Fans have ideas on how to save the Thrashers
I get quite a few e-mails from Thrashers fans with their ideas on how to save the team from leaving Atlanta.
I thought I would share a couple of the correspondence I have received.
1. The five largest locally headquartered sponsors (Delta, Coke, Home Depot, Chik Fil A and UPS) step up and make a commitment to the fans and the team to add $4M to this year’s sponsorship each ($20M) to help the current ASG ownership absorb projected loses while they nail down a new local owner. These same companies commit to the same level of sponsorship to new owners for five years while the new owners help build the brand.
In turn, the sponsor each get 100 upper bowl and 100 lower bowl season tickets to give to their employees, customers, clients, etc and some sort of added season ticket discount (5-10%) is given to employees of those companies if they buy season tickets. The companies would also get great PR locally and I am sure nationally through sports media. They could also work some cross promotions with the team – for example, Coke could do a commercial that shows a PeeWee hockey game with little kids wearing Thrashers jersey. One kid skates off and mom and dad hand the kid a Coke and the tag line is something like “Coca Cola, committed to the future of hockey in our home town”.
2. Several Thrasher fans would like to offer a challenge to [NHL Commissioner] Gary Bettman and fellow Thrashers fans. Before Winnipeg can be approved as a viable NHL location, ten thousand fine citizens of Winnipeg must commit to being season ticket holders for three seasons.
The fine citizens of Thrasherville would like the same opportunity with a twist. …
Mr. Bettman, the fine citizens of Thrasherville would like to play “deal or no deal.” These are the terms: beginning on a date to be named by you, if 10,000 Thrashers fans commit to being season ticket holders for the next three seasons within a one week period from the “go” date, the NHL comes in and operates the Thrashers. The ATLANTA SPIRIT L.L.C., IS GONE. If Thrashers fans fail to reach that goal, you can go honestly state that you gave hockey a “chance” to succeed in Atlanta. Thrasher fans would like the opportunity to have a “committed to success ownership.”
So the question is rather simple, “deal or no deal?”
What are your thoughts?
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160 comments Add your comment
Andy
May 23rd, 2011
10:06 am
This save the thrashers video is done very well. We should alle-mail this to Gary Betmen and ask for his responce.
Also, If the winnipeg group wants a team so bad,they should be willing to do what ever the NHL wants. Let them buy the team now, but they can not move the team for two years. If they can find new owners to keep the team in Atlanta, then the NHL will give them an expansion team.
Five Months to Look for New Owners??????
May 23rd, 2011
9:16 am
Thew NHL claims the ASG has been looking to sell for “years”. That is one of many misconceptions about the situation in Atlanta – see video for info not seen in typical media outlets:
http://www.keepthethrashers.com//videokeepthrashersreally.html
EA
May 23rd, 2011
10:07 am
Many Atlanta fans have soured on hockey due to the pathetic product we have witnessed for 5 plus years. Many of the familiar faces have disappeared from Philips. We will never be Toronto with the legacy and support for a team that performs badly for several years in a row. I have really learned quite a bit about Canadiens through out this process. The pride they have in their number one sport has been made very clear to me through their fans and their media. Having said that, expansion just seems like the most logical choice. If the sport continues to grow in all markets, it just makes the sport better. Atlanta’s youth program has seen so much growth despite the Thrashers demise. It would such a shame to see all of the work put into that growth suffer if the Thrashers leave. For the Thrashers to survive, an owner would have to be patient. In addition, the players need to held accountable. No offense to Bryan Little, but his remarks really irked me. Not once did he mention that the players performance had anything to do with the lack of ticket sales. I know these guys are young, but COME ON. Rich Peverley, on the other hand, told the Boston media the fans were not to blame. He mentioned the owners and the sub par performance of the team. He said Atlanta fans have waited long enough for a winner.
The most important thing besides the product on the ice is to have an owner(s) that markets the Thrashers. That has not been done in years. It is probably too late.
Jeremy H
May 23rd, 2011
10:07 am
I dig option two. I’d get behind that.
@Tim
May 23rd, 2011
10:10 am
Your comments are just one of many reasons why Americans dislike Canadians. BTW, there hasn’t been a NASCAR sellout in Atlanta in years. That’s why they eliminated a race at Atlanta. This is a college football/NFL football town, period. Take your broken english, cheesy mullet, and canadian tuxedo and go watch Hockey Night in Canada, eh. Winnipeg is a dump in every sense of the word. Canada is America’s little sister
Tincup9
May 23rd, 2011
10:10 am
This is such a mess and Thrasher fans are the unfortunate casualties…
And anyone who thinks Bettman does not have the full backing of all the league’s owners is likely ignoring the fact that he has handled the Phoenix and Atlanta situations brilliantly.
Think about it. The NHL was faced with the reality that one of the two franchises was going to move to Winnipeg. So instead of ushering the sale of the Coyotes to Winnipeg, he instead told True North to remain patient. Then he set about getting another $25 million out of the city council in Glendale to offset the Coyotes losses for another season and will get at least $60 million from the sale of the Thrashers, which will more than cover the additional $15 million the Coyotes will likely lose this season, an amount the league must cover since it still owns the team.
In most sales, a relocation fee usually only applies when an existing team that is located geographically close to the new location has the potential to suffer financially by the move. But that certainly is not the case with Winnipeg, whose nearest NHL competitors are located 456 miles south (Minnesota), 750 miles west (Calgary) and 1,320 miles east (Ottawa).
So essentially a money grab by the NHL is being couched as a “relocation fee.” Is a perennial money loser worth $170 million? Certainly not located in Atlanta. But it is in Winnipeg, which is exactly where the Thrashers are headed.
http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/40395-Campbell-Thrashers-on-verge-of-Winnipeg-move.html
Jimmy
May 23rd, 2011
10:11 am
TAMPABAY LIGHTENING, New Owner with $$, New General Manager, New Coach, 35,000,000.000 in Improvements to the St. Pete Times forum, Playing in the Eastern Conference championship and I still don’t trust the NHL for what they are doing to Atlanta…All you secure Canadian teams teams, don’t think it can’t happan to you…”Lightening fan” living in Florida…
Sam from Carolina
May 23rd, 2011
10:13 am
It’s done guys…sorry
From NESN’s Ricky Doyle:
Fans of the NHL should welcome this move, which seems inevitable despite no official word yet. Hockey is the lifeblood of Canada, so therefore it makes sense for a league that struggles to gain recognition to welcome the return of a team to a market where it’ll be relevant.
Swede
May 23rd, 2011
10:13 am
It´ all rigged with these “local buyers”, something ASG have told Chris V to write about so we can get some hope.
Sad Season Ticket Holder
May 23rd, 2011
10:20 am
How about create a holding or Public company and let People and/or companies buy shares……there are so many people that want to help but dont have $110 million.
jerry
May 23rd, 2011
10:22 am
I think the #1 idea is terrific. 4 million is chicken feed for these companies and it would be like buying 100 million dollars of Good Will for 4 million dollars. They only donate to non profit organizations so this would not be a donation but would be an investment for the tickets and the good will.
Sam from Carolina
May 23rd, 2011
10:23 am
From NESN’s Ricky Doyle:
But if the economic support is there, which it would have to be in order for the move to become a reality, it’s a fantastic move for the NHL at large.The Thrashers have only made the playoffs once since entering the league in 1999. A change of scenery, and subsequently identity, could prove to be beneficial.
EA
May 23rd, 2011
10:30 am
If only the uninformed knew anything about Atlanta. There are many things in this great city of ours to enjoy. Bashing it just makes you look small. NASCAR is not even on most people’s radar. If it is on some, particularly for those south of here, so be it. Personally, I find race car drivers to be quite attractive from what I have seen. Do you think you are so superior because hockey is Canada’s favorite sport? Dog fighting is something I was never even aware of until Michael Vick. See how long he lasted here? And finally, when it is 92 degrees outside, hanging out in a dirt lot is not necessary to show the Canadian media or Gary Bettman how much we love our Thrashers. LOL
Billsen
May 23rd, 2011
10:30 am
For me the day I really knew that ASG wouldn’t lift a finger to market the Thrashers came on Thursday, November 11th, 2010. On that night, the Thrashers were playing the Minnesota Wild at 7PM at Philips. At 8PM the Falcons were playing the Ravens in the Dome. I went down early to see what kind of marketing effort the ASG would do when 75,000 sports fans willing to come downtown and pay money for tickets were literally sitting on their front doorstep.
Unless I looked in a mirror and saw my Blueland Jersey, there was absolutely nothing that would tell these people that the was a hockey game that night.
How hard would it have been to have a bunch of Ice Girls out mingling with the tailgaters offering up ticket vouchers? How hard would it have been to have Thrash out there shooting t-shirts into the air? How hard would it have been for the Thrashers to hire an ex-Falcon or two to sign autographs in Philips that night?
As one to the ~2,000 people who made it inside the arena that night, ya missed a great game by the Thrashers, as they dominated, winning 5-1.
The marketing effort by this group had been beyond pathetic. Who was the moron who thought “A Brutally Good Time” was a great tag line? Was “Like a Red Hot Poker Up the Bum” taken?
The only time you see a Thrashers ad on TV is when the Thrashers are playing – duh – preaching to the converted doesn’t expand your market. Cross promoting to fans of other sports is what was needed. Ad buys should have focused on Falcons, Braves, UGA and Tech broadcasts.
This isn’t rocket science, but then, if you’re as clueless as the ASG, then maybe it is.
EA
May 23rd, 2011
10:33 am
Sam, for every article I have read about how good it would be if the Thrashers move, I have found one that says it would be good for the sport. We know we are being sacrificed, but it is not for the good of the sport. It is for money.
Kelly
May 23rd, 2011
10:34 am
@Tim and the guy who responded to @Tim:
Tim’s narrow-minded and childish attack on Atlantans does not reflect the view of Canadians as a whole. And I know that the narrow-minded and childish rebuttal does not reflect the view of Americans as a whole.
Truth is, it’s not Winnipeg’s or Canada’s fault that ASG has failed so badly. We lost our team in 1996: we know it sucks. But to attack a city to which you’ve never been, and to accuse all Canadians of having cheesy English and mullets really destroys credibility. I’ve been to Atlanta and I like your city. But you said it yourself: it’s an NFL/college football town. If there’s a reason why hockey doesn’t survive in Atlanta, I think you just nailed it.
BTown Buzz 61
May 23rd, 2011
10:43 am
two words ARTHUR BLANK
ThemsTheBreaks
May 23rd, 2011
10:43 am
@Sad Season Ticket Holder … community-owned team – great idea. We tried to make that happen in Winnipeg 15 years ago. You won’t raise enough dough. Even if you did, who makes the decisions?
My suggestion to Thrashers fans: start planning for the next team. Third time’s a charm. Here’s what you do:
1) Find a venue that is perfect – in the top 5 buildings in North America.
Finally, wait in the wings and let Gary Bettman use you as leverage until he’s got no choice but to award you a team.
2) Build up a fanbase – a home for some kind of “Save The Thrashers” campaign.
3) Create a generation of kids who wish their town had a team, because then and only then would they feel adequate about living where they live. 4) Support a minor league team – with the best attendance in that league – for 15 years.
5) Take the owner of the minor league team and pair him with a billionaire who wants an NHL team. Demonstrate that they would be suitable NHL owners by creating corporate support and building a critical mass of hopeful would-be fans.
6) Get local government to support it – not with corporate welfare, but with tax breaks and low-interest loans.
7) Make Thrashers merchandise sales among the top 10 NHL brands. Then wear said apparel to NHL games until it becomes retro-trendy.
9) Apologize for local trolls who can’t help but express their exuberance by slagging your town. Yeah, sorry about them.
You want a recipe? Use Winnipeg’s.
EA
May 23rd, 2011
10:43 am
Kelly, well said. Although because the number one sport in this city is football, it is not the reason we are losing the Thrashers. It has been stated many times why we are losing our team. Non traditional markets have to sell the sport. Atlantans bought in until the support dwindled due to all the reasons that have been stated numerous times.
I did research Winnipeg since this has happened. It looks like a very nice city. While most of us would not places for an abundance of reasons on both sides, it doesn’t do any good to bash each other. You are right.
blazerdawg
May 23rd, 2011
10:44 am
Great ideas…count me in…I am good for two lower level season tickets next year.
winnipeg
May 23rd, 2011
10:44 am
No deal… you had your chances, twice, and failed. Season ticket for $450?! Or you kidding me! NHL will never move back to ATL. Not a hockey market. Ownership is awful but so were the fan turnouts… the moment i knew the team was moving was when Buff signed for 5 years.
Big Ott
May 23rd, 2011
10:46 am
If anyone is interested, Downtown Atlanta’s NEW ERA CAP STORE that is 2 blocks over from Centennial Olympic Park (one block over from Ted’s Montana Grill), is selling “Winnipeg Jets” caps.
(Unfortunately, yes, really.)
Whitaker
May 23rd, 2011
10:52 am
If it would keep the Thrashers here, put me down for season ticket for the next 3 years… I will gladly pay!!!!
rusty
May 23rd, 2011
10:53 am
BlameCanada, I live in Georgia. I love going to Thrashers games and I hate to see what is going on. But like I said, if any team has to resort to this, then they should move on. I hate seeing the league bend over backwards for Phoenix and not do the same here. It’s not working there either and they should go to another city.
But before the Thrashers leave if it does become official, the ASG should line up at Philips Arena and let every season ticket holder punch them or kick them in the you-know-whats.
Whitaker
May 23rd, 2011
10:54 am
Big Ott I can go to the Mall of Georgia and get a Hartford Whalers cap. So no, right now I am not worried.
Since the most people are saying they are not going to be called the Jets, I chalk it up to throw-back gear, and a store owner trying to corner the market.
Andrew51
May 23rd, 2011
11:01 am
@2mins
Me thinks you’re writing checks the fan base can’t cash. REALLY?! Season ticket contest between the 2 cities? Over before it starts.
Former Season Ticket Holder
May 23rd, 2011
11:04 am
If the Spirit group sells the team to someone interested in actually building a hockey team, I’ll buy my 8 tickets back in Section 113 that I gave up last year.
And I know plenty of the friends I made at the games for years who all said they’d be back when we got competent management.
Andrew51
May 23rd, 2011
11:06 am
@EA
Bryan Little is just a realist speaking for VAST majority of NHL players. The players are clamoring for another team in Canada because it means big bucks for them in profit sharing.
Andrew51
May 23rd, 2011
11:13 am
@ Jimmy
Thanks Jimmy. I’m sure Canadian clubs will take it under advisement. I mean….if it can happen in Florida, it can happen
anywhere!
Pims bro
May 23rd, 2011
11:18 am
Some 200 or so fans at the event/rally !! Amateur team, amateur fans. What a joke!! Amd I am one too since I spent way too much money & time on this team. Joke is on me.
Brad
May 23rd, 2011
11:21 am
If Atlanta wants to play deal or no deal, they should have to buy 10,000 season tickets for 3 years at the Canadian NHL gate price. Including difference on CDN-US exchange. Then we’ve got a fair deal. Let’s see Atlanta hockey fans step up to a fair game.
Clay Grant
May 23rd, 2011
11:24 am
Kanata – No reasonable investor would have gotten involved in buying the team while the Belkin mess was going on. I have my doubts about our market as a whole (too much growth in the last 20 years = no sense of community) but the circumstances indicate that there should be an opportunity to regroup. That said, there’s a ton of money here and it’s right that the top sponsors ought to be willing to step up to the plate … oops, I means center ice.
Moses007
May 23rd, 2011
11:33 am
Folks, seriously. We get 1″ snow per year. Who cares about Hockey. I heard on the radio, Winnipeg was the equivalent of the team being moved to Macon. I bet, even still, Winnipeg will sell out nearly every game. Surely they will sell more there despite it being a smaller audience. Ownership knows this. Hey, how about we try and put together a bobsled team. Or maybe an Atlanta Cross Country Ski Team. Oh I know, let’s form an Atlanta Luge Team. Oh wait… we don’t get any snow. Nevermind. :/
duke
May 23rd, 2011
11:40 am
Any owner..at Gwinnett! Like idea of 3 yr. commitment with fans!
Blondie
May 23rd, 2011
11:43 am
@JK Sockey -Running a team on a shoestring budget and then whining that you didn’t make an extra $20 million… Yeah, forgive me if I play the world’s smallest violin for you. Because at that point, it becomes crystal clear you know nothing about running a business. You have to spend money, to make money. Tampa and Pittsburgh are prime examples of how big a difference it can make. And if I had to say what kind of a business model Atlanta Spirit follows, I’d say it’s the same one that General Motors was. And oh shocker – it was a failure.
And if I had to compare the NHL’s commitment to Phoenix? I’d say it was no different than the failed U.S. Government bailouts. Like a bandaid over a gunshot wound. And oh yeah, they’re using taxpayer dollars too.
The NHL should take a hard look at what they’re doing in terms of who they allow to own teams and how bad it looks to have to relocate teams. I’d rather the Thrashers folded and Winnipeg was granted a brand new expansion team. Relocating = emotional baggage and bad ju-ju. It also puts a dent in fan confidence in the NHL itself.
Jimmy's Canadian Cousin
May 23rd, 2011
11:46 am
Hey Jim,
Yikes, Jim – you are a bit embarrassing. I’ve seen you misspell YOUR team name now lots of times. Jimbo, YOUR team is called the LIGHTNING. Jim, your team is named after electrical activity in the sky there above Tampa Bay. It’s not Lightening, which would mean “to make lighter”.
Take care Jimmy!
Relocation News: All Winnipeg NHL related news Day 4 | Illegal Curve Hockey
May 23rd, 2011
11:48 am
[...] Journal Constitution: Fans have ideas on how to save Thrashers. Fans continue to show they have way more interest than the ASG in keeping the [...]
Bluelander
May 23rd, 2011
11:54 am
You can talk all you want about no local buyers stepping up…here is the problem with that:
1. you have really only been marketing them since February when the litigation amongst the ASG ended. Deals like this take 6-12 months to pull off.
2. until I see otherwise, buying all 3 entities was never an option. You will see that ASG remains on board with the Hawks and the arena. The exclusivity thing with Moores is a hoax. He will walk after kicking the tires. They are using him to assure there is no local interest. The question is, is the NHL behind this. There are great arguments that the whole charade was Plan B if Glendale took the bait…which they did.
R. Stroz
May 23rd, 2011
12:02 pm
Brad – I would welcome the challenge. We have been dealing with the same type of problem ownership that you dealt with during the 90’s.
David Kendrick
May 23rd, 2011
12:20 pm
Everything associated with the Thrashers has been neglected. Ever skate at the Ice Forum?
Shutterpups
May 23rd, 2011
12:55 pm
I’m pretty sure that Altana fans don’t get to dictate the conditions of Winnipeg’s approval for relocation.
A few misconceptions:
Winnipeg’s metro population is about 750 000.
There were approximately 35 000 – 40 000 people at the Save The Jets Rally, not 50 000 or 120 000. 35 thousand is nothing to sneeze at, there’s no reason to inflate it along with our ego. It was an incredible event and watching old video from that day brings back all the emotion and energy from that day.
The STJ Rally was not planned over the course of a year. It was planned over a short period of time and it got a wildly greater response than the organizers had ever hoped for. The donations accepted that did total over $1 million dollars were collected over a much longer period of time.
It was huge because when you have a Canadian community of (at that time) around 600 000 people, the majority of that community, business and citizens – rallies around its hockey team. It’s not realistic to expect that from a city like Atlanta, and that has nothing to do with geography and everything to do with population size and spread.
To the fans in Atlanta – you don’t need to make excuses for your rally – you ended up with a generally accepted figure of 400-500 people and still got international media coverage! Our rally was amazing, but what do we have to show for it? Not our Jets. Our Jets moved, and now only a few of our boys still play, scattered around the league.
Even if the new team were to be named “The Jets”, they’re not the boys we lost.
You have my sincere condolences as someone who vividly remembers what you are going through.
Shutterpups
May 23rd, 2011
12:56 pm
Ugh, @ThemsTheBreaks your last post was painful to read, mostly because it’s true. What a road we’ve travelled to get to this point lol.
coldsoul
May 23rd, 2011
1:16 pm
2mins how would pretending people in WPG are only wiling to pay $60 per game fair? That is what a lot of people are missing is that is not fair value that is what the fans in ATL and PHX are willing to pay.
For simplicity sakes lets say Phillips is 20% bigger than the MTS (it is actually not quite that much bigger.). THE SIZE OF THE ARENA DOES NOT MATTER THE REVENUE GENERATED DOES. Season seats that are behind the net don’t go for $3,300 as they do in ATL they go for $4,000 in WPG etc… There are no $500 or $800 season tickets in WPG (those are the missing seats in the MTS center). This is why ATL fans need to stop using attendance numbers- that is not the issue the issue is a lack of fans willing to pay real cash for the games. As for grassroots not being enough to sell the 10,000 tickets that would not be an issue in WPG so I don’t understand why it would be in ATL.
If ATL could get 10 thousand season ticket holders (not counting the $500 or $800 seats) the NHL should keep the team in ATL it is difficult to argue otherwise as it would show that ATL has a viable market.
Pagey
May 23rd, 2011
1:33 pm
I went to 20 games a year for the first four seasons of Thrashers hockey and then had season tickets for the next five. I had enough though. Why invest thousands of dollars a year in a team to get depressed or angry at level of play on the ice almost every night. Ownership and management ran this team into the ground.
This past season I didn’t even go to a single game and maybe watched two on television. Does this make me a bad fan? Maybe, but I gave this team every opportunity and a lot of money over the years. There are a lot of passionate Thrashers fans just like me, but zero playoff wins in eleven seasons speaks for itself.
I will be sad to see the team go, just like I was sad to see Heatley, Hossa, and Kovy go. I’ve been in Atlanta long enough to remember the Flames leaving. You just might see me in Carolina for a Hurricanes/Winnipeg game. I love hockey but did not want to give another dollar to the inept Atlanta Spirit Group.
Jimbo
May 23rd, 2011
1:52 pm
You guys are kidding right? You had 200 people show up at the rally yesterday. That’s pathetic. When we were losing our Jets 15 years ago, 35,000 people showed up and we still lost them. Good luck with your plan.
GaVaHokie
May 23rd, 2011
2:18 pm
@Mike Phelan… Winnipeg will be taking handouts before too long. In the meantime, study up on this premise.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revenue_sharing
OHL
May 23rd, 2011
2:20 pm
The contest for you guys to keep the team started in the year 2000. Only it wasn’t between you and Winnipeg, it was between you and Columbus. You were already losing that contest when Ted Turner owned the team, so don’t complain that it was just the Atlanta Spirit. Let’s look at the results of the contest between Atlanta and Columbus based on NHL attendance rankings. It should be noted that BOTH the Thrashers and Blue Jackets had been to 1 playoff series and no playoff wins in their 11 year history:
Yr – CBJ – Atl
’01 – 12 – 23
’02 – 08 – 28
’03 – 11 – 28
’04 – 15 – 22
’05 – NA – NA
’06 – 17 – 23
’07 – 19 – 21
’08 – 28 – 22
’09 – 25 – 29
’10 – 22 – 28
’11 – 27 – 28
Results of the contest can be verified here: http://espn.go.com/nhl/attendance/_/year/2001
Clearly Columbus won this contest. Also, they were the #10 US tv market for this year’s 2011 Winter Classic. 2 years ago Columbus was the #4 market for Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals and tied for #7 for Game 2. Blue Jacket games are very highly ranked for local tv ratings, getting beat out only by markets like Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Minnesota, Boston, Detroit and St. Louis. Atlanta on the other hand never shows up in any of those tv rankings unless it’s at the bottom where they can only beat out Miami on a consistent basis.
GaVaHokie
May 23rd, 2011
2:22 pm
@Mike Phelan… oh, and I forgot to add… you should read my post again. There’s something in there about it being CHEAPER for Winnipeg. But by all means, pay full price. You guys are already asking for handouts from your own government to pay the relocation fee, which is part of the current hold up.
BLUELANDbeliever
May 23rd, 2011
3:54 pm
Uggh. You cant seriously think that you can try to get 10K people in ATL to be Season Ticket Holders do you? Not RIGHT NOW at least. MAybe down the road after we get a new owner who will spend money and give this town a team it can cheer for again.
OHL
May 23rd, 2011
4:17 pm
BLUELANDbeliever, why couldn’t you get 10,000 season ticket holders in 2003 when you had Ted Turner as an owner and the best young talent in the league in Heatley and Kovalchuk? Instead you posted back-to-back years of being 3rd worst in the league for attendance.
Ukyo(ths)
May 23rd, 2011
4:43 pm
So I looked up the facts on the Jets. They had some of the lowest ticket prices in the NHL and averaged a little over 12,900 a game, and that is without including the lame duck season. So, they couldn’t succeed with $23 average ticket prices (league average was $34.72), how in the world are they going to survive at the reported $65-$75 averages that are being kicked around, which is well over league average?
Something doesn’t add up, and it’s going to cost them dearly. Unless they have huge corporate investments and their admitted MINORITY billionaire backer doesn’t mind losing his shirt, they are in trouble before they even begin. We out drew them, we paid more for our tickets (league average +/- $5.00 per seat), and yet we do not support hockey? The league is a lot bigger now. I’m afraid Winnipeg doesn’t have the revenue to support it long term. They are staging themselves for failure with committed ownership. That will be a tough pill for the league to swallow. When the US dollar goes back to being worth 23% more like it has averaged for over 30 years, many eyes will be opened.