Nashville Sell out to not sell out for Hawks

[UTVolCountry]

Nashville's fan supports really isn't as bad as many might think. It's not as large as Chicago's or Detroit's, but they actually have a lot of support here in the local area. I believe they sold-out 20 of their 24 home games last year. That's not too bad for a team in a small, non-traditional hockey market. Not to mention we really don't have any superstars on the team to watch play. As for this whole marketing thing, I'm not really sure if it's gonna work or not... It's just creating negative attention, really. My advice would be buy the tickets before the Hawks fans...

 

[gmalis1]

Here's some figures from the 2013 season regarding attendance:

Chicago Blackhawks:

Highest home attendance in the NHL averaging 21,775 per game, which was 110.4% of capacity (gotta love those standing room only tickets).

Average road attendance at 18,162 per game, which was 99.5% of capacity. 99.5% was sixth best in the NHL.

Both home and away attendance led the NHL at 105.2% of capacity.

The Nashville Predators:

Averaged 16,974 per game, which was 99.2% of capacity, and was good for 23rd place in the NHL based on average per game (not % of capacity). On the road they were at 94.4% of capacity.

So, yes those numbers aren't all that bad. A little weak on the road, but heck, very close to a full house every night.

So what are the Predators brass complaining about then? A few Chicago fans sprinkled in with the regular Pred fans? Come on.

 

[Baseballnut77]

OMG Theo doesn't know how to develop players? By the end of this year they will no doubt have one of the top 3 farm systems in all of baseball. and theo has just barely got the seat warm and has taken a farm that had NO prospects and has Stockedthe shelves in a very short manner.Like you said you have not watched a pitch of baseball in years yet you somehow believe you are qualified to tell everyone How bad they are? laughable

 

[gmalis1]

OMG Theo doesn't know how to develop players? By the end of this year they will no doubt have one of the top 3 farm systems in all of baseball. and theo has just barely got the seat warm and has taken a farm that had NO prospects and has Stockedthe shelves in a very short manner.Like you said you have not watched a pitch of baseball in years yet you somehow believe you are qualified to tell everyone How bad they are? laughable

Well, let's see how "good" the Cubs are right now. They are 53-69, 16 games under .500, in last place in a division that also has the miserable Brewers. They are out of first place by 19 games.

So, let's look to the future. Most baseball experts agree that the 2014 season will be another lost season for the Cubs with more of the same...basically, struggling for runs and wins. 2015 looks like it could be another of the same.

I will stand by my assertion that the Cubs don't know how to develop players. I don't give a damn about the having one of the top 3 farm systems in baseball. What I care about is seeing some of those prospects wind up on the Cubs team, play for a very long period of time, have very successful seasons year in and year out. So far, I see none of that.

The Cubs have had plenty of top prospects throughout the years. The are all top All Star players in AAA. But as soon as the Cubs bring them to the majors, they're awful.

I'm looking at at least 10 MLB teams that have someone on their team that is a blue chip player and a difference maker. Someone you can look to for the next 8-10 years.

I'm looking at the Cubs and I see a bunch of blue chip prospects that MIGHT be good in 1-2-3 years. And we all know who those players are. But the problem here is the "might" part. I want to see the ones that ARE good players.

Personally, I don't see the Cubs becoming the Cardinals, Braves, Rangers of the future...you know, teams that compete EVERY SINGLE YEAR.

I appreciate your passion for the Cubs. You keep watching...and that's great. No one has a problem with that. But please get your head out of the sand and see the reality of the Cubs organization. No matter how you stir it, it still stinks.

Now, that I've vented...please keep your Cubs remarks back in the MLB thread. I wanna talk hockey here...and not the miserable Cubs.

So, in all intents and purposes, this Cubs discussion is OVAH!

 

[ChicagoIrish]

Actually gmalis, you couldn't be more wrong.

The Cubs were previously owned by the Tribune, and before that the Wrigley family, both owners not putting much stock into winning.

Now we have a new regime it's the exact opposite. Our system went from nothing, to a top 5 system. Then once we added Kris Bryant in the draft, and traded for CJ Edwards, among a few others, we became a top 3 organization, if not the #1 system. Theo and Jed have just arrived, and it takes time. Blindly throwing money at the problem doesn't work. Let's name a few we threw money at, that didn't work, Bradley, Fukudome, Harden, Soriano. That's just a few, so you see, that doesn't work. You need to draft well, and develop talent from within to be successful for a long time. And that's exactly what the Cubs are doing. I am sorry if you fail to see this, all that tells me is you don't truly understand what is going on, and that's fine. But please refrain from commenting on things you know nothing about.

And now, this Cubs discussion has ended.

 

[gmalis1]

A few examples of minor league can't misses who have proven nothing in the majors:

Starlin Castro
Geovanni Soto
Carlos Marmol
Corey Patterson

I don't care who is running the Cubs...the Ricketts, the Tribune, the Wrigleys. You can drink all the Cubs Kool Aid you want. Until the Cubs actually become perennial contenders, they have failed. Period.

Prospects and minor league rankings mean zero at this point. Unless those players get developed to be big league productive players, it means nothing. Soler and Baez and all the others will have the same fate as all the other "can't miss" Cubs prospects. And that's failure.

 

[gmalis1]

Oh, and I'm not one who believes in signing high priced free agents. Developing your own players IS the way to go. See the Blackhawks for a great example of that.

My problem is in the development of all these top prospects. The Cubs do a terrible job of this.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

You know, this seems sort of underhanded, but I like what the Preds did here. It feeds a rivalry which should be the top rivalry in the division for years to come. Not saying it will be Chicago vs Detroit, but if there's one team in the Central Division that could pose a thread to the Blackhawks in the immediate future in the immediate future, I think it would be the Predators.

 

[Baseballnut77]

lol so never mind that someone who broke one curse is on the job to break this one and has only been a short time. The gamalis has spoken and therefore it must be correct lol.Glad he mostly sticks to hockey because it would be a shame to see this complete mess of a person be spewing all over the boards. i think he must have suffered a few concussions himself trying to get his points across lol

 

[JBM73]

You've never been to a Predators game and obviously have zero knowledge of the level of fan support in our small market.

So says the guy in Southern California.

Attendance can be strongly influenced by cheap ticket prices (see Florida's ticket giveaways). Unfortunately, that doesn't make for a profitable (and long-term viable) team.

 

[ChicagoIrish]

Castro, Patterson, Soto, etc. Are all players from the Hendry era.

You're not giving Theo/Jed anytime. But I promise when they start winning you'll be one of those people who's the first one on the train.

 

[ChicagoIrish]

You know, this seems sort of underhanded, but I like what the Preds did here. It feeds a rivalry which should be the top rivalry in the division for years to come. Not saying it will be Chicago vs Detroit, but if there's one team in the Central Division that could pose a thread to the Blackhawks in the immediate future in the immediate future, I think it would be the Predators.

Preds always seem to give the Hawks trouble for some reason. And yeah, with Detroit gone, Nashville and St. Louis really become big time rivals.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Preds always seem to give the Hawks trouble for some reason. And yeah, with Detroit gone, Nashville and St. Louis really become big time rivals.

Oh yeah, forgot about the Blues. Couple other teams to keep an eye on in the division are the Avalanche & Stars. Lots of good young talent on those teams as well. Tell you the truth, Central Division isn't as weak as people say, lots of up & coming teams in that division.

 

[JBM73]

Oh yeah, forgot about the Blues. Couple other teams to keep an eye on in the division are the Avalanche & Stars. Lots of good young talent on those teams as well. Tell you the truth, Central Division isn't as weak as people say, lots of up & coming teams in that division.

Agreed. It's weak now, but with a promising future.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Agreed. It's weak now, but with a promising future.

Yeah, even the Wild & Jets look promising. It will be a very good division in about 2 seasons.