Will pro hockey ever come to Louisiana ?

edmundfitzgerald

They already have the Louisiana Ice Gators of Southern Professional League.
Then they have my second favorite team known as the Cajun Catahoulas, a junior B team.
My favorite is the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs. How can you not be a fan of the Mudbugs

SoFLPhillyFan

No, because "pulling the goalie" has a whole different meaning in Bayou Country.

jdip9

Not if they want a viable NHL franchise.

The NHL needs to be thinking about contraction, not expansion/relocation. Florida, Phoenix, Nashville, Tampa Bay and Atlanta should all be eliminated - long term there won't be enough fans to keep them going. You can only count on transplants to fill the seats for so long.

The league would be a lot better with 24 franchises.

lsutigers1973

<< <i>My favorite is the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs. How can you not be a fan of the Mudbugs >>



I actually love taking my son to the games. Plus, the team is always one of the best in the league.

billwaltonsbeard

do the Mudbugs play the Mississippi SeaWolves? I used to go to their games when I lived there.

Goot

<< <i>Not if they want a viable NHL franchise.

The NHL needs to be thinking about contraction, not expansion/relocation. Tampa Bay. >>




I hope that's not serious. If you cite ownership troubles as a reason for contraction, that's a different story, but since you claimed attendance, that's totally off base. Use the link I provided and you'll see that during the playoff years Tampa was top 5 in attendance. Only being the WORST team in the league this past year has driven attendance down.

Just two years ago the Lightning ranked 8th in attendance, averaging 18,692 a game, while Boston was 26th averaging 15,384. Now it's the Lightning ranking 23rd in attendance (despite being bottom of the league) and you're calling for contraction? Boston hadn't ranked highly in attendance until they started winning again. Were you in favor of contracting them during their down years? In fact, use those stats and go year by year....you'll find that almost every year since 2001 Tampa has had similar, or better attendance than Boston. Also, before you use arena size as a factor, realize the Bruins aren't selling out so that means that the demand is not so overwhelming, thus not hindering their attendance in any way.

Also, people forget that the Mighty Penguins were dead LAST in attendance before Crosby got there. Even the Blackhawks were at the bottom of attendance just a few years ago. Now they're selling out every night.

I'm not saying these franchises are bad, but I'm just trying to make people more aware that what's going on in Tampa isn't even uncommon for Original 6 members. All Tampa needs to do is be competitive and they will fill seats. And I'm not talking Stanley Cup every year, but not finishing dead last would help.

NHL Attendance



This data is a little old, but it will show you that Tampa is/was solid in terms of ticket revenue. Again, those years are years where the Lightning were 8 seeds in the playoffs, not exactly leading the league.

Link


Here are Forbes Franchise Valuations, complete with Debt, Operating income and revenue.


Link


Here is a more long term list of attendance.


LINK

Is Tampa on par with Toronto, Montreal, NY (Rangers, not Devils or Islanders)? No and the probably won't be. However, not too many teams are on par with those franchises and Tampa can hold their own amongst the rest.

Goot

Why does nobody ever question the Islanders? Look over the past decade and they've rarely ever been out of the bottom 5 in attendance and their Revenue is quoted by Forbes as being the worst in the league.

jdip9

The NHL itself is a struggling brand on the edge of irrelevance. The talent is incredibly watered down. Contraction in markets without strong hockey roots only makes sense. You cite Boston's attendance (or lack thereof) a few years back - people didn't show up to games not because they were apathetic to the Bruins, it was because ownership refused to spend money to bring in good players...and when they were fortunate enough to get one (Joe Thornton) they traded him away instead of paying him. Beyond that, the city was too busy spending their dollars supporting world championship baseball and football teams. When ownership got their act together the last couple years, the fans returned. The hockey fan base is Boston is huge, probably every bit as big as the Celtics.

My point was that the NHL has no business being in markets that have no strong hockey base. It's like they are trying to force the sport down people's throats. In the Northeast, the Midwest, and Great Lakes Region, hockey is part of the local fabric. How many youth leagues are there in the cities I named? Very few, I would imagine. Very few young people in those cities grow up hoping to be the next Sidney Crosby. They just don't. If I lived down south, why would I want to go inside in a freezing cold ice rink to play hockey, when I can stay outside in 70 degree weather and play basketball, baseball, or soccer?

I'd be willing to bet that upwards of half the fans in attendance each night in the "contractable" cities are transplants from cold-weather cities that grew up playing and/or following hockey. I promise you, with the economy in the toilet for the foreseeable future, you'll see abysmal attendance numbers in all those cities, especially if they are not winning.

I do agree with you about the Islanders though, you can add them to my list (I needed a 6th team anyway to get to my 24 team league).

Goot

<< <i>

My point was that the NHL has no business being in markets that have no strong hockey base. It's like they are trying to force the sport down people's throats. In the Northeast, the Midwest, and Great Lakes Region, hockey is part of the local fabric. How many youth leagues are there in the cities I named? Very few, I would imagine. Very few young people in those cities grow up hoping to be the next Sidney Crosby. They just don't. If I lived down south, why would I want to go inside in a freezing cold ice rink to play hockey, when I can stay outside in 70 degree weather and play basketball, baseball, or soccer?
>>





You're assuming nobody plays youth hockey in FL. While it's not like Massachusetts, it's better more prevalent than one would imagine. The purpose of expanding the NHL to the south has done a pretty good job of expanding the hockey base in FL. There are certainly more opportunities for kids to play hockey in FL than there were 10+ years ago. The Lightning put on Youth Clinics yearly and sponsor PAL teams. Also, colleges all across FL (UF, FSU, UCF, USF, FAU,FIT, etc.) now have club teams at the Division 2 and 3 levels. Would you believe that the #2 in Division 2 hockey is Florida Gulf Coast University (Ft. Myers) and they pull about 500 people to each game? They beat the Boston University club team 7-2 and 8-4 a few weeks ago. Their team does have some players from Canada, PA, OH, NY, etc. However, 13 out of the 21 players on the roster are from FL and the team itself was founded in 2002.
FGCU Hockey

Everblades Pee Wees


There's a rink 20 minutes from my house that is home to Jr. Hockey. There's a competitive team housed there that travels all across the South and East Coast playing in tournaments. The kids playing for these teams are teenagers, and just as old as the Lightning franchise is. Coincidence? Maybe in some cases, but I think NHL in FL has played a role.
Link


This is a small snapshot of it all, but how much of this do you think would be possible without the NHL's expansion to the South?


Anyways, I just don't see the need to contract teams that have proven they can be a viable franchise in the League. And if there are numerous transplants there, why does it matter as long as tickets are sold? You contract teams like Phoenix who can't break 10,000 in attendance, not franchises like the Lightning that average 15,000 a game, despite being bottom in the league, especially after already proving that they can draw 17,000+ if a playoff contender.


I tend to agree about teams like Florida, Atlanta, and Phoenix, however I believe that Tampa should not be a part of the discussion. And despite what you probably think, I'm pretty open minded about this stuff.

coinkat

Will Cajun Cooking survive in Sweden?

DoubleEagle59

sorry, but the next 5 NHL franchises should all be awarded to Canadian teams.

We here in Canada love our hockey like you love your football, baseball and basketball.

In most States, Hockey just doesn't have much attraction for the common fan.

Goot

<< <i>sorry, but the next 5 NHL franchises should all be awarded to Canadian teams.

We here in Canada love our hockey like you love your football, baseball and basketball.

In most States, Hockey just doesn't have much attraction for the common fan. >>




I agree with that completely, it just better not be my Bolts


Seriously though, I'm glad the NHL has been in talks with Winnipeg, Hamilton, and Quebec City for new franchises/relocation projects.

VintageCardLover

why would they want to go there, lose money and go bankrupt?

jdip9

The OP asked the question if pro hockey would ever go to Louisiana. My point was that why would the NHL move another team to another city that has no strong hockey base? The NHL is a league that is clearly struggling. They have this misguided vision of trying to make the sport popular throughout the country, when they'd be better off focusing their efforts on finding teams for cities with a thirst for pro hockey. There are probably 2 or 3 Canadian cities that could support a pro franchise. Some of the established Canadian cities could probably support two.

I would agree with you that NONE of the pee wee leagues and college club teams you mention would exist were it not for pro hockey in Florida. However, the fact that they do exist though does not mean the game is a sustainable enterprise in Florida...just like Nascar and college football will never be popular in Massachusetts.

lawnmowerman

<< <i>No, because "pulling the goalie" has a whole different meaning in Bayou Country. >>




I like what you did here Keith

SoFLPhillyFan

Hockey on the west side of the FL peninsula from Tampa down is an easily sustainable enterprise.

Why? Most of the people started relocating here from the Upper Midwest when I-75 was built decades ago. They love their hockey and won't give it up.

We have an ECHL minor league Carolina Hurricanes affiliate in my area. The team built their facility when they came to town. It is a well built medium sized multi use arena. No trouble filling the seats and no talk of them leaving town. They have been here for over 10 years now.

Miami may have trouble with the Panthers but hockey in Tampa and SW FL is not a problem.

tunahead08

Haha 3 WCHA college teams have better attendance records than the Coyotes, and Wisconsin also tops the Islanders.

"Wisconsin leads the nation in attendance with 12,638 per game, while UND (11,605) and the U [of Minnesota] (9,889) also draw quite well." Capacity of those 3 arenas: 15,237; 13,000; 10,000. Of course if the Gophers don't figure out their issues that number might fall off