Attendance figures need to change

[BladesFan_2010]

JMoney, if you listen to Les on the radio he gives some valid reasons as to why the attendance is so bad during the first half of the season.

First, you have the Riders who take a lot of attention away from the Blades when the season is on. Then you have all these high def TVs so people can plop their lazy ass on a couch and watch the NHL, which by the way I don't follow much anymore since the dinosaurs that run the league don't seem to be protecting the safety of players much, and propping up teams in markets that shouldn't have a team in the first place. Anyhow....

You also have a lot of kids involved in minor hockey, and the kids are playing games when they could be watching the Blades, plus the equipment and fees are stupidly high so I can see how some families can't afford it. Plus, I think once the weather gets warmer people get out to the games more, because there are hockey fans in Saskatoon, and most will wait to go to a meaningful playoff game with a full house rather than sit in a building with only 3300 for a regular season game.

Remember Holtby's last year here? When we won game 6 vs. Lethbridge the next day the game 7 here was sold out, thus furthering my point above. Whether you call them bandwagon jumpers or not, they are hockey fans, first and foremost, and I think most of them will fill the rink to watch a meaningful playoff game. Think about it, the Riders have been inconsistent in the last few regular seasons, and they manage to draw people from all over the province who drive for hours to watch them play. Maybe people were waiting to see if the Blades would hit the skids at some point during the year, which they didn't.

[saskawhat]

What did crowds do last season after Xmas as a comparison?

Didn't have time to investigate earlier. For consistency sake I looked at first 19 home dates last year (which took us to Jan. 16) vs. last 17 home dates. First 19 home dates averaged 4261. Last 17 averaged 4486. It's a little better than a five percent increase.


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http://saskawhat.wordpress.com

[JMoney1988]

I'm wondering with the series being shown on shaw, how many fans will actually show up apart from myself and the other 4000 season ticket holders?..... a question to ponder....... good luck guys in the second round!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Shootmaster_44]

I'm wondering with the series being shown on shaw, how many fans will actually show up apart from myself and the other 4000 season ticket holders?..... a question to ponder....... good luck guys in the second round!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think Sasktel Max has infiltrated Saskatoon quite well. So I think there are more people who don't have Shaw for cable. Thus, less people may be able to sit at home and watch on TV.

I suspect that tonight's attendance will be in the 8,500 range. Why? Hockey fans seem to take a wait and see attitude toward the Blades. If they win tonight, then tomorrow night I expect 10,000. If they lose, I see probably 7,000 tomorrow night. If they get shelled tonight, I expect 5,000 on Saturday.

[sbtatter]

Didn't have time to investigate earlier. For consistency sake I looked at first 19 home dates last year (which took us to Jan. 16) vs. last 17 home dates. First 19 home dates averaged 4261. Last 17 averaged 4486. It's a little better than a five percent increase.


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http://saskawhat.wordpress.com

Thanks for digging up the #'s! So Schenn likely did impact the crowds quite a bit, so even if he doesn't win you the mem Cup, he made the franchise some gate money which is good in the big scheme of things.

[JMoney1988]

So, yeah just commenting, 7500 for game 1, 8000 for game 2, I think those are pretty crowds considering it's on tv. So everyone if the Blades happen to win 1 or both games in BC, should we expecting around 10,000 like we did last game 5 against PA or if we win 1, would it be the same?..... a question to ponder............

[Stuck in the Penalty Box]

Notsure what the problem is with attendance in this league, but overall the regular season attendance was down over last season. The first round of the playoffs (usually low) was not all that impressive. Second rounds seem to pick up.

There will be a big price to pay for either the Blades or the Ice. Consider what both teams paid to get Schenn and Eakin. Trouble is, one of these two teams is going to be out of the Mem Cup hunt after only two rounds. Which means that one of the gm's has paid a huge price for only taking two steps towards the Mem Cup instead of 4.

Whereas Medicine Hat and Red Deer did not sell the farm and one of them will get to the Eastern Conference final.

[Bladenator]

Notsure what the problem is with attendance in this league, but overall the regular season attendance was down over last season. The first round of the playoffs (usually low) was not all that impressive. Second rounds seem to pick up.

There will be a big price to pay for either the Blades or the Ice. Consider what both teams paid to get Schenn and Eakin. Trouble is, one of these two teams is going to be out of the Mem Cup hunt after only two rounds. Which means that one of the gm's has paid a huge price for only taking two steps towards the Mem Cup instead of 4.

Whereas Medicine Hat and Red Deer did not sell the farm and one of them will get to the Eastern Conference final.

I've heard roughly $450,000 per round revenue