NHL

[Drewbacca]

bwahaha, that's a good one Brisco

[Brisco Bold]

Originally posted by Andrew
bwahaha, that's a good one Brisco

Hey, Hey Hey!

The Jay's won today, so back off!

[Rumpy]

I'm doing a little paper on the NHL and I'm looking for some opinions on the subject. This looks like where all the hockey fans are so it looks like the best place to ask this.

The NHL (hockey in general really) seems to be on the lowest rung of sports in the US. Why do you think the NHL gets pushed to the side while the NBA, NFL and MLB get all of the coverage and respect? What do you think could be done to change this?

I'm looking for your opinion, so let 'em fly. Also, doesn't the NHL have the longest season (and playoffs)?

[sggg]

Originally posted by Rumpy
The NHL (hockey in general really) seems to be on the lowest rung of sports in the US. Why do you think the NHL gets pushed to the side while the NBA, NFL and MLB get all of the coverage and respect?

Not that many people play the sport in the US. There are only a few regions where the game is popular at all levels - mainly Minnesota, Michigan, and New England. Most of the NHL teams in the US have not played in their regions for long. People may become fans because it is a trendy thing or because they enjoy it, but they do not have the passion for the sport that people in Canada have. They have not grown up with the sport or supporting a certain team.

Also, the national television and media coverage by ESPN/ABC in the US is a pathetic sad joke. It is insulting to most of the real fans because it panders to the casual fan. The problem is, the casual fan simply does not care much about hockey. So you end up with pathetically low ratings. The national television coverage in the US is so bad that many people simply won't bother watching unless they are watching their team and have no choice (believe me, I know plenty of Devils fans who are bemoaning the fact that the rest of the games this season will be ESPN/ABC only for them).

Finally, another reason for the low attendance and poor ratings is that the league has been run into the ground by Gary Bettman and his regime of short sighted greed. Simply put, the NHL has the most expenive tickets of any pro sports league in NA and the avererage middle class fans cannot afford to attend many games. The reason for this is that the television revenue is much lower than other leagues bring in. The quest for big TV ratings is also the reason for the preposteroud franchise relocations and expansion that took place during the 90s, which moved teams from markets with strong fan support, to areas where the league needed teams to fill in the "US television map". The result of this short sighted greed is that that most franchises have trouble competing financially, fan support in non-traditional markets is terrible, the buildings are half empty, and the league is headed for armegeddon in 2004 when the CBA is up. Bleh.

I'm looking for your opinion, so let 'em fly. Also, doesn't the NHL have the longest season (and playoffs)?

Nope, that would be MLB. They play a 162 game season. The NHL plays an 82 game season.



Edit: I forgot to answer this:

What do you think could be done to change this?

I don't think it can be easily or quickly changed - or that they should try to change it. There is no way they will ever replace baseball or gridiron with most Americans, so why try? Why not try to make your league and your niche as strong as it can be instead? Foolishly trying to change the league/sport to make to make it more popular with non-fans has done nothing but hurt it. They have moved teams from areas where people love the sport to areas where most people simply don't care. There is no simple way of making people fans of a sport the perceive as foreign and strange.

It would be nice if they made the sport more attractive by getting their finances and stability in order. Instead of making money grabs, they should ensure the long term health of the league and it's member franchises.

The main thing you can do is promote the sport on the youth level. If more people grow up playing the sport, the more people will care about it. Many NHL teams have done this, by supporting local youth hockey organisations and whatnot. A great example of this is actually New Jersey. It's taken 20 years for the effect of getting the Devils to have an impact, as the people in their mid-20s now are the first generation that grew up with the team. There are many more players now than ever before (even if it still can't compare to something like baseball!). It just goes to show you that takes time to build support.

Another (very controversial) way to increase hockey's popularity would be to eliminate fighting from the game. Yes, this would turn off a lot of the knuckle-draggers and Don-Cherryites, but chances are those people are not attending the games for the sport of hockey anyway, and are just one step away from becoming a fan of "professional" wrestling. Many "normal people" are turned off from hockey because of the perceived violence. Many people will not take their children to an NHL game because of the rather barbaric fighting. If you got rid of that I believe that it will help developing more fans of the game and will result in the sport being taken more seriously. If it works in international hockey, it could easily work in the NHL.

[Rumpy]

Groovy. Thanks sggg. Anyone feel the same/different?

Oh,and what is the CBA?

[sggg]

Originally posted by Rumpy
Groovy. Thanks sggg. Anyone feel the same/different?

No problem. I just edited it because I forgot to answer one question.

Oh,and what is the CBA?

The collective bargaining agreement. That's the contract between the league and the players union which pretty much dictate how the league runs in regards to salaries and contracts and those types of things.

The NHL's CBA is up in 2004 and many are predicting a long lock-out/strike because the league wants to implement a salary cap or some kind of wage controls.

[Brisco Bold]

Ooops. I'm sorry Philly - Did that hurt?

[Dyne]

hockey isnt popular because its not a free sport in high school and college like all the other sports. thus not as many play it, therefore it doesnt get the limelight. also its not particularily easy and is usually (like i made mention to earlier) not easy to pick up and play (both skill and equiptment wise). as it stands i SHOULD have went to college and played (goalie) but since i didnt play on a credible team during my high school years it wasnt possible.

also the lack of scoring (not my opinion) and hard to see puck (again not my opinion) make it "boring" to the lemmings. i mean even if you cant see the puck is it that hard to read body language and see where the players are moving towards?

[Drewbacca]

lol. Revenge for us in T.O.! (although Toronto deserved it)

Gary Bettman would piss himself if Ottawa and Vancouver were the finalists. No American dollars coming in for the broadcast, although Canada would be going cup crazy.

I think the salary cap for players is a definite must for the league to survive, but try telling that to the players. In order for teams to survive in a smaller market, they're going to have to give something up and they don't want to do that.

Marchant of the Oilers said himself that a salary cap is silly, because a doctor or lawyer doesn't have them. But a doctor or lawyer have options to other practices in the country. There is only one dominant hockey club and that's the NHL.

Another issue, like sggg mentioned, is the fact that marketting and interest is not peaking in areas. Detroit and Toronto are huge money makers. It's hard to find ticket to an ACC game close to gametime, and Detroit is much the same. New York is another bull market for the NHL and it's simply because the city is humungous.

2004 will be a harsh time for hockey... a very harsh time.

[sggg]

Dyne makes a good point, especially in regards to the COST of playing (equipment, ice time, etc) as well as the lack of options and rinks in most parts of the US.

...

In other news, holy crap... what's happening to Vancouver tonight? The Cloutier meltdown is on? Eep.