NHL selling out more arenas than the NBA (Yahoo Sports)

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entremet

entremet

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Not surprised. The NHL has way more parity and there are teams in the NBA that will never ever win and haven't in ages.

Greg Wyshynski writes:

The surging popularity of the National Hockey League in the U.S. can’t be denied.

The revenue confirms it. The ratings confirm it. The buzz around star players and successful teams, nationally and locally, confirms it. We just had over 105,000 fans watch a game worth two points in the standings, freezing their rumps off in the snow.

It’s been an ongoing trend since the League rebooted after the 2005 lockout. There’s been some luck involved, like Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin arriving and having a steady parade of big market teams in the Stanley Cup Final. But the end result is still an unprecedented level of enthusiasm for the product.

Meanwhile, what the National Basketball Association has experienced over the last five years can be correctly termed an “enthusiasm gap.” Some markets thrive because their teams are winners; other markets that had winning teams once upon a time have decided the product is stale; still other markets simply haven’t built, or rebuilt, fan bases due to a lack of success.
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http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/nhl-selling-more-arenas-nba-225020461--nhl.html
 
I don't doubt that (hockey is the best spectator sport to attend). However, compared to the NBA, their TV ratings for the NHL are miniscule and that's where the real money is being made.
 
SephCast said:
Are there any articles about overall TV viewership vs. NBA? That's where the real money is.
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Yeah, I think hockey fans tend to be more committed and more likely to go to a game. Plus the experience of a hockey game in person is so much better than a basketball game.

The NHL not being on ESPN or TNT or (as often) on local stations also hurt. That Versus deal or whatever has probably worked out well for the network, but I can't imagine it's done a lot of good for the league.
 
NHL is definitely a more gate-driven league. Its numbers are especially impressive considering how many labor stoppages there have been in recent times

The NBA definitely makes more because of TV money, but it still has to be embarrassed by its attendance.
 
I know I've gotten much more into Hockey in recent years. It helps being raised a Pens fan while things are going so well too.
 
I don't think the article is saying much considering the differences between the two leagues. And when it comes to sports stadium attendance numbers in general, color me skeptical

But I do think the NBA needs to be revamped. It relies too much on the Celtics/Lakers, the injuries have gotten ridiculous this season, and the quality of play needs some work (tanking). It also doesn't help that the NBA completely failed at marketing teams like the Spurs and other smaller clubs
 
I live in an NBA city. What holds me back from going all in as a fan is knowing the degree to which luck is necessary to succeed, especially for small market teams. I enjoy hockey as a tv sport but only as a casual fan.
 
Probably just antecedal fluff but here in the San Fransisco bay area, everyone pretty much rallies behind the SJ Sharks. Bars have their deal nights specifically for Shark game traffic

All the other sports here seem so divisive
 
We're living in an era where television $ means assloads more than arena $ for ownership and the leagues.

As much as the owners tried to belly ache prior to the lockout a few seasons ago, the league is healthier than ever and valuations of franchises are higher than ever - as the Sacramento situations disgustingly proved.
 
Abounder said:
But I do think the NBA needs to be revamped. It relies too much on the Celtics/Lakers, the injuries have gotten ridiculous this season, and the quality of play needs some work (tanking). It also doesn't help that the NBA completely failed at marketing teams like the Spurs and other smaller clubs
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I'd love to see a reduction in the number of games per season and the number of teams in the league. Of course, they'd lose too much money in the short term with that, so there's no way they'd do it. In the long run, I think it would help the brand more -- more stars on teams and thus more competition.
 
Guileless said:
I live in an NBA city. What holds me back from going all in as a fan is knowing the degree to which luck is necessary to succeed, especially for small market teams. I enjoy hockey as a tv sport but only as a casual fan.
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Small market teams don't need luck, they need owners that are willing to make less profit (and if you believe for a second that they were losing money before the lockout, you've successfully earned the "David Stern's lackey" badge) in order to win. See the case of Oklahoma City vs James Harden and the Fans and the above mentioned Sacramento fiasco.
 
Abounder said:
I don't think the article is saying much considering the differences between the two leagues. And when it comes to sports stadium attendance numbers in general, color me skeptical

But I do think the NBA needs to be revamped. It relies too much on the Celtics/Lakers, the injuries have gotten ridiculous this season, and the quality of play needs some work (tanking). It also doesn't help that the NBA completely failed at marketing teams like the Spurs and other smaller clubs
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I don't know if it's the NBA to blame or ESPN and the networks honestly. As a Spur fan and San Antonio native you kind of just shrug your shoulders and accept the team's role in the league.
 
GuessWho said:
Upcoming Sotchi Olympics should help too. USA has a great team and strong chance of winning gold.
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I1XOR4I.jpg


Crosby_gold_medal1.jpg
 
NHL games seem to have less seats for a game so sure they might sell out but I wonder if it is because they have tens of thousands less seats than a typical NBA game.
 
MorisUkunRasik said:
I was watching an Eastern Conference game the other night and I almost changed the channel to hockey, but I don't have Oxygen or whatever channel they broadcast on.
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lol!!!!

I feel like Columbus could be a good hockey town, if they, you know, had ever won a single playoff game in team history. Things are definitely looking up, though.

Winning cures all. I remember years ago people were saying hockey in Pittsburgh was done... and then they start winning, and now they sell out every game.
 
Closest team to me is the Mavericks. They have no shot at winning the title, the only draw they have is old man Dirk so unless you want to see him before he retires there is no reason to go.
 
I mean hey, we live in an era where the Lakers are the worst pro sports team in Los Angeles and the LA Kings and LA Galaxy are the two best.

It's crazy times.
 
Maybe cause the only way to watch games is to actually go to the arena? I don't remember the last time I saw a hockey game on tv.
 
vas_a_morir said:
lol!!!!

I feel like Columbus could be a good hockey town, if they, you know, had ever won a single playoff game in team history. Things are definitely looking up, though.

Winning cures all. I remember years ago people were saying hockey in Pittsburgh was done... and then they start winning, and now they sell out every game.
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I'm born and raised a Wings fan but living in Columbus I still go to 4-5 Blue Jackets games a year. It's affordable and always a fun time. I don't think I've spent over 20 bucks on a ticket ever.
 
Futureman said:
how does Detroit sell 18% over capacity?
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Because they didn't take into account that the winter classic held on January 1st at Michigan stadium had 105,000 fans in attendance and calculated the average against their home arena capacity

The other teams over capacity are standing room, though

LQX said:
NHL games seem to have less seats for a game so sure they might sell out but I wonder if it is because they have tens of thousands less seats than a typical NBA game.
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Its only like a couple hundred less seats... but NHL tickets average something like $10 more. Thats $200,000 more in gate revenue per full arena.

The thing people need to think about: NBA had $4 bil in revenue last year (iirc) and NHL is projected to have over $4 bil this year... and thats without a massive TV contract. ($71.1 mil cap x 30 teams x 2 = 4.2 billion... and NHL doesnt count a lot of things towards revenue for the cap)
 
People forget how the NBA was dying before Magic and Larry Bird. Then came along MJ.... I just don't care about the NBA anymore, and I was somebody who used to listen to
Piston games on the radio as a kid...
 
I'de predict the US will get 3rd in Socchi. We were crushed by the Russians in an exhibition a couple weeks ago, and Canada is probably the favorites so 1. CAN, 2.RUS 3. USA
 
Makes sense, I wish Milwaukee had an NHL team but Chicago will never let that happen. So we're stuck with the goddamn Bucks throughout the winter. Haven't won in the playoffs since before I was born and they likely won't anytime soon. NBA sucks dicks.
 
But what about tv ratings? Stadium attendance doesn't represent overall league health. I think soccer has passed hockey in the US as far as what people like and follow. Soccer.
 
The lack of parity in the NBA has dampened my enthusiasm over the past few years. It's just not fun when you can automatically rule out 20+ teams from having a realistic shot of winning it all before the season even starts.
 
It's funny. I remember the NHL's big push into the States some years ago when they were going to be shown on Fox, remember how they introduced.......the Fox Puck! For those who don't know what it is, imagine a graphic added onto the puck that produced a blue streak of light. Why did you ask did they do this?

Because they believed Americans couldn't see the puck or know where it was.

The whole thing was laughable and probably didn't last past a year or two.
 
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