[News] Update: NHL green lights season-ticket drive for Las Vegas

[wretched34]

Originally Posted by chubeyr1

While I don't disagree those fans may like to migrate over to support an nhl team there is one huge problem. Price of tickets? What do season tickets cost for an ECHL team versus NHL?

Wranglers season tickets range from $535-$1094.
Just taking a look off Teams pages, Anaheim go from $720-$4860, LA $623.50-$5396.50, SJ $1892-$5977, for teams near Vegas. Not sure how ownership would jump in, but I'm guessing they'll start fairly cheap for a few seasons., maybe a starting point of $500, and higher end around $4,000, makes it affordable to draw in attention. As mentioned before, I think a lot of the season tickets/boxes are gonna go to the Casinos to use as perks and comps. I really don't think they'll have a huge issue in the first few years, my concern in longevity. If the team is a bust, they may lose the attention fairly quickly.

[Alberta_Beef]

Originally Posted by tripin_billie

While I'm not a fan of a Vegas expansion, it's got a metro population of 2 million. Not what anyone from Alberta should be calling small. And no, the vast majority of the city doesn't work nights. Zappos is also there, pushing a changing corporate culture.

Not a fan of the move, but some of the posters on here have clearly never traveled more than a block off the strip.

like it or not 2 million people in a US market is a small market. There is no way around that.

And yes a majority of their population works nights. I think I remember hearing something like 60% work nights

[VANFLAMESFAN]

Las Vegas Sapphires



So much better than the Rhinos.

[ExiledFlamesFan]

Originally Posted by Alberta_Beef

like it or not 2 million people in a US market is a small market. There is no way around that.

And yes a majority of their population works nights. I think I remember hearing something like 60% work nights

A 2 million people US market is equivalent to a 200 000 person Canadian market. That works in the service industry with tons of nights/evenings and makes no money.

This has disaster written all over it. Selfishly it sounds like a great idea for Western Canadians, going down south and catching a Flames/Oilers/Canucks/Jets game on a weekend, but in reality selling out 41 games per year is not going to work.

The Tampa Bay Rays is a great comparison.

[Fire]

Originally Posted by chubeyr1

Hundreds of fans? Where are the other 19,000 people coming from lol? Don't get me wrong, it would be cool/hot to go to vegas and catch a flames game. Canadians are hockey fans, we would do stuff like this ( I would too ). Most American's wont though.

I would support the expansion though. When it fails the team will move to Quebec. What was the last expansion team placed in a gambling city? Atlanta Thrashers? Now the Winnipeg Jets. I was born and raise in Winnipeg and think the idea of a team there is terrible. Don't get me wrong, I love the fact they have a team in Winnipeg, they really cant support that team nor will quebec be able too.

Expansion should be to Seattle and the greater Toronto area. Could easily support two teams there.

I don't understand why people don't think local fans would get behind the team. I'm sure a lot of people didn't think L.A, Anaheim, San Jose, etc. etc. etc. would work either but it did. They are not building an arena out in the middle of nowhere like Phoenix. It will be in the heart of the city.

[fundmark19]

Originally Posted by getbak

History has shown (and not just in hockey), that you need a solid local base of ticket holders to have a successful sports franchise. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays are a good example from outside of hockey. They thought they'd be an easy sell with all the northeasterners who have moved to Central Florida and being in the same Division as the Yankees and Red Sox. What they discovered is that they get a bump in ticket sales when the Yankees and Red Sox are in town, but otherwise have consistently had some of the worst attendance numbers in the Majors.

That isn't entirely true at all. The rays problem was having a non competitive team in an outdated stadium from the very start in a bad location to get to. The rays have some of the strongest local television ratings in the league. The trop was 10 years old on opening day and in stadium years that is pretty outdated.

But this isn't about baseball. I would love to go to Vegas and watch a game and I think any exposure the league can get to new American fan base the better. Casinos will prop up the team for ticket sales.

[BurningSteel]

How's abouts the RedBlacks?

Also what are the odds this franchise will still be in vegas in 10 years? I will put $100 down on those odds.

[Fire]

Originally Posted by ExiledFlamesFan

A 2 million people US market is equivalent to a 200 000 person Canadian market. That works in the service industry with tons of nights/evenings and makes no money.

They would just need video poker screens on the back of the seats and they wouldn't have a revenue problem.

From what I can find Vegas gets about 40 million visitors a year. Or about 110,000 a day. If only a small % take in a hockey game they should be find even with limited home fans.

[fundmark19]

Could you imagine how much fun live betting would be from your seats in the rink

[Chill Cosby]

Originally Posted by BurningSteel

How's abouts the RedBlacks?

Also what are the odds this franchise will still be in vegas in 10 years? I will put $100 down on those odds.

Nashville, Carolina, Florida, Tampa,
and Arizona all lasted despite having more significant hurdles to overcome than Vegas would.

This could easily be one of, if not the best Southern franchise outside of California. The stadium is central and MGM has it's name on it, so I can only imagine the huge amounts of exposure from advertising and "experience" packages.

If all those teams can pull 14-18,000 without the help of a huge tourism industries and a spend culture, I would imagine Vegas could do even better.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by mikephoen

I think you're underestimating how many people in that town at any one time would think it is cool to put some money on the game at one of the big sportsbooks and then go watch the event live. I think this could be huge for the NHL.

Like someone else said earlier, people will get comped tickets or decide to go for 'something different' and fall in love with the game. They'll take that love back where they come from and start following the NHL. It won't happen every time, but I bet it happens.

This is Vegas we're talking about, how much you wanna bet?

[browntrout]

not to sure about this location....Quebec City deserves it hands down

[Vulcan]

Yeah, putting a team in Las Vegas is a gamble but I don't think Bettman and the other owners care too much as long as they've got a guy to pay the expansion fees. What it does have is name recognition and Quebec City doesn't, which maybe will put the NHL more into the mainstream conversations.

[getbak]

Remember that AEG is building the arena and will operate it when open. The same AEG that owns the LA Kings.

That's a big reason they're a front-runner ahead of Quebec City.

[FlamesAddiction]

Las Vegas isn't a natural hockey market. That in itself wouldn't be an issue, but Las Vegas doesn't strike me as a city that has the civic pride to support a sports team that isn't culturally natural.

Quebec City is a no brainer for me. I spend time there every year (I am in QC right now in fact) and this city is dying for a hockey team. I personally think that there is a handshake deal in place for a team.

[_Q_]

Originally Posted by Fire

They would just need video poker screens on the back of the seats and they wouldn't have a revenue problem.

From what I can find Vegas gets about 40 million visitors a year. Or about 110,000 a day. If only a small % take in a hockey game they should be find even with limited home fans.

So every game will be an away game for this future Vegas team? That must be great for the team's morale.

I really hope this rumor isn't true.

[Tyler]

I like this.

The NHL should be expanding to premier cities like Seattle and Las Vegas, and avoiding culturally-isolated, podunk backwater 2nd or 3rd tier cities like Hamilton and Quebec. I don't care if they sell out, it denigrates the league and hurts the NHL's image when you start re-locating and awarding expansion franchises to these places.

It's bad enough they moved back to Winnipeg for chrissakes. They can keep their junior and AHL teams.

[Vulcan]

Originally Posted by Tyler

I like this.

The NHL should be expanding to premier cities like Seattle and Las Vegas, and avoiding culturally-isolated, podunk backwater 2nd or 3rd tier cities like Hamilton and Quebec. I don't care if they sell out, it denigrates the league and hurts the NHL's image when you start re-locating and awarding expansion franchises to these places.

It's bad enough they moved back to Winnipeg for chrissakes. They can keep their junior and AHL teams.

Yeah, the sooner the NFL gets out of Green Bay the sooner that league will become first class.

[Tyler]

Originally Posted by Vulcan

Yeah, the sooner the NFL gets out of Green Bay the sooner that league will become first class.

Oh I'm sorry, I didn't get the memo that NFL and NHL are essentially equal entities in both revenue and general perception

[Jordan!]

Originally Posted by browntrout

not to sure about this location....Quebec City deserves it hands down

Why