NY Islanders - Attendance

[KingBran]

This isn't a 'lets bash on the Isles' thread. I am pretty indifferent to the Isles but I am a big Doug Weight fan. It's a real thread about why the NYI are (in my opinion) constantly overlooked when people talk about teams that should move or don't get much fan support. I am guessing it's just cause they are in NY and it does actually get cold their on a regular basis during hockey season? Here are some numbers.

This is percentage of capacity filled for a season.

06-07 -79.1% - 26th
07-08 -83.7% 26th
08-09 -84.5% - 28th
09-10 -78.1% - 27th
10-11 -67.9% - 30th
11-12-81.3% - 27th
12-13 -82.3% - 28th
13-14 -93.4% - 22nd
14-15 -94.8% - 23rd
15-16 - 86.2% - 27th
16-17 -82.9% - 27th
17-18 (So far, and 31 teams in the league) -75.8% - 29th

Data from: 2017-2018 NHL Attendance - National Hockey League - ESPN

Only 2 of the past 12 seasons were they better than 26th in the league; and it wasn't much better. I don't follow the NYI really so someone is more than welcome to educate me but I honestly wonder why everyone bags on AZ, CAR and FLA when really only AZ has hung around them every year. No other team besides AZ has been that low in attendance for that long. Am I off-base for thinking its silly that they aren't really ever talked about as much as the "warm climate" places when it comes to attendance?

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[schnapshot]

They never really had a legit facility to play in.

 

[Spartachat]

It is probably because they have a multi-decade long local TV deal.
#6 New York Islanders - pg.7

 

[Frosty415]

Their arena is garbage

 

[LordNeverLose]

Their attendance has been so low because of the arenas they've played in.

They won't be relocated because they had one of the greatest dynasties in league history (and they just got a brand new stadium)

 

[zetajerk]

They're in the NE, so they're ok in the eyes of the assholes (I mean traditionalists) despite having attendance that would flash boil their blood if they played in the south and being in a saturated market to boot. The Isles moving doesn't satisfy the "stay away from our sport" crowd, so they leave them alone. It's hypocritical and annoying.

 

[Kamiccolo]

Betman is on record that no team who has won a cup will move. Lock this up.

 

[KingBran]

It is probably because they have a multi-decade long local TV deal.
#6 New York Islanders - pg.7

That seems legit.

Their attendance has been so low because of the arenas they've played in.

They won't be relocated because they had one of the greatest dynasties in league history (and they just got a brand new stadium)

Can someone elaborate more on this? Is it location or or something? I mean I have been to some awful arena's that get packed every night because they have a good team.

Betman is on record that no team who has won a cup will move. Lock this up.

I think history of a team should be a non-factor but hes the commish I guess.

 

[SladeWilson23]

Why would you say that this thread isn't to bash the Isles, but then suggest that they should be in the relocation discussion?

 

[Its a Trap]

Oh, are we going to to this? Again?

 

[SladeWilson23]

I just want to make it a point right now that Carolina, Florida, and the Islanders are in no danger of moving in the near future.

 

[SI90]

The combination of the team sucking for the majority of the last 25 years, horrible GM Milbruy, and ownership (Spano Wang), and a shitty building it’s going to cause a drop in attendence. The diehards and hockey lovers will go but not much else. When the isles are good they sell. Every playoffs st the nassau coliseum was absolute mayhem in a good way.

The rangers to thier credit always put a good product in the ice and consistently make the playoffs but Madison Square Garden sells itself. The Knicks have been a joke for over 20 years and sell out every game.

If the islanders are a playoff team heading into Belmont they will have increased attendance.

 

[CodeE]

Can someone elaborate more on this? Is it location or or something? I mean I have been to some awful arena's that get packed every night because they have a good team.

The stadium was built to be a basketball stadium for the Nets, not a duel-sport stadium. As such, a decent chunk of the area is "obstructed view seating" - google Barclays Center obstructed view to get an idea of how little you can see.

Nobody wants to sit in a seat where they can't see the ice, yet NHL counts these empty seats as part of attendance. Everything in black is considered obstructed:

 

[Filthy Dangles]

They never really had a legit facility to play in.

Wrong. There just isn't that much interest in the team. Nassau was fine, people still didn't show up. The Rangers own the Long Island market, it would be like 60/70+% Ranger fans at the colliseum games too.

Miss the collsiseum as a Ranger fan. Could scalp a $20 ticket, move up in the vacant seats when a team like Pit/Chi comes to town and get really good looks at the best players in the world at a bargain price.

Now, the fans really don't wanna pay $$ out the ass to go to a stadium that in turn just kicked them out anyway.

 

[Gnashville]

1/3 of the arena has seats with terrible sight lines. In some seats you can’t even see the center red line. No one wants to pay to sit in those seats yet they count towards attendance.

 

[Hockeyholic]

Betman is on record that no team who has won a cup will move. Lock this up.

Unsure why Gary would wanna live by this rule. But oh well.

As for the question, it's always an excuse with the Isles: Arena stinks, ownership, haven't been a good enough team, and they play in a crowded market. Maybe, just maybe most of NY couldn't care less about them, and no level of success will make a dent in attendance?

Regards,

Big Daddy

 

[CuriousGeorge]

This isn't a 'lets bash on the Isles' thread. I am pretty indifferent to the Isles but I am a big Doug Weight fan. It's a real thread about why the NYI are (in my opinion) constantly overlooked when people talk about teams that should move or don't get much fan support. I am guessing it's just cause they are in NY and it does actually get cold their on a regular basis during hockey season? Here are some numbers.

This is percentage of capacity filled for a season.

06-07 -79.1% - 26th
07-08 -83.7% 26th
08-09 -84.5% - 28th
09-10 -78.1% - 27th
10-11 -67.9% - 30th
11-12-81.3% - 27th
12-13 -82.3% - 28th
13-14 -93.4% - 22nd
14-15 -94.8% - 23rd
15-16 - 86.2% - 27th
16-17 -82.9% - 27th
17-18 (So far, and 31 teams in the league) -75.8% - 29th

Data from: 2017-2018 NHL Attendance - National Hockey League - ESPN

Only 2 of the past 12 seasons were they better than 26th in the league; and it wasn't much better. I don't follow the NYI really so someone is more than welcome to educate me but I honestly wonder why everyone bags on AZ, CAR and FLA when really only AZ has hung around them every year. No other team besides AZ has been that low in attendance for that long. Am I off-base for thinking its silly that they aren't really ever talked about as much as the "warm climate" places when it comes to attendance?

How does this compare to the Coyotes?

 

[SladeWilson23]

Unsure why Gary would wanna live by this rule. But oh well.

As for the question, it's always an excuse with the Isles: Arena stinks, ownership, haven't been a good enough team, and they play in a crowded market. Maybe, just maybe most of NY couldn't care less about them, and no level of success will make a dent in attendance?

Regards,

Big Daddy

Except there is a large enough fanbase to sustain the team. So no, it has nothing to do with NY not caring about them.

 

[LordNeverLose]

Except there is a large enough fanbase to sustain the team. So no, it has nothing to do with NY not caring about them.

Yeah they definitely have a larger fanbase than a lot of other NHL teams, so then the question is why don't they go to the games, which points to problems with arena, location, and on-ice product.

 

[Its a Trap]

I’d say there not a candidate for relocation because they literally just announced they’re building a new arena for themselves...but what do I know.

 

[Negan4Coach]

Isn't this debacle the fault of Jay-Z or whatever random rap star owns this place? What kind of a moron of an owner enters into an agreement to put a hockey team into a place owned by a guy who only gives a shit about basketball?

 

[JT Kreider]

Isn't this debacle the fault of Jay-Z or whatever random rap star owns this place? What kind of a moron of an owner enters into an agreement to put a hockey team into a place owned by a guy who only gives a **** about basketball?

Lol Jay-Z owned a tiny percentage of the Nets. 1.5 percent. It was all Prokorhov.

 

[SladeWilson23]

Yeah they definitely have a larger fanbase than a lot of other NHL teams, so then the question is why don't they go to the games, which points to problems with arena, location, and on-ice product.

It's a combination of all of those things.

 

[These Are The Days]

The recent attendance issues stem from the fact that like 25% of the seats at Barclays are obstructed. Some are so bad you can't even see half the ice. Who in their right mind would ever pay to sit there?

 

[Its a Trap]

The recent attendance issues stem from the fact that like 25% of the seats at Barclays are obstructed. Some are so bad you can't even see half the ice. Who in their right mind would ever pay to sit there?

No...the problem is the fan base didn’t like the move to a facility run by an organization that didn’t respect them. That’s now being remedied.