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DEL.ICIO.USThrashers must win quick to draw fans back
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Mark Bradley
Joshua Stewart had waited 537 days for this night. So as not to miss a thing, he arrived at Philips Arena two hours before the doors opened Thursday. See, Joshua Stewart is a hockey fan.
For the first time since April 2, 2004, big-league hockey was played in Atlanta. It was just an exhibition game, but when you love the sport and you’ve gone so long between puck sightings you’re grateful for anything. Stewart came ready, wearing his blue-and-copper Thrashers sweater and equipped with blow-up ThunderStix, and 45 minutes before the opening faceoff he sat in his seat behind the goal with the dedicated fan’s air of expectation. But this was no ordinary preseason home opener, and even a zealot like Stewart couldn’t pretend it was.
The NHL is coming off a lost season, and the NHL in Atlanta was never to be confused with the NHL in Detroit or Toronto or Montreal. Hockey in Atlanta is a niche sport in a trendy city, and what fans the Thrashers had developed in their first five seasons have had 17 1/2 months to find other interests. Did Stewart, a season-ticket holder since the beginning, ever doubt he’d be back?
“Never,� he said. “But I grew up in Calgary.�
Stewart is 21, a journalism student at Georgia State. He follows the NHL the way undergrads in Athens track the SEC. Part of Stewart’s afternoon had been spent online, debating the merits of the Thrashers’ powder-blue third uniform. (For the record, he hates it.) He loves this sport and this team, but he isn’t so blind that he sees only blue skies ahead.
“It appears fans are still relating to [Dany] Heatley and [Ilya] Kovalchuk,� Stewart said. “As of now, we don’t have either.�
Much has happened since last the Thrashers played here. Heatley is gone. Kovalchuk remains in Russia, unsigned for the coming season. The biggest names among Thrashers are now Bobby Holik and Peter Bondra and Marian Hossa. A team that hasn’t yet qualified for the playoffs fully expects to get there this time, and if it doesn’t somebody might get fired. And then there’s the lingering effect of the lockout, which rendered a low-profile sport an even lower one.
Jason and Melissa Williams are graduate students at Georgia Tech. They’ve followed the Thrashers for years — Melissa grew up in Buffalo, which helps explain her thing for hockey — and they, like all the other hard-core folks who turned out Thursday, were tickled the game had returned. “The real fans are glad,â€? Jason said. “For the other people, it might take a few weeks.â€?
It might. It might take much, much longer. After so long out of sight, the Thrashers can’t wait until February to find their stride. Said Don Waddell, the general manager: “The response we’ve gotten from our fans has been very encouraging, and I think the buzz around town is pretty good. But I’m hearing that from hockey people. The bottom line is that we need to win.�
There has always been a pocket of hockey love in Atlanta — it existed here even after the NHL bolted for Calgary, existed during the tenure of the defunct minor-league Knights — but the lost season has made crossover success even more problematic. Even a diehard like Joshua Stewart admitted as much. “It’s interesting,â€? he said, “but it’s also scary. We’re about to find out what’s going to happen to Atlanta as far as hockey is concerned.â€?
We are. And it might not be all that pretty. Let the record show that, 537 days after the NHL last played in this city, the announced attendance at Philips was 10,218. Truth to tell, the place wasn’t even half-full.
Permalink | Comments (19) | Categories: Mark Bradley, Thrashers / NHL
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By geechee
September 22, 2005 11:42 PM | Link to this
Mark, I noticed you mentioned hockey and Thrashers, and NHL many times in your article but you never really explained exactly what hockey is. Is this some sort of sport?
By LAC
September 23, 2005 06:12 AM | Link to this
These people who bash Hockey are as narrow minded as anyone. Sure beats the National Boring Assoc. and for me college football, well reruns of The Weather Channel are more interesting…
Give me the ICE any Day !
LAC
By Arnold
September 23, 2005 08:10 AM | Link to this
Last nights game, even though Thrashers lost, was probably one of the best games I have seen in any sport, except UGA football, in a long time. The Braves will for ever lose in the playoffs, the Falcons are a bore but when the skates hit the ice anything can happen. These new faces are the answers to the many fans prayers. If Holik, Bondra, and Hossa don’t get you excited about hockey then you’re just dead.
By Lars
September 23, 2005 09:13 AM | Link to this
I couldn’t help but notice that neither team last night took any advantage of the red-line rule change. They are still playing like the two-line pass is illegal; someone posts at the red line, takes a pass from the defensive zone, knocks it over and then makes another pass. What should happen is as soon as possession is regained in the defensive zone, one of the wings should just FLY out of the zone for the outlet pass and take it for the quick odd-man rush. The teams that make this adjustment first are the ones to beat.
By Tom
September 23, 2005 09:34 AM | Link to this
I’m hating the rules changes right now, at least as far as emphasis on calling every single rule in the book as strictly as possible goes. I don’t want to go to a hockey game and see 45 seconds of even strength followed by a 5-on-4 for 30 seconds, followed by a 5-on-3, followed by a 4-on three, followed by whatever the officials decide to call next. Let the players actually play the game!
And it’s good that Bradley mentioned Georgia State in his column, since the AJC office is four blocks from campus but he hasn’t been on campus since Carter Wilson coached there.
By Todd Moore
September 23, 2005 01:12 PM | Link to this
If we live with the ridiculous amount of penalties for now, the players will get used to it. Then we will eventually have an era of wide-open, fast-paced, high-scoring hockey. For that, I am willing to wait.
By Geoffrey Paul
September 23, 2005 01:56 PM | Link to this
I was at the game last night, and I didn’t think it was less than half-full. I would have guessed there were about 8000 there, and I think that is pretty darn good for a pre-season game. Lars- I completely agree with you. In three periods of hockey I saw only one pass that crossed two lines. It was an outlet pass from Savard to Bondra. Which figures, b/c I thought they both looked a lot better than everyone else on the Thrash last night. Bondra looked like a man among boys- wow, he looks 10 years younger. Not only is his release just as quick as it ever was, but he was taking long shifts, and spending a lot of time with the puck on his stick. Savard made several beautiful passes and looked like he was really trying to make things happen. He and Bondra were the only players on the ice who, it seemed to me, were actively looking for ways to exploit the rules changes in their favor, instead of just lamenting the fact that they can no longer do this or that. Dunham looked pretty soft, I was really disappointed in his play. Granted, there wasn’t much even strength play, but 4 goals on 15 shots just isn’t up to par, no matter how you look at it. Where in the world was Boumeester? He looks like he has really regressed. I thought that Weiss looked like he is ready to burst onto the NHL scene, he has really nice touch and could be a star in a couple more years. Here is hoping that Kari is skating without pain by Monday…
By Todd Moore
September 23, 2005 02:02 PM | Link to this
If we live with the ridiculous amount of penalties for now, the players will get used to playing real defense. Then we will eventually have an era of wide-open, fast-paced, high-scoring hockey. For that, I am willing to wait.
By J
September 23, 2005 02:53 PM | Link to this
I too was at the game last night. I’ve missed hockey sooooooo much!!! I hope those thundersticks dont catch on here, I dont want artificial noise-makers. Let us use our lungs, we can get that arena loud on our own! As for the game, Bondra looked like a superstar out there! Dunham let in one real soft goal, but we were killing penalties ALL game. I think as the players adapt to the new rules, we’ll see less penalties. I dont know if I like that its now a penalty every time the puck is sent into the stands though, there were at least 3 or 4 of those. And the penalty on on Sutton? at the end of the game was a terrible call!!! At least the referees got alot of practice last night!!!! Now lets see some 5 on 5 hockey for once!
By Brendan
September 23, 2005 03:02 PM | Link to this
The someone who should be fired is Don Waddell. That is, IFFF the Thrashers miss the playoffs. Don’t go blaming Bob Hartley. Bob Hartley is part of the solution. I want Kovalchuk back as much as anybody, but if Ilya is this self-absorbed, and/or simply prefers to play in Russia, good-riddence! It’s Don Waddell’s job to extort a king’s ransom in a trade or a SLEW of 1st round draft picks. Hey, if Ilya doesn’t want to play in Atlanta, there are 29 other cities who would take him in a heartbeat, including Colorado. I’d tell Bob Hartley, Go pick members of the Avalanche you need here in Atlanta, like Hejduk, Tanguay, Blake, Aebischer and even Sakic. Some kind of deal for Kovalchuk could be worked out with the Aves. But Bob Hartley should be consulted first.
By briton
September 25, 2005 11:06 AM | Link to this
There is no doubt that the Thrashers need to get off to a good start to keep fans. You will always have the diehards…which here translates to mostly northern transplants. Unfortunately people here can’t catch on to how exciting hockey is or appreciate the complexities and skill level of the game. The Thrashers suffer from having a great organization from every angle in an unappreciative market.
One thing that does catch on though is winning. So, sad as it is, the only way the Thrashers will draw and maintain fans is to win, win big, and keep winning. The first step in this is to stop dwelling on what or who we don’t have and start working with the redesigned team.
Oh, and as thrilled as I am to have the NHL back…will everyone please stop acting like there was no pro hockey in Atlanta last season!!! I filled my lockout time by watching Thrashers’ prospects and other hopefuls play to prove something and for the love of the game…no egos, jaded attitudes, or money-squabbling there. Talk about an exciting “no-hockey” season! GO GLADS! -Brit
By Scott
September 26, 2005 01:23 AM | Link to this
You people do realize that the Thrashers averaged more fans per game than fans in Boston, Chicago, New Jersey, and Long Island right? I mean you people act like the Thrashers draw like the Penguins or something. The Thrashers were ranked 15th out of 30th, averaging close to 16,000 fans a game which in my opinion is just fine for a non playoff team.
By Brendan
September 26, 2005 02:07 PM | Link to this
There are nine (9) days, including today, to sign Ilya. I would like Ilya to remain a Thrasher. But I am willing to let him go in a trade, so long as we get another promising player, with at least five years left in him. I would do Ilya straight up for Rick Nash right now. Nash can play defense and FIGHT. And he’ll come a lot cheaper than Ilya. How about it, GM McLean?
By GM McLean
September 28, 2005 08:44 AM | Link to this
{click}
{dial tone}
By briton
September 28, 2005 02:10 PM | Link to this
OK, go with the Atlanta-Pittsburgh comparison…that actually makes a point quite well.
In 03-04 Atlanta’s average attendance ranked 21st with barely over 15,000 while Pittsburgh pulled up the rear at 30th with almost 12,000. The city of Atlanta is about 25% larger than the city Pittsburgh, metro Atlanta is double the size of metro Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is a much more middle class/blue collar city where people have less to spend on “luxury items.” So, taking everything into account, 12,000 in Pittsburgh really works out to be a bigger accomplishment than the 15,000 in Atlanta.
Oh yeah, and in 03-04 the Penguins were also capping off several miserable seasons with a finish in last place in the league (I guess they wanted to be consistent with their 30th place finishes).
So, here’s the point. Even when the Penguins were simply awful, fans still spent their money to go see them play. The Thrashers don’t have that draw. Other than the northern transplants, fans will only come see games if the team is winning…even then you have to drag them away from football and baseball. Teams in other hockey markets don’t have to constantly win to put people in the stands. But winning is a start, if you draw new fans in, maybe you can get them hooked.
The Thrashers need a solid, consistent fan base. With the difference in city sizes and team performances, Atlanta should have been drawing twice the number of fans as Pittsburgh.
The sad thing is, the Thrashers are a solid organization with a good facility (versus say the Penguins with financial woes and a crumbling arena)…it would be a shame to see any of it go to waste because of a lack of a fan base. But there’s another, even bigger, hurdle than winning—selling hockey in the south. No matter what the Thrashers do, they probably won’t be able to overcome that one. I hope they do though, and I’ll be the first to jump for joy if they pull it off.
By John
September 30, 2005 01:04 PM | Link to this
*By geechee
September 22, 2005 11:42 PM | Link to this
Mark, I noticed you mentioned hockey and Thrashers, and NHL many times in your article but you never really explained exactly what hockey is. Is this some sort of sport?*
Someone likes to show the world just how stupid they are. Here’s your sign.
By Go Braves
October 4, 2005 10:45 AM | Link to this
I have a great place for the Thrashers. Winnipeg……
By Sam
October 5, 2005 03:54 AM | Link to this
Hockey will be fine especially with this new CBA. Does anyone realise the kind of excitement this league will have if ALL teams are able to compete? Basketball is full of law breaking whiners so I have adopted the sport of hockey. No, it isn’t a part of our culture but things change and it’s an indoor sport! Hockey is played in more countries than Baseball and football and that’s a fact. It is immensely popular in the North east and outwest in the US. I have no doubt that the west will adopt the sport, but there will always be ignorant people and even they will tune in when they don’t have the falcons and the hawks continue their sucking ways. This is the year we debut the playoffs in this town and I GARUNTEE that the excitement of an NHL playoff will be UNMATCHED (except for maybe the superbowl) ;)
My cousin got tickets to playoff games last year and I tagged along aside him and let me tell you, eventhough I felt like a sell out (to the birds) but that atmosphere I seen in the Playoffs was something else and I can’t wait until this city catches the same fever.
By Sam
October 5, 2005 03:55 AM | Link to this
Hockey will be fine especially with this new CBA. Does anyone realise the kind of excitement this league will have if ALL teams are able to compete? Basketball is full of law breaking whiners so I have adopted the sport of hockey. No, it isn’t a part of our culture but things change and it’s an indoor sport! Hockey is played in more countries than Baseball and football and that’s a fact. It is immensely popular in the North east and outwest in the US. I have no doubt that the west will adopt the sport, but there will always be ignorant people and even they will tune in when they don’t have the falcons and the hawks continue their sucking ways. This is the year we debut the playoffs in this town and I GARUNTEE that the excitement of an NHL playoff will be UNMATCHED (except for maybe the superbowl) ;)
My cousin got tickets to playoff games last year and I tagged along aside him and let me tell you, eventhough I felt like a sell out (to the birds) but that atmosphere I seen in the Playoffs was something else and I can’t wait until this city catches the same fever.
Note: They had Hulk hogan in the playoffs screaming and yelling and I was wondering if we could get Rick Flair to come to our city (even though he’s from NC and the hurricanes suck!)