WJC: Attendance

[Mr Kanadensisk]

As much as I wouldn't like to see things yanked from Montreal, I do prefer to see cities hosting the tournament on their own rather than sharing. The Ricoh Coliseum would be ideal too at about 7K. Toronto could easily host on their own without a partner.

My preference would be to fix the pricing and have Montreal do a proper job of co-hosting, since it was already announced for 2017. In the future, just give it to one city unless it's really small like Saskatoon/Regina.

I agree. I think having Toronto and Montreal share was a poor paring. I have a feeling it would have done much better in Montreal if they did it on their own or maybe shared it with Quebec City. The way it was this time I don't think Montreal really felt like hosts since all the playoffs were in Toronto and I know Montreal hockey fans don't like taking a back seat to Toronto.

I'd like to see Toronto as the main host with a couple of the Canada prelim games at Hamilton Copps and then have a lot of the non-Canada games at other venues where they have OHL / AHL / ECHL teams (Oshawa, Barrie, Guelph, Kitchener, Mississauga, Brampton, Ricoh, etc, etc).

 

[Stats01]

I agree. I think having Toronto and Montreal share was a poor paring. I have a feeling it would have done much better in Montreal if they did it on their own or maybe shared it with Quebec City. The way it was this time I don't think Montreal really felt like hosts since all the playoffs were in Toronto and I know Montreal hockey fans don't like taking a back seat to Toronto.

I'd like to see Toronto as the main host with a couple of the Canada prelim games at Hamilton Copps and then have a lot of the non-Canada games at other venues where they have OHL / AHL / ECHL teams (Oshawa, Barrie, Guelph, Kitchener, Mississauga, Brampton, Ricoh, etc, etc).

No Montreal should've just been left out completely, not doing it on there own or sharing it with QC...It should've been Toronto/Hamilton.

 

[Mr Kanadensisk]

No Montreal should've just been left out completely, not doing it on there own or sharing it with QC...It should've been Toronto/Hamilton.

Agreed. It was a bad choice to use Montreal as the 2nd host this time. Down the road I'd be fine with trying Montreal (or the province of Quebec) as the hosts, but mixing cities in Ontario and Quebec was a bad idea.

 

[Thebesthockey]

Call a spade a spade
The preliminary roubd games for the most part was pure garbage hockey; shinny at best
Dont take folks for fools and excpect them to fork over $ blindly
The games that counted canada / usa where full
All the rest was crap

 

[General Zodd]

BTW its very stupid that they scheduled Canada games at the same time that the Habs are playing right at the exact time... Pretty stupid whoever made the schedul.

More excuses, blah-blah-blah! I think the general consensus is unanimous,... Montreal while loyal to the Habs, is an incredibly poor WJC host as they can't draw flies and an even worse atmosphere!

Tournament champion by far is Ottawa followed very closely by Calgary-Edmonton and Vancouver. I will say that Toronto has done a very good job so far.

 

[Cellee]

Winnipeg/Brandon broke attendance records for this tournament, and had unsurpassed atmosphere.

 

[Thebesthockey]

Winnipeg/Brandon broke attendance records for this tournament, and had unsurpassed atmosphere.

Agreed send it back there and ask the 1600$ per ticket package minimum

 

[Cellee]

Lets not turn this into a Toronto vs Montreal thing because it's not.

Both cities are great hockey and NHL cities.

This is a COST issue plain and simple.

It looks like greed from Hockey Canada but I'll wait to see if we ever find out how much the owners of the Leafs and Canadiens made for letting the tournament be in their buildings.

Again, I don't think Hockey Canada sets ticket prices.

 

[Cellee]

Agreed send it back there and ask the 1600$ per ticket package minimum

Sure. Thats like 6Jets games for a lot of people.

 

[Thebesthockey]

Again, I don't think Hockey Canada sets ticket prices.

Canadian press:

TORONTO - The IIHF said Hockey Canada was responsible for the ticket prices that may have led to empty seats at Montreal's Bell Centre for preliminary games at the world junior championship.

 

[Stats01]

Call a spade a spade
The preliminary roubd games for the most part was pure garbage hockey; shinny at best
Dont take folks for fools and excpect them to fork over $ blindly
The games that counted canada / usa where full
All the rest was crap

Actually it wasn't full it was around 3,000 short..Montreal couldn't even sell out the NYE game.

 

[Cellee]

Canadian press:

TORONTO - The IIHF said Hockey Canada was responsible for the ticket prices that may have led to empty seats at Montreal's Bell Centre for preliminary games at the world junior championship.

I don't know if that is accurate blame. I am pretty sure the host city guarantees an amount to earn the right to host. It used to be that way.

 

[Tutu to]

montreal is a habs city. If the bell center could fit 30,000 people it would still sell out every game.

Also lets say the leafs are playing philidelphia and it took place in montreal. Im not sure there would be more then 10,000 people at the game

 

[Damisoph]

I think the IIHF are being little *****es...like they wouldn't have been consulted and would have to approve ticket prices? Both the IIHF and Hockey Canada are to blame for this price gouging.

 

[Mynameismark*]

More excuses, blah-blah-blah! I think the general consensus is unanimous,... Montreal while loyal to the Habs, is an incredibly poor WJC host as they can't draw flies and an even worse atmosphere!

Tournament champion by far is Ottawa followed very closely by Calgary-Edmonton and Vancouver. I will say that Toronto has done a very good job so far.

Ottawa? If there was any noise happening there I bet it was all the Montrealers going down to invade as per usual. Otherwise it's a sleepy peaceful political city filled with peaceful, sleepy political people. Too bad the Sens cant get the same support.

 

[Mynameismark*]

Actually it wasn't full it was around 3,000 short..Montreal couldn't even sell out the NYE game.

They've sold out world tourneys before. Dont jip that city with meaningless round robin tripe and demand them to spend top dollar for junior action. They aren't suckers like Torontonians who need to live through the junior team to enjoy success since their pro team will never give it to them.

 

[OttawaRoughRiderFan*]

Not sure why everyone is dwelling on this. Montreal did not support the tournament to the level expected and, after 2017, it won't be there again. No big deal. Next time, Quebec City with their new arena.

 

[v-man]

Only in Canada do we complain about only having the third best attendance for an event ever. The fact is this is a meaningless tournament of 19 y.o. kids playing hockey at an amateur level (this year's tournament has been exceptionally forgettable). You cannot command Stanley Cup Playoff prices for games featuring players you can see for $15-$25 bucks or less outside of it and expect to sell out an NHL size arena night in and night out. Those that buy packages are getting outright ripped off. There's no two ways about it. If that's how one wishes to part with their money - all the power to them, but it's not good value for your buck no matter how you shake it. I can't blame Montrealers one bit for not filling the seats at the prices that were demanded for round robin games. It wasn't a marketing fail that they got less spectators than here in Toronto (there was no marketing to speak of that I've seen), it was simply that they were less gullible than us. Most of these games should be between $10-$25, and hockey fans shouldn't have to go through second-hand retailers to find them at that price from people unloading their unwanted package tix.

 

[OttawaRoughRiderFan*]

Only in Canada do we complain about only having the third best attendance for an event ever. The fact is this is a meaningless tournament of 19 y.o. kids playing hockey at an amateur level (this year's tournament has been exceptionally forgettable). You cannot command Stanley Cup Playoff prices for games featuring players you can see for $15-$25 bucks or less outside of it and expect to sell out an NHL size arena night in and night out. Those that buy packages are getting outright ripped off. There's no two ways about it. If that's how one wishes to part with their money - all the power to them, but it's not good value for your buck no matter how you shake it. I can't blame Montrealers one bit for not filling the seats at the prices that were demanded for round robin games. It wasn't a marketing fail that they got less spectators than here in Toronto (there was no marketing to speak of that I've seen), it was simply that they were less gullible than us. Most of these games should be between $10-$25, and hockey fans shouldn't have to go through second-hand retailers to find them at that price from people unloading their unwanted package tix.

I went to the World Juniors in Buffalo and it wasn't cheap and it was money well spent. I would go again - no matter the cost. I would happily pay top dollars to see a World Junior game before I would spend the same money to see and NHL game.

 

[General Zodd]

Ottawa? If there was any noise happening there I bet it was all the Montrealers going down to invade as per usual. Otherwise it's a sleepy peaceful political city filled with peaceful, sleepy political people. Too bad the Sens cant get the same support.

Wow were you living under a rock back then??? Oh wait I guess the few fans that could actually afford the gas money from Montreal managed to make it to some of those games no doubt.

Here's what you missed - and yeah Canada won the Gold too!

 

[93LEAFS]

montreal is a habs city. If the bell center could fit 30,000 people it would still sell out every game.

Also lets say the leafs are playing philidelphia and it took place in montreal. Im not sure there would be more then 10,000 people at the game

It would sell out, have you seen what Leafs fans do to Ottawa and Buffalo??? or even their attendance in west coast games. Between Mcgill and Concordia, other transplants from the GTA and leafs fans within reasonable driving distance it would sell out. That could also be close to true in Toronto for the Habs. Both teams have a national fanbase. While, most of these people are getting older, the baby boomers grew up with only 2 Canadian teams and they have the most purchasing power in Canada.

 

[OttawaRoughRiderFan*]

Instead of making $30M, Hockey Canada will make $25M. Oh well.

 

[v-man]

I went to the World Juniors in Buffalo and it wasn't cheap and it was money well spent. I would go again - no matter the cost. I would happily pay top dollars to see a World Junior game before I would spend the same money to see and NHL game.

I had a great time at the three games I went to in Ottawa too (I even had to turn down free last minute tix to the Canada/US new years game), but realize that we're talking about Canadian hosted tournaments here, and in that case, the ticket packages are more than twice the amount they were in Buffalo, which you already found expensive. Would you really be prepared to pay twice as much for the same experience? And lets be honest here, you'd pay top dollar to see a meaningful Team Canada World Junior game as opposed to an NHL game. I highly doubt you'd be chomping at the bit to pay $160 to see a Slovakia/Finland WJC final.

As it's been pointed out elsewhere, some tickets for the US/Canada game were 3 times the price in Montreal as they were just three years ago in Calgary. That's simply ridiculous and outright gouging. Habs fans were smart to stay home at those prices.

 

[Tyler Biggs*]

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/juniors/hockey-canada-responsible-for-high-ticket-prices/

Prices were bad but I bet if you had put their games in Toronto or Ottawa they'd still have sold out. There were more people at the Canada-Denmark game at the ACC; a game which was a foregone conclusion before a puck was dropped.

Still less empty seats than any game in any European rink...

 

[FuriousSenator]

Are people from Toronto seriously chirping people from Montreal still?

Neither of Canada's playoff games sold out in Toronto...in fact they barely got a few thousand more people in seats for much more important games...