Rockindeano wrote:StevePerryHair wrote:
Well I saw a sold out arena of a whole lot of people who give a lot of shits!
Yeah you did, because it's a third round Stanley Cup playoff game. What you want to guess the attendance was in a mid January or February game? let's look.
How about these huge tilts at that hockey crazed mecca known as Tampa Bay.
There was a monster crowd in the Ice Palace for the Jackets in February- 13,000 announced attendance, which means there were about 9,000 in the house. My point is not to bash you or the Bolts, but of course you'll have interest this deep into the playoffs. A TRUE hockey bastion sells out every game. The Nucks have sold out 386 consecutive games at GM Place/Rogers Arena, 18,630. That's impressive. They messed up. They should have built that place to be the size of Tampa's rink. I believe TB holds 21K+. The two clubs should trade arenas.
It's a really nice arena. And it is true they have fair weather fans. But the team has sucked the last few years. If they continue to do well each season, I believe they will build a stronger fan base. Which is why you see me rooting for them now. I want hockey to be relevant in central Florida. Now, I won't argue Canada has more fans....but what else is there to do in the Canadian winters? Florida winters have too many distractions for people here. It's our most beautiful time of the year. I still say they will keep a fan base as they prove themselves a viable team though. Central FL is full of northern transplants who embrace hockey, but yesterday I saw a LOT of local southern type people there too. Loving the sport!