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Why Isn't the NHL Bigger in the US?
The question was asked on Sportsnet today as to why the NHL hasn't grown in terms of ratings and general awareness within the United States.
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Пікірлер: 598
hockey by its nature is a very exclusive sport that requires a lot of infrastructure investment. by contrast basketball, baseball and football can be played anywhere and is accessible to people of all economic levels.
@boneail94
6 жыл бұрын
Spike10111 Appealing to a very small % of people (minorities) that in all reality does not care about hockey is just a waste of time.
@original6hockey402
5 жыл бұрын
People in the ghetto/poor can't afford it.
@viperswhip
5 жыл бұрын
@Hofe Thare Well, kind of lower economic areas, but everyone has TV and can get CBC, which at least still shows Saturday nights and you can often watch Canucks games on locally available channels etc.
@crackcorn0404
5 жыл бұрын
The climate can make a difference. I'm sure in Edmonton, Ottawa, etc you can find a frozen pond, grab some skates a stick and a puck and have a good time. Can't do that in Phoenix or Dallas. On the flip side, it's nothing to grab a basket ball and find a court in a park. Also, inner city and rural schools rarily have hockey programs because they get less funding than more affluent areas. Basically I'm just affirming what you said. 😊
@kav2001c
5 жыл бұрын
Ancient post but: this idea is nonsense! Baseball, basketball, and football manage to survive without building diamonds, goalposts, courts etc so why can kids in Canada play hockey on the streets there?
I wish it was bigger in America , we all know the nhl is the coolest sports league
@list67
7 жыл бұрын
Going to a NFL game is the biggest sport event in America, compare to hockey!!!!
@MikeyReadman
7 жыл бұрын
You can't beat a big time College Football game, even the NFL is second rate compared to the College game day experience.
@donvitocorleone3951
7 жыл бұрын
The super Ostrich going to any Football Derby in Europe, especially Crvena Zvezda vs Partizan (The city i live in) is literally insane, look it up, you will not be dissapointed
@hellochris06
7 жыл бұрын
Going to the large college football rivalries is probably on par. Iron Bowl / The Game / USC v Notre Dame etc.
@donvitocorleone3951
7 жыл бұрын
hellochris06 not really, i saw it on videos, and there is no tension, also, people are too friendly to each other, there is no hate betwen teams for the duration of the match, that's not a real rivalry imo,
Hockey is big in the US, it's just in certain parts and not all over the country like it is in Canada. Here in metro Detroit, you would almost feel like you're in Canada with how many people play hockey and love the sport. I can count 4 or 5 kids off the top of my head I knew growing up around here who are in the nhl, or are nhl prospects presently.
I'll tell you one major reason why Hockey is not as popular in the US. It's availability to play is a factor. Look at basketball... All you need is a Basketball and a court which is at your local park or elementary school. You can play a legitimate competitive game of basketball. Football all you need is a ball a few friends and an open space. Baseball same thing you can play at a park or school. All you need is a few friends, a ball, some mits and a bat. All of which you can purchase at Walmart for fairly cheap. Now Hockey on the other hand. It's not something you can go do with your buddies legitimately. You have to have gear, helmet, pads, stick, and skates. Which can't be bought at Walmart and in a sporting goods store. You have to have a rink that has an open slot to play in. Sure you could play in the street with a ball but its not hockey. Half of America doesn't have frozen ponds or lakes. When I was in middle school my parents wanted me to play a sport. I wanted to play Hockey. This is around 1996 However, it was going to cost $1100 plus you need your own gear. For my poor family it was too much compared to just $500 for football with equipment included. Most of the people I talk to here in America like Hockey, they know its a tough and fast sport. But I hear constantly in how they don't understand the rules or how it's even played. Also another unfortunate comment I hear a lot is how they have a lack of diversity or minorities in the game. Sure there is a lot of white people that play but that doesn't mean that there isn't minorities playing or not allowed to play either. Lack of promotion from the NHL in America. The attendance all season compared to the NBA is less than 450,000 people in all 1,230 games played. Average capacity for the NBA is 19,122 compared to 18,333 in the NHL. Now the Average Attendance is vastly different NBA average is 17,864 to NHL's 17,481. NHL seems to fill their stadiums better. However, the NBA makes almost 2 billion more a year in revenue. And that is merchandising and promotion in America. Too conservative and not able to understand the base they are reaching for. NHL could easily beat out NBA if they just gambled on promotion more. Make it easier to watch on cable TV. Streaming is fine but not everyone can afford or is responsible enough to pay 20+ a month for it. Work on division rivalry games. Bring ticket prices down $10 a pop to compete with basketball games. There is literally a lot of things they could do to help build it's popularity in America. That's just what I think...
@djtrankilo231
6 жыл бұрын
Tracy Kelbaugh soccer's readily available here in the states, too and doesn't require hardly any gear besides a ball, cleats and shinguards. Why isn't soccer popular?
@666mathew
6 жыл бұрын
Soccer is probably growing faster than hockey in the U.S.
@djtrankilo231
6 жыл бұрын
Florida Bay Pirate but unfortunately, it's still not considered one of the "top" sports in the States or Canada despite young kids playing it.
@hattorihanzo2275
6 жыл бұрын
Street hockey is still hockey. I grew up in MI. A lot of kids played street hockey. We didn't have a rink and no one played on the lake when it froze. I never spent a dime. Always borrowed a stick.
@ReinSouls
6 жыл бұрын
I always hate the "hockey isn't diverse enough" argument. The same people would turn around and watch football and basketball which are majority black players. Those leagues aren't all too diverse either, but they're made up of a minority so I guess they get an exception to the "diversity" rule.
Having 2 lockouts within a decade didn't help.
@maineoutdoors9814
7 жыл бұрын
Jay333 👆
@Bart848
6 жыл бұрын
And the cancellation of an entire season didn’t help either
@LanceVance81
3 жыл бұрын
And 3 in a 20 year period
There is a pretty big reason that hockey isn't that big in the states that I think is constantly overlooked. This is that hockey is seen as a "white sport". I got into hockey about 4 years ago, I'm hispanic. Almost everyone who knew me thought it was weird that I was into it on account of me being hispanic. Now I want to point out that hockey fans welcomed me in with open arms. It was never weird. I met plenty of hockey fans and no one was like "What? brown people don't like hockey?!" It was only non-hockey fans that found it weird. Also it's an unfortunate thing but things being "white" is seen as a bad thing now, so anytime I bring up hockey to someone who isn't into it it's like "man that's some white people shit" I also feel like there is a tyrant among sports in the US and that's basketball. Basketball seems to be easily the most popular sport, everyone has basketball sneakers, I live right about the city in NY and when you drive down the block you see a hoop in almost every driveway. It's just the cool thing right now, all of the major music stars watch basketball which makes the kids watch basketball ect. It's also more accessible, all you need are some shorts and a ball, for hockey you need a place to play. which is already incredibly hard in the US unless you play some driveway hockey, then you need skates, pads, and a stick. which can be pretty expensive. tl;dr Hockey isn;t popular and won't be popular in a lot of the US because 1) non-hockey fans view it as a white sport 2) Basketball is a tyrant(especially among kids ) currently 3) Hockey isn't accessible like other sports are.
@viperswhip
2 жыл бұрын
In Canada, certainly in Vancouver, CBC does a, well, I am not sure what language it is in, but a language Indian people understand by and large. The NHL is not above making this sport inclusive. If enough Hispanic people watched it, they would do a broadcast in Spanish.
@Rockhound6165
2 жыл бұрын
I know I'm late to the party here but you would think more Hispanics would be into hockey(there are more than people know. I grew up in a town with a large Puerto Rican population and I used to play street hockey with them all the time) because Scott Gomez was such a huge star. 2X Cup winner and Calder Trophy winner. Also players like Bill Guerin and Auston Matthews are both of Mexican descent were/are great players(Matthews is having a hell of a year so far this season).
@ronpeacock9939
2 жыл бұрын
I think the biggest problem... where I like many canadians grew up playing on frozen ponds (I only lived a few miles south of the US/Canada Border). Many in the states don't have the weather that helps make ICE. One reason I see people of Color not getting on the bandwagon so much is... they just don't get into the cold weather.. Hispanics have roots south of the USA.. where winter is still warm.. I've also seen where Bettman could market the game.. when the NBA was out for a strike, they could have stepped up and tried to get the national television that was now empty.. but he didn't do it. The biggest hit against hockey.. ESPN would rather show poker games than Hockey games...
@dustylover100
Жыл бұрын
It's changing for the better. I support anything that will bring diversity to the NHL.
@sportscartoonist
3 ай бұрын
@@dustylover100 while we are at it, we need to bring more diversity to polo and yacht racing. Why should we be the only ones to experience the joys of diversity? The dads at the equestrian club need the fun of DeQuan and Li'l Sheeree "holla" at their daughters. The upper classes aren't going to survive if they don't dilute their bloodlines.
Truthfully, I don't know why it's not bigger here. I'm always amazed how many more people prefer the NBA (considering their seasons run parallel). Especially since the NBA has become so painfully predicable, you basically have two to four teams with legitimate chances to win the title while everyone else is just playing out their seasons. On the other hand, you can make a strong case for 20 plus teams in the NHL to win the Cup at the beginning of each season. I think it has a lot to do with the NHL's inability to market their stars, Major League Baseball has the same problem. I always challenge everyone to attend at least one NHL game live, it's just so much better in person than on the tube.
@euginate1344
7 жыл бұрын
The Fireball Review FIREBAAALL
@dmitrilee4784
6 жыл бұрын
Problem is that most people play basketball or at least know how it works in America. Not the same for hockey.
@kinggoten
6 жыл бұрын
+Dmitri Lee yes players play basketball etc... Hockey is expensive to play gear ice time etc.... with that said the sport is growing in the states, will it ever be as well known as the other pro sports I am not sure.
@djtrankilo231
6 жыл бұрын
Maybe because most Americans (casuals) want to follow superstars or who are dominant in their sport. That's why the NBA is so popular.
@TjSamson
6 жыл бұрын
NBA are great when it comes to marketing. That's why. See how the Raptors became more successful in their profits despite playing in Canada.
Losing ESPN was huge. They used to cover the NHL very consistently. Now, not only does the network not cover the NHL because of the NBC deal, but they go out of their way to talk trash about it. This goes for FOX Sports radio as well. You have the most of the popular US sports networks going out of their way to brush the NHL aside. Just the other day a host was bringing up the news that Darryl Sutter was fired, and the co-host jumped in and said NEXT STORY, I dont want to hear about hockey. That is an exact quote. These are supposed to be our "sports experts". They decided to talk about baseball and basketball for the next 3 hours. I remember when ESPN was on board in the 90's. You would actually get coverage. It kind of proves their agenda. Don't pay us? fine, no coverage. Also, NBC needs to fix Wednesday Night Rivalry. I would tune in to watch more often if it meant we were going to see a RIVALRY. In its current state it means absolutely nothing, as they just play a random game on Wednesday night.
@AlbanianMan
6 жыл бұрын
Agreed. Ditching ESPN for NBC has been an unmitigated disaster for the league. NBC's hockey coverage is beyond abysmal especially with their crew of terrible announcers like Ed Olczyk, Pierre Maguire, Doc Emrick, Mike Milbury, and Jeremy Roenick. During the playoffs, I streamed the Canadian broadcasts of the games on my computer since the Canadian broadcasts (Sportsnet, TSN) are light years better than NBC. Everything about the NBC broadcasts is bush league from the announcers to the graphics to the music. It looks cheap! While I despise the direction ESPN has gone in the last several years, I would give anything to see the NHL get the fuck off NBC and go back to ESPN.
@Jmnor60
6 жыл бұрын
I wouldn’t want ESPN now, because they are SJW’s and it would turn me off. That being said, it’s a big platform and there is very little national coverage of the nhl here in the usa 🇺🇸. Time for a new leader who’s younger and not contentious. Bettman is contentious and cantankerous.
@hattorihanzo2275
6 жыл бұрын
I remember pre-strike when ESPN2 broadcast a game every week. Watched all the time. I now have digital rabbit ears. No NBCSN and NBC is the only over-the-air channel I can't pick up.
I'm from the US and hockey is my favorite sport, but it's just me
@David-ys9wh
7 жыл бұрын
Kevin Meyer I'm with you
@TheRealitzamechrispratt
7 жыл бұрын
That's because you guys have great taste!
@alphadog4real53
7 жыл бұрын
with you. love from dc
@cocofashosho
7 жыл бұрын
Same. Go Stars... 💔
@kevin31974
7 жыл бұрын
the Stars are gonna be good soon, just like my Devils
NHL is absolutely trash at marketing. Non NBA fans know who LeBron James, Steph Curry, etc are. I highly doubt non NHL fans know who McDavid, Crosby, etc are. Gretzky was the last household name. He retired 18 years ago. Nobody has replaced him in star presence. After Jordan it was Kobe and James that took over that household star presence.
@bobbyshmurda6528
6 жыл бұрын
ididitfortherock13 facts
@splashnskillz37
5 жыл бұрын
I'm a sports fan in general with basketball, soccer football and grideron football as my top 3 favorites (hockey 4th), started following more this season and I've watching the Stanley cup since 2015 and I'm from 🇧🇷, the only big name I know that plays right now is ovechkin, hughes and crosby, other players are know some from the VGK, I wish I knew more but I'm still learning
It's very strange. As a Canadian I've always wondered why it has failed in the US. Isn't hockey everything they are looking for in entertainment - fast, goals, physical
@slimdangerous1928
5 жыл бұрын
Yes. I dont get it either. I'm minnesotan
@RushAnthem69
3 жыл бұрын
It’s not nearly physical as it used to be, since the 04 lockout the increase in penalties and less physical gameplay has alienated some longtime fans such as myself
As a hockey fan from Atlanta, this is relatively easy to explain. For me, personally I loved the Thrashers and loved going to Philips Arena to see them play. However, when I say there is nowhere, and I mean absolutely NOWHERE to play hockey in the state of Georgia (and in the southern US in general) is an understatement. You will not find a place to skate and will not find ice hockey equipment anywhere. It simply is just very difficult to market a sport where people not necessarily don't want to play, but CAN'T play. Soccer made a huge leap after the US World Cup effort in Brazil, but you can go grab a ball an some cleats for your kid to become a soccer player. Atlanta has taken VERY WELL to soccer expansion. But hockey just couldn't take off here because it is nothing more than something you see on tv. Maybe if the Thrashers created a dynasty they could have survived, but it's hard to get people in the south excited about bad hockey. I assume the same problem happened with the Montreal Expos. I'm not sure there are too many places to play baseball in Quebec, but maybe I'm wrong.
I think part of it is that not a lot of kids get the chance to play hockey because it's so much more expensive than other sports. How to fix that, I have no idea
@JustinAndrews74
6 жыл бұрын
Roller, Inline, Quad, Street, Floor, Field Hockey - all these are forms of hockey!
@JustinAndrews74
6 жыл бұрын
If you've got a hockey stick, and a ball or puck, you've got hockey.
I am a huge Carolina Hurricanes hockey fan and live in North Carolina. I watch almost every game on tv and enjoy the game of hockey. It annoys me that no one cares about the team or the sport as a whole. I try to talk about hockey but people around hear don't know who Jeff Skinner is or Jordan Staal. Most people think that Eric Staal still playes for the Canes! The franchise does terrible advertising living only a couple hours out of Raliegh I don't hear a thing about the team. If the team spent more money on advertising it would attract more fans. A couple of days afo I was wearing my Hurricanes Justin Faulk black alternate jersey and someone asked me what team was I representing and who is Faulk. It is very aggravating being a hockey fan in a non hockey market.
@danielmoore8695
7 жыл бұрын
haha i'm a huge Canes fan in South Carolina and I wear my jerseys everywhere and no one ever says anything to me at all. Back when the Atlanta Thrashers existed they were on the radar a bit, but after they left hockey has become almost oblivious in SC. Some people in Columbia casually follow them but it's all college football. I'm also a huge Braves fan and the same applies. No one seems to care unless its college football. I hate college football
@joshdellinger856
7 жыл бұрын
Winston Davis I hear ya! I live in Wilmington, NC and it's disheartening here as well. Most people here don't even know that NC has a NHL club :(
@alphadog4real53
7 жыл бұрын
Hockey is super popular up here in northern virginia and DC
@durland31
7 жыл бұрын
Winston Davis basically the same thing here in Central Florida...
@ballsackstbagger
7 жыл бұрын
Where I live, nobody seems to care about hockey
The nhl needs to terminate teams that have poor fanbases in the U.S., and focus on the strong ones. Make cities want nhl franchises, instead of giving teams to cities that don't want them. This is Bettman's ultimate failure.
In Nashville, it took 20 years for the team to really get the whole state behind it. With Atlanta losing the Thrashers, I have seen so many fans from Georgia and Alabama which sounds surprising but success brings fans. The Vegas team this year is sadly what the NHL has to do to increase the vieweship which is make expansion teams immediate contenders.
Minnesota is called the state of hockey for a reason, its the biggest sport here
@Mr_Donkey
7 жыл бұрын
Brandon Spencer yeah its huge in Minnesota and Canada
@Ziege16161
7 жыл бұрын
Really? because according to KFAN, and the Star Tribune, the Vikings, Twins and Timberwolves... not to mention anything Gophers, dwarfs the Wild support.
@joking4663
7 жыл бұрын
Brandon Spencer just secede already jeez
@Internut1985
7 жыл бұрын
Brandon Spencer no it is not. I am huge Wild fan, but in this market, Vikings football rules, followed by Wolves, Twins and then the Wild. Perhaps in Northern like Duluth, Roseu, and along the Canadian border hockey is huge but not South Minnesota
@daryld1961
6 жыл бұрын
there might be a lot of support for hockey in minn but its nothing compared to Canada.
Vegas will work long term. You see the way we (the fans) act in the stadium? It's our first ever major sports team. We almost worship this team, it's crazy.
@stephenspinato
5 жыл бұрын
so why did the whole building sell their Stanley cup tickets to caps fans
I lived in the Tampa Bay Area for 20 years. I saw the popularity of the lightning explode when Jeffery Vinik took over. He upgraded the building, marketed the players, made a fantastic community outreach program and most important hired Steve yzerman as the GM. The lightning are the most popular team in Tampa bay in my opinion.
Growing up in Texas, it's all about football. That or it's soccer, baseball, or basketball, depending on who you ask. It's simply because it doesn't snow here & skating is very rare, people are more into riding horses & skateboarding & shit, rather than ice skating. There's a rink in most big cities, but they're kind of whack. The only reason I discovered how awesome hockey was is because the Texas Stars(Dallas' AHL affiliate) showed up in my home town during middle school. They're being heavily advertising all throughout Austin & surrounding suburbs, but it's still such a steep fight uphill against the NFL, NBA, & MLB. Fuck it, I'm gonna buy some skates & gear & go train at the Pond Hockey Club & form a beer league team with my friends.
I swear that if the NHL starts putting advertising on the helmets, jerseys, pants, & socks I will stop watching hockey
@MANIIAKYTB
3 жыл бұрын
This years the year
It depends on where you are here in the US. Michigan is a huge hockey state.
ESPN is the key. Basketball and Football are all ESPN cover these days and look at where the ratings go. It was like that with baseball but they got on their high horse with only talking steroids and people were tired of hearing about it so they pivoted to basketball. If ESPN covered more then 10 minutes of highlights it would be a league game changer. There are so many shows dedicated to specific sports on that channel and they never went that route for hockey. Things like Baseball tonight brings in tons of viewers. Honestly hockey needs a Steven A Smith or Skip to make you want to hear people talk about hockey.
@Estrad43
4 жыл бұрын
When ESPN had had the rights to the NHL, they had a follow up called NHL 2 Night, which helped the sport a lot
Hockey is pretty big here in the northeast
I don't care for it to be bigger in the US until the US wants hockey. Build the sport where the sport is wanted, and let it grow organically from there as people are exposed to it.
I don’t know about other states but in Tennessee if you didn’t grow up in Nashville you might not even know the Predators exist. I say that as someone who grew up in East Tennessee and only discovered hockey when I went out of my way to give it a shot in college. The problem here is that hockey was literally never on the tv when I was a kid. I only ever saw it when a character in a movie liked it. If I’m remembering correctly we had to pay extra at the time to even get a channel that showed hockey and since no one had ever watched it my parents didn’t want to pay for something they might not like. Plus everyone here grew up watching football, basketball, baseball, etc. so they had already absorbed the rules and when they went to actually learn them it was easy. It’s harder to learn a sport you’re unfamiliar with when the announcers are using terminology you’ve literally never heard. You have to really want to like hockey here, and if you didn’t grow up in a big city you’ve probably never gone ice skating in your life (I’m too embarrassed to learn at this point bc it would require learning while around literal children who can already outskate me) so absolutely nothing looks familiar. I think it’s intimidating so ppl don’t give it a shot
In the Northern States (like New England, Minnesota, Michigan, North Dakota, etc.) hockey is near Canada level. I can't speak beyond those states/areas, but I've seen every single jersey or team represented in Massachusetts from various people, which tells me that there is a decent following up here. I have family in Quebec, and when I visit, I probably see the same number of jerseys there as I see here. This is just my observation. There are many rinks in my area, yet again, I'm from Massachusetts, which is one of the biggest states for hockey. But obviously Canada is going to dominate.
@JustinAndrews74
6 жыл бұрын
There is good support here in the Pacific Northwest.
@VoIcanoman
6 жыл бұрын
The northern states certainly have the most hockey fans per capita in the US. But I've been to most of them (spent time in all but the New England area, so your own experience may be different than mine being from there) and even in Minnesota, where hockey is actually played by a lot of people (given the environment, it's a lot more natural to play hockey there than in some other markets), and where the number of per capita hockey fans is probably higher than any other American state, it doesn't even come close to being as big as it is in Winnipeg, the smallest Canadian NHL market. In fact, the Vikings, Twins and even the college football Gophers are all bigger in Minnesota than the Wild. In Canada, there's hockey at the top (EVERYWHERE), then way down a ways, Canadian football (CFL), and finally the NFL gets some love as well (but not that much). So to be a sports fan in Canada is to be a hockey fan, almost by definition. Even provinces without teams, like Saskatchewan, have tons of NHL fans. So while hockey appreciation is the greatest in the coldest parts of the USA, I don't think it comes close to Canada levels. At least not yet. And it's too bad because a NHL with a bigger fanbase is a better NHL. You'd get more people playing, more talent entering the league, and a higher quality (and more diverse) product on the ice. Canadians still make up in the 48-50% range of active NHL players (which is down from 80+% in the 60s and earlier...so the game has grown in the US, but that growth has stagnated). I think they're going to have to try a different strategy of promoting the game in America because what they're doing now is NOT working.
@davidfox9947
4 жыл бұрын
In some northern states Hockey is on par with Basketball
@davidfox9947
4 жыл бұрын
@@VoIcanoman The NHL is never going to be as big in the US as it is in Canada but it does not have to be, to be major sport in the US the NFL is significantly bigger than the MLB or the NBA but there is no denying these sports are major in a country with the size and economy of the US there is room for more than one major spot. Why do think they have tried for decades to make soccer work.
The trick to building hockey fans is getting kids to play hockey. Unfortunately, hockey is far and away the most expensive sport to enroll your kid into. Not just the equipment cost which by itself is ridiculous (and for example some kids may need two pairs of skates in a season with growth spurts etc) but also ice time. There's not going to be pond hockey in most of the U.S. because there aren't many frozen ponds. NHL teams in warmer climates need to invest in minor hockey infrastructure to grow the game. IMO progress IS being made, does Austin Matthews become Austin Matthews without the existence of the Coyotes? I'm not sure he does.
@therocketjones
7 жыл бұрын
Agreed. My granddaughter plays hockey in the Phoenix area. The Coyotes and NHL put a lot of effort into supporting the kids. For example, she's skated with the US Women's Olympic team on the big ice at Gila River Arena more than once. Unfortunately, she's also the *only* kid - boy or girl - at her school that plays hockey. But it is slowly changing. A lot of the neighborhood kids come to her house to play because she's got street hockey equipment, and several have picked up their own gear. It's funny because she sometimes has them all do drills. Her attitude is "If I have to do them at Power Skating, then they should do them with me at home." LOL
@jonhanson8098
5 жыл бұрын
But imo roller hockey could do the same thing and be cost effective.Here the problem with that no space or gym because basketball and wrestling volleyball eat up the time available to play or practice
Half of the Americans I talk to have never heard of Sydney Crosby
Hockey is viewed by many as a white sport. And most grow up not watching hockey. I gained interest in it because of NHL 07. Video games are huge in getting kids interested.
@juanalvizo7428
6 жыл бұрын
That's what happen to me, i started getting into hockey when i was 7 when i played nhl 94, my mom bought me wayne gretzky 3d hockey 98 for the n64 and that was it, i told my mom to take me to a blackhawks game and loved the game since and this was back in 1998
@ScottsThoughts
5 жыл бұрын
I got into hockey because my mom and I discovered we had a minor league team because one of her co workers read about them. And you're right. Hockey is seen as a white sport. My ex (whom is mexican) got into it almost immediately upon actually giving it a chance. But when I tell people that they go, but there's so many white people? My response is, yeah there's a lot of black people in basketball but why would I care about that?
it's simple, i can't go outside and play hockey without being equipped with an expensive gear and ICE ! yes USA don't have a lot of that
I'm a huge hockey fan living in the southeastern United States, and I think it's really about the media. The sports media in Canada zeroes in on hockey because they know the viewer base loves it and are mostly adamant hockey consumers. In the States, the other 3 leagues are more popular, so you either have to relegate hockey to a niche league or find a way to market to general sports fans. Most people down here get sports news from ESPN or an outlet similar to that. You could watch ESPN (which is a 24-hour sports network) 24 hours a day from the beginning of July to the end of September and not hear one word about the NHL. Obviously the NFL is king here and once you get into August that sort of drowns out the other sports, but the NBA even dominates hockey, and they run pretty much the same seasons. If hockey got more media attention and airtime, the ratings would do better, but there's stiff competition, especially when the NBA has guys like LeBron, Russ and Steph who are guys with personality that ooze star power and ratings. I agree with the point that the NHL needs to market stars better, but it's a little difficult when one of your biggest stars is a guy like Tarasenko or Ovechkin (not to pick on the Russians, but you catch my drift) who don't speak great English and are rather, shall we say 'un-American' in front of the camera. What hockey really needs to take off here, and I'm not trying to come as a xenophobe, is a few American stars with some off-ice personality. Kane has great on-ice charisma, but could do better off the ice. We'll see with Matthews. A few more American stars wouldn't hurt.
From the USA love hockey and best sport in the world and huge Blackhawks fan and go USA! I watch other sports but mostly hockey!
I'm from the States and I live and breathe hockey. Wish it was more popular in the States.
The NHL is definitely one of the four major sports with about five times the revenue of the next half dozen mid-major sports PGA ., NASCAR, UFC ,MLS ,Tennis,.Rodeo all these sports have decent attendance but the the NHL does it with a lot more games and the NHL is able to have 90% capacity in almost all its US markets with truly major league ticket prices. Then with the love of hockey in Canada it really drives the NHL to major league status
I think a huge part of the problem is the television coverage. In some places if you don't have the sports package, you don't have access to hockey at all. I grew up in one of the big hockey markets (New York) but we didn't have cable until I was a teen. I knew nothing about hockey because I had no access to it. If I had had say a Wednesday night rivalry game to watch on national TV the way I had football, I probably would have started watching sooner.
You need to put teams in markets that make sense. Like Cleveland, Milwaukee, Kansas City, Hartford, Seattle, Portland, Salt Lake City. When you're moving franchises from cities that make sense (Ex. Winnipeg, Hartford, Minnesota) to cities that you know might not generate a lot of fans (Arizona, Carolina, Dallas I know Dallas gets fans) your not going to make much money from those franchises.
@cormacwalsh6979
7 жыл бұрын
Couldn't agree more
@chieftop_leaf8465
7 жыл бұрын
What about Québec city?
@cormacwalsh6979
7 жыл бұрын
He's talking about american cities, Quebec would def work also Saskatoon
@mkailov13
7 жыл бұрын
A lot of the aforementioned northern towns don't have the population to support an NHL Team. The NHL expanding south is a direct result of the south's population boom. And I'd say a few southern expansions worked out pretty well. (Tampa, Dallas)
@myname6633
7 жыл бұрын
Arizona should move imo. Carolina won the Cup in 06 so they are okay still. They have a solid young team that should get better which should bring back the popularity. Dallas has worked out really well though. So has Tampa Bay and Nashville. Florida is strange. I don't mind them moving to Quebec City. Even though they have the talent to be a top contending team which can bring popularity.
Gotta make the sport cheaper to play in order to get fans
I am in the U.S. and I don't know a single person who is an MLS fan. Hockey is less popular than the MLB NFL and NBA but it is WAY more popular than the MLS. That is not an exaggeration I literally don't know one MLS fan. Let's Go Ranger
@TRB3027
7 жыл бұрын
Rangers
@Estrad43
6 жыл бұрын
I live in the US, and soccer is popular, the EPL is popular, FC Barcelona, Real Madrid..but I agree, MLS dosent have the fans that certain european teams have
Leafs fan!! But shout out to Sabres fans!! They had the best TV ratings out of the American markets this year!
@fourien4584
7 жыл бұрын
I want Montréal vs Toronto
In the black community, as well as other minority communities, you could get made fun of for being a fan of the NHL because it's not a part of their culture and it's viewed as a white sport. My mom is Asian and loves the sport and the Blackhawks. Anyone can love this game, somehow, the NHL needs to do that. PK Subban is doing a good job of marketing the game to black Nashville residents so far.
@andrewr7982
6 жыл бұрын
Jonathan Zygmunt white people are 70% of the population. So really if you just marketed to more white people the league would improve.
@connorthompson8963
6 жыл бұрын
Jonathan Zygmunt this is so true juat watch videos of Nashville residents react to the additon of PK
@boneail94
6 жыл бұрын
The whole "Hockey is for everyone" is just a waste of time because all they care about is basketball and sometimes nfl. Just market more for white people and then they stop coming off as sjw losers.
@waifubreaks1572
5 жыл бұрын
I don't know about other teams, but the Kings have a large Hispanic fanbase (myself included). I'm sure the Ducks do too. But then again the same applies to any LA sports team. I think it's more to do with geography since the cold northern states tend to be pretty white.
Wayne Simmonds needs to be marketed better, especially in a metro with a large black population. You could have Saturday Flyers-76ers doubleheader "Simmonds and Simmons Night". Grabbing minority interest in the sport will be key for its long term growth. That's why Charles Barkley as a prominent black man in the US saying that he was an NHL fan and loved the playoffs was huge to make Americans in general cognizant that not only the NHL is exciting, but black people can be fans too.
I’m from Michigan. The Red Wings are still less popular than college football and it kills me. I think what needs to happen is the exposure needs to be helped along by the fans. People will see an ad anywhere promoting hockey, but this day and age the masses are numb to it. When people start waving flags, wearing jerseys, playing hockey in the street over basketball and football is when it will be more popular.
@davidfox9947
4 жыл бұрын
They are all great sports can't they just play all three.
@SportsFan-vq9kk
3 жыл бұрын
@@davidfox9947 Facts
In the US there are about 10 people who can name a team in the MLS that isn't their local team or the LA Galaxy. It's not a major sport. Not even close.
Here in northern Minnesota hockey is the biggest sport, with the whole high school state tournament and amazing college hockey. It’s a shame it isn’t in the rest of the country tho
In Canada all the games are on channels in the basic cable package. In the US you get almost no games unless you add a sports specific package.
Coming in late to say that game 6 of the Final was watched by and AVERAGE of 7.09 million people, up 29% on last year.
NHL is way higher than MLS. But maybe that’s just be cuz I grew up a Bolts fan
@layth6857
4 жыл бұрын
Hockey is still more popular but I wouldn't say way higher. Some mls teams like lafc and atlanta United have a much higher attendance than nhl teams
@Estrad43
4 жыл бұрын
Not to mention, MLS, knows it's important demographic is the Latino/hispanic sector, in order to stay profitable!
@midnightman5139
11 ай бұрын
@@Estrad43it's also true for the nhl with their core audience being white and majority Canadians.
My opinion is must start with the youth. At present or past there has been no opportunity for the youth in the states to play hockey. It's not until you get older (Dependant upon the high school attended) you will have the option to play hockey. Depending on location you may have hockey clinics to learn about hockey. I can also state hockey is not readily available to attend at every location for entertainment at any level. If you look at the successful sports football and baseball is available anywhere. Unfortunately another hurdle is hockey is labeled as an Canadian Sport unlike the successful sports MLB and NFL. I was fortunately enough having exposure to hockey at an early age. My parents took me ice staking at a very young age when there was no indoor domes. We had a minor league AHL team which I attended until moving in the 90's. When I was a kid friends of mine would play street hockey until getting older when pickup hockey came about to play ice hockey. I believe my past experiences of hockey are very limited to many individuals.
In Saskatchewan You have WHL and their JR A league of 12 teams i think. So Moose Jaw Saskatoon Regina Prince Albert for WHL. SJHL is North Battlesford, Estevan, Flin Flon, Humbolt, Kindersley, La Ronge, Melfort, Melville, Nipawin, Notre Dame, Weyburn and Yorkton. So ofc hockey comes up XD
There are tens (if not hundreds) of millions of Americans who couldn't care less about sports altogether, for a start. In Canada, hockey is basically the only game in town--pretty much always has been. In the U.S., people see Americans as king in baseball (even though Latin America is), basketball (usually are), and football (Is there another league other than CFL?). There are straight paths for all of these, and they all have long-term traditions. Hockey missed out on that somehow. This problem is not modern. It's a century old--the NHL was in business as early as the rest, except baseball. Football and basketball were marketed well in all urban areas--football in rural areas, too, along with baseball. Hockey was solely northern, obviously, and really didn't catch on much, especially with minorities. It's simply not ever been embedded in American culture, whereas baseball, basketball, and football all were by the 1970s to differing degrees. It's way more expensive and inconvenient in the U.S. to play hockey, in part because the infrastructure is sparse. In Canada, I assume there's a rink in every town at a bare minimum, probably can't go more than 5 miles in the metro areas without passing one. I grew up in Pittsburgh; even today, I don't think there are even 10 indoor ice rinks in the greater metro area--and you can include the Pens' facilities in that count. Ice skating is relatively prevalent but not terribly popular. I don't think any of my friends skated, though some classmates did--mostly females. And we grew up with Lemieux and Jagr before Crosby was drafted when we hit high school. On the expense side from a parent's perspective, for soccer, I need to get my kid cleats--that's it. For basketball, I might need to get shoes. For baseball, I need cleats and a glove. Even for football, I need just cleats and a mouthguard, because the pads tend to stay within programs through the years, unlike hockey. The infrastructure and equipment are more easily obtained and maintained than an ice rink, skates and breakable sticks. The NHL markets the heck out of certain stars. It just doesn't seem to matter. They marketed the heck out of Crosby and Ovechkin, but people didn't care that much in either Pittsburgh or Washington until each team started winning again.
I can give you multiple reasons why hockey has not experienced growth in the States: 1. Exposure. Most people grow up being fans of the sports they played as kids like baseball, football and basketball. Most communities have baseball diamonds and open fields for football/soccer. There is a basketball court at every park and in nearly every apartment complex, even in ghettos and poor neighborhoods. Which leads me to my next point. 2. Cost. Hockey is an expensive sport, especially in the states where most don't have frozen ponds/lakes in the winter. Equipment is expensive, coaching/lessons, ice time etc etc. Hockey skates at $900? That's a huge factor. 3. Understanding. Your typical American simply doesn't understand the game. Like you said, hockey is a part of Canadian culture. It is not for Americans. Baseball and football would be. They don't understand it, so they don't even try. 4. Diversity. Hockey for most of its history has been dominated by white guys from moderate to good income families with very few minorities. PK Subbann is no Chris Johnson; he might have been a drug dealer if he couldn't run with a football. Viewers from poverty areas have an idol to follow and look up to. There would be plenty more;m, but that should suffice for now. That being said, this diehard American fan says hockey is the greatest sport on the planet and will always love the game.
@jonhanson8098
5 жыл бұрын
I do not buy into the race thing because at one time football was all white and so was baseball
It’s because most kids can go outside and play basketball and football and then there is hockey were you need skates you need ice and sticks and you need way too many pads to do a drop in and also my school has a hockey team and they don’t call it a school team cause it’s “too dangerous”
I wish more of my countrymen liked hockey. I've been blessed to have several decent ice rinks in my area and when I'm not working, I try to get on the ice. It may be due to the price because I basically have to hemorrhage money to get the equipment (even secondhand stuff.) Rinks aren't readily available here and the ones that are you're fighting with figure skaters for time. Inline hockey you can do any tennis or basketball court, but you get the equipment issue again and people aren't willing to go through all the trouble to make it work. I'm basically an American who loves hockey like a Canadian and I've done a lot to support my hockey habit. All I can say is my friends and neighbors are missing out on a beautiful sport.
what if the all-star game was Canada vs USA franchises?
@ryanb6679
7 жыл бұрын
Aaron Tam how is that fair the Canadian teams would get destroyed due to the fact that it's 7 teams against the league
I agree, just to see a hawks game i have to drive 4 hours to Tampa cause that's the nearest team to where i live
I think NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has failed for numerous years to properly market the sport in the US. I don't think there are more percentage of Americans who could care more or less about a game of hockey compare to when he took over the league 20+ years ago. For the NHL not allowing the release of players to represent them for their respective countries, voices the sentiment the League has about the sport to the world.
There are a lot of reasons, books can be written on this topic. hockey is not something you can do without support from family. both financial and just in general. With all other sports, you don’t need anything except a ball, and a lot of determination.
You should do a 2019 update on this, because a lot of this has changed!
I was wearing a Stamkos T-shirt at work that i purchased when visiting FL last summer. Somebody comes up to me and says "I thought Flash was Red" lol I love hockey and pay the 144.00 dollars a year for NHL TV but i live in Kansas and at times feel like i am the only hockey fan for miles.
And yet only 7 Canadian teams
@BM_2002
7 жыл бұрын
Don't worry, Quebec city, Hamilton and maybe Saskatoon will get teams in the next couple years
@Internut1985
7 жыл бұрын
widehalk US has bigger population compared to Canada. More people=more 💰
@YAOmighty
7 жыл бұрын
Somali Pirates of the Indian Ocean It's not about the population. It's about the dedication you give to your team. Fans are supposed to support their local team, not go to other fanbase because they won something (Pittsburgh has a big problem with that, so does Chicago, maybe not, since they got knocked out in the first round twice in a row with a sweep from Smashville).
@onebuffalo5402
6 жыл бұрын
Cause you dont have big enough markets.... players dont want to play in a city in bum fuck no where canada with a population of 200,000. All major cities in canada outside of quebec already have a team (even quebec isnt that large 500k pop 8 mill in the entire Provence). Even with a lack of interest putting hockey in a city with a close by urban area that has 1-2+ million people is more beneficial and has more upside than a small market canadian team that doesnt help to promote the sport.
I’m Mexican and I love hockey I live in Colorado and have been a fan since 2013. I got my brothers and my mother into hockey as well. I think a big reason why hockey may not be as big of a sport in the united states is mostly marketing a lot of big TV companies do not promote hockey as much as NBA for NFL also in Colorado altitude sports has a very specific deal with DIRECTV where you can only watch Colorado sports besides Denver Broncos on DIRECTV so that also limits it’s exposure in Colorado
Most Americans also DO NOT like Cidney Crosby, at least those who do know hockey. Most prefer Ovechkin because of his hitting style and fun personality.
Hockey has been huge in Missouri for a while, we have 40 ice rinks within metro STL area and now the Blues won the cup which should continue to strengthen the sport here in STL.
I know this video came out a long time ago, but I still want to share an interesting fact. As pretty much everyone knows, hockey is part of growing up in Canada. In Edmonton there is an Out Door rink in every neighborhood, and then there are several sports complexes with anywhere from 1 - 4 indoor hockey rinks. For a metro pop. of 1.2 million, Edmonton has an incredible amount of hockey rinks that the public use on a day to day basis in the winter. Every time I am out play hockey there are at least 4 other random people at the rink playing hockey. Then in the summer, whenever I am driving in a neighborhood I more often than not see kids rushing to move the hockey nets off the road to let me through. In the states, it simply is part of their culture.
This video was five years ago… what has changed, and how much stayed the same? NHL has grown but still not anywhere close to NFL/NBA…
in AZ, only some people follow it..... people know the coyotes exist, but they ignore hockey.....some people talked about the coyotes in 2012 because they went pretty far.....but i love the yotes and me and my day watch them
Saint Louis fan here. I played 4 different sports competitively and none of them were hockey. In my area, hockey is typically for the wealthy, or the hyper-interested. I think you could easily spend $1000 for a session, nevermind if you're a goalie needing pads. It's also rare to have the opportunity to go out and skate/play on a lake. Too dangerous/warm.
Since Gretzky came to LA Hockey has really grown in California and the past 10 years it's really getting bigger and bigger. Not just My Ducks but Hockey in general is all year round for me and it's almost an addiction lol but I don't care really I know Canadian fans think We don't have any fans but We really do in California.
@TheHockeyGuy
7 жыл бұрын
Yeah, it has taken root in California. It also comes down to population numbers. There are more people in California than in all of Canada. That really helps.
@socalhockeyfan9784
7 жыл бұрын
The Hockey Guy Ya I hope one day it can be at least as big as the other sports but if not I'll move in with My Grandpa who lives in Vancouver lol I want to be surrounded by hockey fans haha
@chrisbouve846
6 жыл бұрын
anaheim tickets go for $10 and they still cant sell. I'm from CT but went to a Ducks playoff game last year. in was probably 55% Oilers fans!
@gurpreetkhambra5160
6 жыл бұрын
San jose gets alot of fans every time i go they sell out and the tickets are 70 dollars. That has to do with the fact that san jose stays competitive so people always come and are passionate for it.
@user-ji3il6ce2o
2 жыл бұрын
@@gurpreetkhambra5160 don’t watch these fudu gora people sport, watch cricket and kabaddi
Detroit is one team with a huuuge market. Every store I walk in (even grocery stores) have Redwings gear. Hockey Town!
I live in Upstate NY, hockey is popular down here, the local AHL team sells out regularly and I can barely get tickets because everyone in the audience is a god damned season ticket holder (Utica Comets) To be fair Upstate NY has more in common with Canada then NYC.
still think Canada can support at least another 5 NHL teams
It may not be noticeable on the big scale but it has definitely grown. The example I’m about to give has a lot to do with marketing, sponsors , social media, etc but where I live we have the Carolina Thunderbirds in the fhl. Yea yea the slapshot league but anyways, when we had our Cyclones team which was SPHL in 07-09 we would have 800 fans at a game on a good night. I think 1,200 was the most they ever got in the arena. Now our Thunderbirds are selling out almost every home game at 3,050 but 3,175 with standing room only. It’s our 2nd season and we broke the attendance record halfway through our first season last year. Now yes a lot of that has to do with marketing and ownership and sponsors, all of which have been done so well. But also before they finalized bringing a new team in they had 1 game between the Watertown Wolves and Danville( I think Danville not positive) at our local arena. To see what the fan support would be and to test local interest in hockey etc. for that one game, which wasn’t the most talked about thing in town, they sold out. 3,000+ people showed up and I’m sure that was a big help in us getting our Thunderbirds. So at least in the middle North Carolina, Winston-Salem area, interest in hockey has grown tremendously. I’ve had several friends who had never watched hockey, didn’t think they would like hockey even, that I take to a live game, every one of them fall in love with it and now they are all going to be season ticket holders next season for our team and it’s become their favorite sports. I’ve heard many people talk about how they never gave hockey a chance but as soon as it was put in front of their faces, they fell in love with it. Side note- my Carolina Thunderbirds are playing the Elmira Enforcers this weekend in the Commissioners Cup Finals and Shannon if you threw them a shout out it would soooo make mine and my other friend that follows you days. #GoThunderbirds!
Players need to do more community outreach raise awareness. teach kids in school gym. Ppl don't play so don't know rules hard to understand. Also not on national tv where ppl get on antenna usually just NBCSN but that only in premium tv package. Cable companies in South dont offer NHL Network
I live in Minnesota and when I ask kids why don’t you play hockey they say it to much money and their parents can’t afford it
When I wear a Blackhawks hoodie people say "you like the redskins" it's happening twice...
@joshuabutterwick8768
7 жыл бұрын
Big Sports Fan when peple ask you a dumb question like that just play along with them nod your head and say yes
@dremin15
7 жыл бұрын
I live in Mississippi and I constantly wear my Montreal jacket. People always talk to me about if I like Mississippi University.
@josephsprott4717
7 жыл бұрын
Go RiverKings
@dremin15
7 жыл бұрын
Joseph You're damn right.
@josephsprott4717
7 жыл бұрын
Hope they win tonight
I'm from England. Think a lot of comments have summed it up: it's expensive and requires ice. Hence it's never truly taken off here in the UK either, there's only 3 cities that support the Elite League teams in decent numbers. We just don't have enough ice to support it. And here, *football* is so dominant and so representative of the ambition of every kid to show every other kid their prowess, no other sport stands a chance of challenging it. It's so deep rooted in every community, the local team is your yardstick, backyards and parks, school playgrounds....your chance to piss on everyone else is right there under your feet, all the time For a large portion of the population, it IS life. It would take a monumental event for that to change. Seems like in the US, basketball has largely occupied that position, similar thing. Very accessible to kids on low incomes, an easy way of asserting athletic prowess and skill over other kids. Hockey is just too expensive and there's no ice!
@davidfox9947
3 жыл бұрын
Hockey is much bigger in the US then the UK and is one of our four major sports but it is just not as big as our big three NFL, NBA, MLB
subbed. you know what you talking about. also the Detroit area is a good hockey area due to the Wings of course and the Toledo Walleye. love this area
I think it has grown in the States. Ghostbear from Florida so are the Hughes brothers. Matthews from Phoenix. There were a handful of kids from the St Louis area that got drafted recently. This year's draft a lot of the top 10 prospects are US kids. I would agree the sport doesn't get the viewership or casual fan levels that the NBA, MLB, and NFL have. Part of the problem is it's an expensive sport. Maintaining ice rinks is a lot pricier than just sodding and painting lines for a baseball/football field or putting up nets for basketball court. I don't know how you make it more affordable to appeal to more people and grow the viewership.
It's pretty much just in the south and west were it's not very popular. It's popular in the north east because those teams have been around longer.
Where to put teams in Canada in three places in particular are: Quebec, Hamilton-Markham, & especially Saskatoon?! Don't forget Saskatchewan, Canada because in Saskatoon they'll draw provincially from Regina as well being the provincial team. This team in SK will be the Green Bay of the NHL. IN Saskatchewan, they are crying out for professional hockey and will do anything to support a team. My opinion is Gary Bettman & Bill Daly must go from their positions because they've been there for to long...over 25 years is long enough. It's time for a Canadian commissioner to lead the NHL and build the game more in Canada. These 3 markets I've listed will bring the total to 10 teams in Canada which will strengthen the position in the NHL. Don Cherry even loves Saskatchewan. Gordie Howe was born just outside of Saskatoon in 1928. Saskatoon is close to 300K in citizens. Regina ~ 260K.
In the us it goes NFL NBA College Football March madness (college basketball tournament) MLB NHL NO SOCCER
I wish hockey were bigger here. I always watches hockey but it wasn't always huge to me because I've been an NFL fan my entire life (over 35 years). That has changed mainly due to the fact that we were granted a team here in Vegas. I wish I would have started wAtching hockey sooner but growing up and still living in a city that has never had a pro sports team and in the desert (but it can get cold as hell here regardless of the fact) it was difficult to latch onto especially since there was no real way to play it minis using rollerblades in the street, it was difficult. To address an elephant in the room, quite a bit of it has to do with the fact that there are not a good amount of minorities in the NHL. It should not be that way but here in the US, if the sport doesn't appear to be racially diverse people don't have a huge interest in it. Add to the fact that things that are seen as predominately african-american, it is not seen as "cool" (No pun intended intended) especially to the younger audience. I think it will grow, but slowly. 2 final things I will say is: NHL is still above any soccer league, and 2, the sweaters/jerseys are definitely amazing, I just don't think the 100% authentic jerseys with names and numbers, at like $300, is way too much. But how do you get hockey bigger in the US? Try to get in more African American players!! Raised said than done though as hockey is mostly considered to be a sport for white dudes here in the states. Not trying to seem racist or anything but, it is the truth.
You hit the nail right on the head here. It's amazing how well you are able to read into U.S sporting culture without being from here.
I can assure you that NHL is bigger than MLS here in the states.
It’s big in the NHL but not nearly as big as NFL. Honestly it is very popular. I personally see tons of hockey fans all over the city I live in. Hawks, Blues, Bolts, Wings, Leafs. I even saw a guy in a Coyotes shirt the other day. And I live no where near Arizona.
My wife and I are from the Cincinnati area. I never played more than a few games as a kid and haven't watch since the 70's. We moved to Tampa 2 years ago and started watching the Lightning. Of course, they have plenty of star power and we were hooked, legally. We love watching them and we didn't even get to see their Cup teams. We went so far as to over-pay for a streaming service because it would auto record all the Bolts games. Then came game 5 of the 2024 playoffs against the Florida Panthers. No recording. Know why? They were showing the Tampa Bay Rays playing a random late April game while mired in a slump. Wtf? So many fans have so little access to the games they want to watch. U.S. fans are spoiled by seeing literally every game they want to see without jumping through a lot of hoops. Hockey is a faster paced and more exciting game, but the NHL is going to have to up their TV game to attract more eyeballs.
I disagree a great deal. I think that Hockey is much more of a “cult’ sport than most of its fans will ever be willing to admit. For instance, here in Philadelphia, the Flyers have a rabid, very dedicated fan base, many of which are very interested in the NHL. However, I’d be willing to bet that the Flyers fan base does not exceed much more than 25-30,000 people. ( I know that is an underestimation, but slightly exaggerated for effect) It’s the same fans at every game. The same fans that wear the merchandise or watch the games on TV. I think the major issue is the inaccessibility of the sport. Street Hockey never really translates and, outside of the MidWest and Northeast you’d be hard pressed to find anyone who can skate at all.
I was walking down the street in rural Alberta with I mighty ducks jersey on and a gut mowing is lawn started quacking at me
@TheHockeyGuy
7 жыл бұрын
Sounds like he confused you with an actual duck. Some of them rural types, I tell ya....
Why isn't the NHL bigger in the US? ... 4 letters, E. - S. - P. - N...
In some areas it has grown... For example, when I learned to play in the early 80s in Johnstown, PA, there were maybe 6 rinks in a 70 mile radius... Enter Mario, Jagr, Sid, and 5 Cups and now that same radius has 50 rinks...
Sidney Crosby is pretty vilified outside of Pittsburgh in the u.s.
it has a lot to do with marketing which is sad really as that is the case with a lot of things here in the US. the other issue is it isn't really publicized to our youth in terms of junior hockey leagues as much as baseball is for instance. I'd love for hockey to be bigger than what it is here.
I really like your point about growth in the USA. I honestly think there is more of a worldwide market for Hockey than people think, I would love to see the US export it to Europe the same way they do with the NFL. I'm a huge Ducks fan from Glasgow Scotland, walking about in this place with ducks gear on unless people know the films you get some crazy looks. Canada is hockey but one country can't hold the keys, the sport need more worldwide exposure in my opinion. Even the Swedish league is getting big, good attendance etc. Hockey is the best sport in the world, it's about time it went worldwide!
In the mid west hockey is big in the states in Illinois, Missouri, Minnesota, Indiana, and a few more states. How Golden Knights will work is the casino will buy out stadium for that team to work. And I go ice skating every week.
Great video bub
I live in Here in U.S. and I'm from South America, When it comes to Soccer's popularity in the U.S. and the state of the Latino Community's gravitation for soccer here in the U.S.... It's safe to say every Latino watches the FIFA world cup, and they all know who Lionel Messi is!...Hispanic-Americans like and follow the EPL, a little bit of La Liga from Spain, The UEFA Champions League, other big marque clubs in Europe like Paris St. Germain, Bayern Munich, Juventus, AC Milan etc, Buy The FIFA Video game, and Jerseys from the rich popular European soccer clubs..As for the Latino Immigrants who live in the U.S. they enjoy the Copa America (The South American nations championship). Those nationalists that enjoy the Copa America includes Mexicans and Central-Americans and some Cubans and Puerto Ricans and Dominicans who have South American friend's will watch the Copa America. Mexicans follow the Mexican top flight soccer league. But them and Central-Americans are not thrilled about the Concaf Gold Cup, ( which is the regional tournament for the U.S. Canada, Mexico, Central-America countries, and Carribean Nations) the way they would be for the Copa America...as for MLS many Latin Immigrants don't gravitate towards, the way white Americans would or even hispanic Americans would...As far as Hockey's popularity in the Latino/Hispanic community in the U.S. it's only Hispanic-Americans who play it, and follow it.
I think the best way to grow the game is to have all star games at places with low ratings. After the all star game in Nashville, hockey there exploded. I don't know if you've ever been to a Predators game, but it is packed and wild. There are people out in the streets, watching the game on the park next to the arena, or in nearby bars. It even affects people in places a good distance away from Nashville. My extended family, who all live in central Alabama, all watch Predators games. Also, just because a place doesn't have an NHL team doesn't mean its not a hockey market. Last year, the 14U AA National Champions were a team from Atlanta, with players from there. There are also plenty more youth hockey teams in Atlanta and Nashville, and even Huntsville Alabama. The only one of those three hockey markets that has legitimate adult hockey teams, besides Nashville, is Huntsville. They have a D1 college team and a low level professional team. No one watches the college team, but the arena is packed for every game of the pro team. And Huntsville is arguably the smallest of the three.
I've been saying that for years putting more teams in Canada. Halifax, Hamilton, Quebec city,and Regina.Makes more sense.I remember wearing a blackhawks jersey over 12 years in public and people asking me if they were still a team?
I think it is because the NHL does not anything to expand the game. Unless you live in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Upstate New York, and the New England states it is very hard to play youth hockey. I grew up in Minnesota and pretty much every town has a youth team and a rink. Minnesota has the largest high school tournament of any sport. I moved to San Diego about a year and half ago. A metro of 3 million people barely has any ice rinks and youth teams. If people are not able to play hockey it is hard for them to like the sport. Last year I went to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the NCAA hockey championship I had to wait for a baseball game that was on several tvs from two out market teams to be able to watch. Back in Minnesota, several games are always on TV at every sports bar. The NHL should be building ice rinks and help to pay for youth markets. The NHL should be promoting the game in LA, Riverside county, orange county, San Diego county, Phonix, Tucson, Dallas, Houston, Maimi, Tampa, Nashville, Atlanta, San Francisco, Richmond, VI, Washington DC, Baltimore, Kansas City, ect.