WhatTheDuck
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I'm not yet convinced of the assertion that the AHL will succeed in Canada provided that it is within the fan area of the dominant NHL team. There are too many exceptions for me to take that on faith.
Although they do better now, why did the Toronto Marlies draw less than 5,000 (and as low as 3,728) their first six years in existence? Toronto is the largest city in Canada but they still can't draw better than San Diego?
Why did the Sherbrooke Canadiens fail in that market? Metro population of 210,000, farm team of the Canadiens, but they averaged 2,164 their sophomore season despite winning the Calder Cup the year before!
Why did the Newmarket Saints average less than 2,200 for each of their five AHL seasons when they were the Maple Leafs farm team and were within the GTA? And why did they draw even less (fewer fans than PIMs in 1985-86 - 1,450 vs 1,988) when they were in St. Catharine's, outside of the GTA but with a metro population of almost 400,000?
Going back to the early 70s, why did the Montreal Voyageurs draw just 1,982 fans on average their second (and final) season playing in the Forum?
With a metro population of 150,000, and a record of weak support for OHL hockey, and a general lack of AHL support in Canada, I don't see how anyone can claim that a Belleville AHL franchise is going to be an automatic success.
Apples to oranges comparisons. Toronto and Montreal are completely different markets from Belleville. Saturated, with plenty else to do other than watch AHL hockey.