| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Guest8149 |
Posted - 11/09/2011 : 19:31:46
Dallas is off to a great start, and at the present time, they are the top team in the NHL!
But in fan support, they are the exact opposite! There are some games where they're only drawing 6,000 - 7,000 fans for a home game. The Stars have the lowest average attendance in the NHL. Even Phoenix is currently drawing more fans per game than Dallas!
What is it? I'm sure the economy is a factor, but moreso than other US markets?
There's a huge population to draw from, and the team has some decent history, including a Cup win in 1999. Sure, they've missed the playoffs the last three seasons, but with their great start this season, where are the fans?
With a payroll of $50 million ($14 million under the cap), the Stars could get by with 85-90% in home game attendance, but they're hovering close to 50%. (To "get by," they would need to get a few rounds into the playoffs too!)
From the latest stats I could find (2009-2010), the Stars held the lowest average ticket price ($35) in the NHL! This translates into less than $15 million in ticket revenues for a season, and I highly doubt the Stars' TV revenues, parking, concessions, etc. match or exceed their ticket revenues!
Jeez, at $35 for an average ticket, you could sell out the building twice and still maybe only
break even!
Things don't look good for Dallas, and while Phoenix has received the most attention as an NHL team in trouble the past few years, the Stars could be the "Atlanta Thrashers" story by the end of this season.
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| 6 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Beans15 |
Posted - 11/13/2011 : 16:31:53
Dallas was reasonable successful at one point. One football season is done; there is a gap that is only filled with basketball until baseball seasons. Neither basketball nor baseball matches football in Texas so there is enough fan bases to share. It's a struggle until football season is over, which for the most part is in January. Sure, the Cowboys might be a playoff team now and then but once the Bowl games are over; there is only one game a week. The other teams will fill the void that that point.
What a new owner will bring is marketing and promotion. As I said, there is nothing in that department today. That team has been running with the bare minimum of staff for almost 2 years. Even Canadian teams without any marketing or promotions would see a drop in fan base after 2 years without any advertising or promotion of any kind.
I haven't heard anything about new ownership, but it has not been a much publicized story from the start. This guy very well might have the team at his fingertips. I know nothing about him but I can tell you anything is better than what Dallas has today.
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| Guest8149 |
Posted - 11/12/2011 : 22:46:26
What's new ownership going go do?
The Stars are playing well, but as Beans accurately commented, hockey runs behind other major (and not so major) sports in popularity in Texas (and other US markets for that matter), so what's a new ownership group to do? Suck up tens of millions of dollars in losses a year for hopes of a better future? Or do so as a great corporate citizen? Maybe in Canada but who cares about saving a hockey team in the states?
This team is in big trouble, and unless they take their early season success all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals this season, they stand to lose $20-30 million this season.
I don't know much about Tom Gaglardi, but is he the kind of owner who enjoys the prestige of owning a major sports team, while enduring huge losses for a very uncertain future return? |
| nuxfan |
Posted - 11/12/2011 : 21:33:51
I believe that Tom Gaglardi has put in a bid for the team, has it not gone through yet? I thought it was a formality, and the team was all but his by now...
For those interested, Tom Gaglardi was on the losing end of a battle for ownership of the Canucks several years ago (2004, 2005?). It was a highly acrimonious and public battle that lasted a few years in the courts, eventually won by current owners. Good to see that he's going to get a team after all. |
| Beans15 |
Posted - 11/12/2011 : 21:21:29
The owner of the Stars has been bankrupt for some time. From what I understand the team has been operated by a skeleton crew and marketing and promotions has not been manned for some time. Furthermore, the NFL, NCAA, and any high school football program is more popular in Texas that the Stars are.
Without new ownership there is a good chance the NHL will be operating two teams. |
| Gostarsgo12 |
Posted - 11/12/2011 : 20:40:03
^^^ that was me.. good to be back and see same old characters |
| Guest7690 |
Posted - 11/12/2011 : 20:39:09
Kari Lehtonen.. enough said
If the Dallas Stars become the Atlanta Thrashers then I will never watch or follow the NHL ever again.. cant get rid of a team who has a stanley cup to there credit |
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