell. The Predators and the city have a lot of work cut out for them.
we've had some weeknight games that didn't sell out....that has been the entire focus of this media blitz on our attendance. They never mention all the sellouts and the increase in attendance this year. Makes me want to hurl.
According to ESPN.com's attendance figures for the last several years, the Predators increase in attendance from last year to this year is markedly ahead of the league-wide numbers. And if you measure pre-lockout numbers with post lockout numbers, the Predators increase of 12% from the '04 season to today is much higher than the league's measely 1%.
Granted we started from a smaller base and the league's overall numbers are capped by teams selling at capacity, but it shows improvement. Attendance is getting better. This isn't an overnight process. And the Preds have steadily outpaced much more traditional markets who've received none of the flak Nashville has received.
Well, if the Preds are able to sell out games without the corporate support that other markets enjoy, I'd say there is no problem with the Pred's fans at all.
Then again, why did I just respond to this troll's thread?
Forget it, hockey is done in Nashville. Pack your bags. Mexico City, here we come.
Confimed today: Leipold says the Preds are moving to Bangladesh.
Soooooo tired of these threads. I think people just like to regurgitate what they read in some rag or from some angry blogger to try to make themselves appear smart.
Soooooo tired of these threads. I think people just like to regurgitate what they read in some rag or from some angry blogger to try to make themselves appear smart.
I can understand why you guys are sick of hearing these topics, but like you said, if the media does have a bias against non-traditional markets, then they're not reliable when it comes to Nashville attendance stories...so who else to ask? The reason you get it so much is because the fans will be pretty in the know on the subject.
If this keep up they will like the Montreal Expos of baseball and move to another city.
