AHL Future in Binghamton

[go comets]

Also Albanys travel expenses are going to continue to rise if they have a team. they are currently in a division with the NY teams and Toronto/ st johns.

Next year it will be the 3 Canadian teams, Toronto, Bellville and Laval along with Rochester, Syracuse and Utica. the closest opponent is Utica at about 1:30 away.

they have Springfield about 1:30 away, but a different division.

I think at this point the AHL is going to want to keep tight clusters of teams to lessen expenses. and obviously with Albanys attendance it would be a challenge to break even.

Bingo gives them more opponents closer to their base.

 

[royals119]

Also Albanys travel expenses are going to continue to rise if they have a team. they are currently in a division with the NY teams and Toronto/ st johns.

Next year it will be the 3 Canadian teams, Toronto, Bellville and Laval along with Rochester, Syracuse and Utica. the closest opponent is Utica at about 1:30 away.

they have Springfield about 1:30 away, but a different division.

I think at this point the AHL is going to want to keep tight clusters of teams to lessen expenses. and obviously with Albanys attendance it would be a challenge to break even.

Bingo gives them more opponents closer to their base.

So which cities that you mentioned are closer to Bingo than Albany? Without using mapquest I would guess Laval is closer to Albany. Utica Rochester, Syracuse, Toronto and Bellville are probably a wash. Bingo is closer to WBS, Allentown and Hershey, but Albany is closer to Springfield. Providence, Hartford and Bridgeport are probably similar. And you said out of division teams don't matter (not sure why that is?) Of all the reasons there might be an advantage to Albany vs Bingo, travel costs have got to be the least significant. Albany probably has a better airport situation for NHL players flying in and out for callups, but game travel between the other AHL cities is not significantly different, unless you can show me something I'm missing?

 

[kingofspades303]

Also Albanys travel expenses are going to continue to rise if they have a team. they are currently in a division with the NY teams and Toronto/ st johns.

Next year it will be the 3 Canadian teams, Toronto, Bellville and Laval along with Rochester, Syracuse and Utica. the closest opponent is Utica at about 1:30 away.

they have Springfield about 1:30 away, but a different division.

I think at this point the AHL is going to want to keep tight clusters of teams to lessen expenses. and obviously with Albanys attendance it would be a challenge to break even.

Bingo gives them more opponents closer to their base.

IF Albany does get another team like the Rangers, I'm assuming they would just take Hartford's spot in the Atlantic Division. Much less travel going to New England and Eastern PA, than Western NY, Quebec and Ontario.

 

[Nightsquad]

IF Albany does get another team like the Rangers, I'm assuming they would just take Hartford's spot in the Atlantic Division. Much less travel going to New England and Eastern PA, than Western NY, Quebec and Ontario.

My relatives live between Albany and Glens Falls NY. They work in market research and political and industry lobbying. Their neighbors work for Albany's arena in administrative capacity. They have said the arena's position is to not hastily pursue an immediate replacement. They said they did the with the Devils last time and they acknowledge it was a bad idea. They are going to establish a team to try and work on the Rangers affiliate only. There are a ton of hurdles to clear to do this. The ECHL is not an option because they want to be good partners with Glens Falls since they are essentialy in Albany's market. Albany will have to flex politicial muscle to do this. Binghamton, Utica, Rochester, and Syracuse after all are helping to fund Albany's 30 millions in arena renovations...

 

[Ralph Slate]

The Devils returned under some very contentious sentiment and a fan base full of apathy after a very long playoff absence (13 years???).

For the record, Albany did not miss the playoffs for 13 years in a row. They missed them for 6 years (2000-01 to 2005-06), and then 3 years (2010-11 to 2012-13). Those were the only two times they had "missed playoff streaks".

 

[mmazz22]

Which is ironically the same streak we have enjoyed in Bing

 

[Devils Dominion]

Which is ironically the same streak we have enjoyed in Bing

Shero is proving to put more of an emphasis on the AHL team's success than Lou did in the last dozen or so years he ran NJ.

Shero is signing skilled AHL vets to compliment the draft pick prospects in the system.

I am confident he will continue to do so in Binghamton too.

 

[Nightsquad]

I don't know but the Devils have shed their AHL ownership to cut costs. They like their farm team up in Albany have attendance issues. Fifth from last in the 30 team NHL, they are going to need to save bucks somewhere.

 

[Devils Dominion]

I don't know but the Devils have shed their AHL ownership to cut costs. They like their farm team up in Albany have attendance issues. Fifth from last in the 30 team NHL, they are going to need to save bucks somewhere.

A pretty bad roster in NJ the past 5 seasons and they are near 90% capacity.

Albany unfortunately is way less than 50% capacity with cheap tix.

Good move for all involved.
NJD gets to cease keeping Albany afloat .
Albany gets to re-set and try to court their much beloved rangers.

Hope it works out for all parties, Albany, NJD, Bingo.

 

[UticaHockey]

Looks like NJ is going with the same model that Vancouver uses with Utica. The NHL team owns the AHL franchise and maintains control of all hockey operations but allows a local ownership group to run the business side of the AHL team. In Utica Rob Esche and his local group of investors pay Vancouver an affiliation fee but Esche and Co handle the office staff, ticket sales, corporate sponsorships etc. No reason for the NHL team to have the burden of running an AHL team. It sounds like the Devil's are entering a similar relationship with Tom Mitchell and his investment group.

 

[Nightsquad]

A pretty bad roster in NJ the past 5 seasons and they are near 90% capacity.

Albany unfortunately is way less than 50% capacity with cheap tix.

Good move for all involved.
NJD gets to cease keeping Albany afloat .
Albany gets to re-set and try to court their much beloved rangers.

Hope it works out for all parties, Albany, NJD, Bingo.

How many years has NJ put the absolutely worst teams in Albany? Way too many. Don't fans in Albany deserve teams that are on par with the American league? Why does everyone else get local management and a local logo other then Albany? The Devils could have sought local control, and agreed to renaming the club River Rats. Less then 50% capacity? Its minor league hockey, even if they filled the lower level of their barn its still more then average of the rest of the league, they have an almost NHL NBA size arena in a small city. They should not be blamed for the arrogance of politicians from nearly thirty years ago who overbuilt that arena. Just because they mistakenly overbuilt a venue shouldn't have any bearing of what people "think" the team should draw. I believe that's why the River Rats agreed to move to Albany NY from Troy upon installation of the curtaining system. The New Jersey organization blindsided not just the loyal following but it appears local county and arena officials as well. I have a feeling this is a blessing in disguise for Albany. The fans up that way have the ECHL nearby, and Union College looks poised to make another solid run at the ECAC title, and should have a nice run in the NCAA tournament. College hockey is on the rise in terms of NHL development (30% of NHL players are coming through college ranks), their goal is to win for the college and community of fans, and its half the cost of AHL games. Albany fans will be fine, no big loss. Think the feelings are mutual between the NJ Devils and Upstate NY fans lol.

 

[Devils Dominion]

Agree that Albany is more of a college town than minor league hockey town.
Not enough willing paying customers compared to Utica or Binghamton.

When Albany couldnt break 2k actual attendance in round 2 of the playoffs it was headturning.

Take away the NJ and Utica fans in round 1 and I don't think mote than a thousand local fans bought tickets per game.

NJD will be better off in a hockey town like Binghamton.

Albany now has a chance to court another NHL team if they chose to do so.

We will see if a franchise will reciprocate the interest within time.

I hope it works out for the longtime Albany fans.

 

[CHRDANHUTCH]

How many years has NJ put the absolutely worst teams in Albany? Way too many. Don't fans in Albany deserve teams that are on par with the American league? Why does everyone else get local management and a local logo other then Albany? The Devils could have sought local control, and agreed to renaming the club River Rats. Less then 50% capacity? Its minor league hockey, even if they filled the lower level of their barn its still more then average of the rest of the league, they have an almost NHL NBA size arena in a small city. They should not be blamed for the arrogance of politicians from nearly thirty years ago who overbuilt that arena. Just because they mistakenly overbuilt a venue shouldn't have any bearing of what people "think" the team should draw. I believe that's why the River Rats agreed to move to Albany NY from Troy upon installation of the curtaining system. The New Jersey organization blindsided not just the loyal following but it appears local county and arena officials as well. I have a feeling this is a blessing in disguise for Albany. The fans up that way have the ECHL nearby, and Union College looks poised to make another solid run at the ECAC title, and should have a nice run in the NCAA tournament. College hockey is on the rise in terms of NHL development (30% of NHL players are coming through college ranks), their goal is to win for the college and community of fans, and its half the cost of AHL games. Albany fans will be fine, no big loss. Think the feelings are mutual between the NJ Devils and Upstate NY fans lol.

try again, Nightsquad, who sold the franchise to Charlotte local ownership, a local owner, it was CDS who took the club across town, away from RPI, THEN, what would've happened if the River Rats name went in that transaction?

you're also forgetting why the Devils were forced to leave Lowell, because the HE Team controlled the arena rights, how would u feel if Union College did that to any pro hockey franchise since you continually bring them into this discussion thread....

no hockey fan cares what Union does or doesn't do and how that relates to a pro franchise playing in a market, in fact doesn't Binghamton itself have a University/collegiate athletic program, that plays in America East against a school such as Maine, and that's all we have currently.

 

[Nightsquad]

try again, Nightsquad, who sold the franchise to Charlotte local ownership, a local owner, it was CDS who took the club across town, away from RPI, THEN, what would've happened if the River Rats name went in that transaction?

you're also forgetting why the Devils were forced to leave Lowell, because the HE Team controlled the arena rights, how would u feel if Union College did that to any pro hockey franchise since you continually bring them into this discussion thread....

no hockey fan cares what Union does or doesn't do and how that relates to a pro franchise playing in a market, in fact doesn't Binghamton itself have a University/collegiate athletic program, that plays in America East against a school such as Maine, and that's all we have currently.

Your joking right lol. An NCAA National Championship carries way more weight then a Kelly Cup or Calder Cup Championship combined. Minor league titles dont have championship recognition outside of the teams that occupy the league. NCAA Championships get national recognition and visits to the White House....Binghamton doesnt have college hockey, have to go to Cornell for that. Albany has two DI teams no more then 15 and 20 minutes away. The fans there will be fine....Binghamton is doing Albany a huge favor, paying millions to renovate Albany's arena and taking the Devils off the fans hands lol.No.disrespect to the players, just how they treated Utica, Albant, Lowell, Albany again...How long before Christie offers the Devils and incentive to relocate to Trenton. Trentons arena is a million times nicer then Broome County Civic Arena. There are more then 3000 more active posts and activity on the college hockey section on this site. Dont diminish the quality of collegiate hockey and the role it plays in NHL development. The Albany area isnt loosing out as the Albany haters are suggesting, Albany is just smarter. Ridding itself from from an overpriced, over rated league. The AHL isnt about winning titles for these cities, they are catering to NHL interests, basically selling the smaller cities like Albany, Utica, Binghamton, Belleville, Springfield a bill of goods. Just saying when you can see college players who have.made the quick jump to the Flyers and the Rangers and they developed in college right near Albany fans are going to gravitate towards that product and for half the costs.

 

[CHRDANHUTCH]

here's the true lineage of the Devils AHL affiliations:

Nightsquad:

New Jersey acquired Portland's original AHL Franchise from Philadelphia and went to Utica in 1987, lasting to 1993, so where do you come up with NJ abandoning Utica.

Calgary bought the franchise known as the Utica Devils, and has placed it in Saint John, Omaha, Quad City,Abbotsford, Adirondack, and currently Stockton.

that same season, NJ then entered into the agreement w/ Al Lawrence, and later Walter Robb and CDS, and the Capital District Islanders to be morphed into the Albany River Rats, until Robb/CDS sold the franchise to Charlotte, and kept the name "River Rats".

 

[zetajerk]

Hey, I'm an Albany fan that doesn't appreciate being talked down to by all the haters on this board that's been going on as long as I've been a member. DI college hockey is a viable alternative to the AHL these days and nightsquad references it so much to refute the pervasive assertion on this board that no one cares about hockey in Albany. I've come to terms with losing the AHL, like he says it's not about serving the local communities anymore. It's all about serving the NHL club.

Again, I still don't get what makes Bingo so superior to Albany. They haven't averaged over 4,000 a game in a dog's age. Who cares about arena capacity. I would love to see what would happen in a place like Bingo or Utica or even Syracuse if they had a 10-12,000 seat building (ie, way too big for the market size). In fact, doesn't Rochester's building seat more than 10,000? They play in front of less than 50%.

But the Devils leaving would be a much easier pill to swallow without the peanut gallery telling me how much we suck here.

 

[go comets]

Hey, I'm an Albany fan that doesn't appreciate being talked down to by all the haters on this board that's been going on as long as I've been a member. DI college hockey is a viable alternative to the AHL these days and nightsquad references it so much to refute the pervasive assertion on this board that no one cares about hockey in Albany. I've come to terms with losing the AHL, like he says it's not about serving the local communities anymore. It's all about serving the NHL club.

Again, I still don't get what makes Bingo so superior to Albany. They haven't averaged over 4,000 a game in a dog's age. Who cares about arena capacity. I would love to see what would happen in a place like Bingo or Utica or even Syracuse if they had a 10-12,000 seat building (ie, way too big for the market size). In fact, doesn't Rochester's building seat more than 10,000? They play in front of less than 50%.

But the Devils leaving would be a much easier pill to swallow without the peanut gallery telling me how much we suck here.

I believe Rochester was downsized during the last remodeling, I was there two years ago and I would guess 7,000-7,500 seats.

The big things that small towns like Utica, Syracuse and Bingo have to offer is the fact that in these smaller towns, the hockey team is important. Seems like the devils in Albany and the Wolfpack in Hartford get ignored by the media and lost in the shuffle of a big city.

Utica, Roch,Syr and Bingo all get lots of media, both in print and on TV. The Comets have a weekly half hour TV show, recapping the previous week's games and player interviews in studio.

Smaller buildings, more atmosphere, more crowd noise, all of which enhances the game experience. Who wants to sit in s near empty building??

Facebook page followers should be a good indicator of how many people are interested in a team and potential fan base.
Utica. 29,822 followers
Syracuse, 25,644
Rochester 47,471
Bingo, 18,066
Albany, 16,239
Hershey, 62,574
Hartford, 17,317

Pretty good indicator of what cities are interested in their hockey teams.

 

[Devils Dominion]

The Trenton area around the arena there is not nice at all.
It's extremely impoverished, urban blight.
The arena itself is ok, an average at best minor hockey league arena but it's located in a downtrodden area with nothing to do around it.

I would venture a guess that the area around the Binghamton arena is a heck of lot nicer.

The area around TUC is nice IMO, I enjoy visiting the city and it's bars/restaurants when I come up to see the Devils.
Plus the people from Albany have always been nice and happy to see "tourists" like me patronizing their businesses.

 

[Devils Dominion]

I believe Rochester was downsized during the last remodeling, I was there two years ago and I would guess 7,000-7,500 seats.

The big things that small towns like Utica, Syracuse and Bingo have to offer is the fact that in these smaller towns, the hockey team is important. Seems like the devils in Albany and the Wolfpack in Hartford get ignored by the media and lost in the shuffle of a big city.

Utica, Roch,Syr and Bingo all get lots of media, both in print and on TV. The Comets have a weekly half hour TV show, recapping the previous week's games and player interviews in studio.

Smaller buildings, more atmosphere, more crowd noise, all of which enhances the game experience. Who wants to sit in s near empty building??

Facebook page followers should be a good indicator of how many people are interested in a team and potential fan base.
Utica. 29,822 followers
Syracuse, 25,644
Rochester 47,471
Bingo, 18,066
Albany, 16,239
Hershey, 62,574
Hartford, 17,317

Pretty good indicator of what cities are interested in their hockey teams.

And the population base in the Capital Region is much larger than cities like Utica and Bingo.

Hartford I've been told has been treated poorly by the nyr organization.
I would think their FB follower count would be higher since Hartford is a larger city.

What is it for Bridgeport?

 

[Devils Dominion]

I hope they keep the Binghamton goal horn.

 

[Devils Dominion]

Who is the guy in the press conference?

Very well spoken and a good representative for Binghamton.

 

[Tao Jersey Jones]

Tom Mitchell Executive VP of Ops.

 

[Devils Dominion]

3 other teams showed interest in moving to Bingo.

 

[Devils Dominion]

http://binghamtondevils.com/splash/

Site is up

 

[Nightsquad]

The Trenton area around the arena there is not nice at all.
It's extremely impoverished, urban blight.
The arena itself is ok, an average at best minor hockey league arena but it's located in a downtrodden area with nothing to do around it.

I would venture a guess that the area around the Binghamton arena is a heck of lot nicer.

The area around TUC is nice IMO, I enjoy visiting the city and it's bars/restaurants when I come up to see the Devils.
Plus the people from Albany have always been nice and happy to see "tourists" like me patronizing their businesses.

Trenton's arena is much nicer, the arena in Binghamton is a throwback to the early 1980s. The larger capacity at Trenton would allow for solid crowds when they play the nearby PA teams. Quite certain they could better Binghamtons average attendance by 1000 fans for the season, no doubt. No room to grow in Binghamton, they haven't played to near capacity crowds in many years. Trenton's arena is AHL perfect, that's the size arena Albany should have had or maybe just a tad smaller.