Quote:
Originally Posted by Itse
A bit of an overstatement, but I think there's certainly some truth to this.
I also think the long season is partially a problem of short term profit reigning over the long term profit.
Now, this could of course be a North American feature, but I find it odd that so many "hockey fans" seem to actually be simply fans of their own team, and simply stop watching when their teams season it's over. The team is the real product, not the league. This is a clear limitation in the games marketability. (It also creates an urge to support teams in non-profitable locations to broaden the games audience)
People watch good sports even if they're not invested in the teams/athletes. But they don't tune in to watch almost meaningless mid-season grinds by two tired teams.
So when the season is too long, the product suffers for the casual fan. On the other hand, the avid fans really watch all the hockey they can anyway. I would certainly watch more other hockey games if the Flames wouldn't be playing so often.
So because the Flames play so often, I watch other teams less, and because I watch other teams less, I'm even less invested in them. Which also makes me know less and care less about the opposing teams when they play against the Flames.
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You raise a good point. I don't think what you said in the bold is an American feature and more the nature of the NHL itself, which means Girly's sentiment actually could be the case for many people, myself included. I actually don't care much to watch other NHL teams play, but when it's the NFL, NBA, MLB, or even NCAA I'll watch any team because of the sport itself, rather than it being my favorite team playing. I think that's the case for many Americans. Granted some matchups will yield a great audience while others will not, but they may be more inclined to watch any matchup due to the sport itself moreso than perhaps NHL fans may. Look at the hype NCAA Football and Basketball get. Those are amateur sports, but during their key points in the season, they get more attention then the professional counterparts get. And many of the people watching have no affiliation to the teams that are playing. They're watching for the event itself.
And I say NHL fans, rather than hockey fans, because there are a lot of fans that only pay attention to the NHL and the NHL alone. Again, I'm one of those for the most part. I have no idea what's going on in junior at the moment, or in the AHL. And when world juniors come around, I actually don't care too much for that tournament either, and will only care to watch the Canadian games.
Let's say Flames ceased to exist one day, would Girly continue to watch the NHL? That's an important question for the NHL because if there are a fair number of people who only watch the game because of their favorite team, then that means the product itself isn't that great as it should be. It may be in NHL's best interest to really explore how to make the game more exciting not just for the casual fans they want to pick up, but for those who already watch it but only pay attention to one team. If international sized rink and bigger nets can lead to more exciting hockey, it's something they should strongly consider.
And I don't believe that the reductions in seats due to a larger rink means the owners will lose money. If anything, it might make them more money, because if the product is more exciting, and the probability of fans attending the game increases with it, then the owners could hike up the prices to make up for the loss in seats.