Sea Dogs look to increase fan base

[dogcatcher]

Sea Dogs look to increase fan base

Andrew Mcgilligan
Telegraph-Journal
Published Friday December 21st, 2007
Appeared on page B10

SAINT JOHN - Things are going the Saint John Sea Dogs' way on the ice this season in Quebec Major Junior League Hockey action.

The third-year franchise is amongst the top teams in the league and look poised for their first playoff appearance. Now the front office is hoping the winning ways translates into extra fans at Harbour Station.

Through 20 home games this year, the Sea Dogs are averaging 3,669 fans per contest - good enough for sixth in the QMJHL. Oddly enough, this is the lowest average attendance in three years despite being the best on-ice product the organization has produced.

Team president Wayne Long said the attitude around the rink has changed, but the numbers just aren't there yet.

"The old adage when you win they'll come, we really haven't seen that yet," Long said.

In year one the team had the highest average fan attendance in franchise history with 4,477. In year two it dropped 3,839 fans per game to just over 3,600 this season. So what is the number the Sea Dogs are hoping average over the final 15 home games of the year? Long said 4,200 people - approximately an extra 550 per game - is the number the organization wants to hit.

"It's a good number of fans right now, but we need to do better," Long said. "We want to run this as a top-calibre organization, so long term we need to average 4,200."

The number is more than just a goal, it's the level of attendance needed to make the franchise profitable, which it currently is not.

It's not just the team that wants to see more people in the seats, but fellow fans. The Oct. 3 edition of the Telegraph-Journal published a letter from Sea Dogs fan Alan England imploring people to come out and support the team.

For the final 15 games at Harbour Station this year, the Sea Dogs plan on reaching out to all demographics in an effort to hit the 4,200 mark consistently.

"We might have been guilty of targeting one sector, which was youth," Long said.

While the organization will continue to attract what it sees as its future fan base, Long said the team will actively seek out older fans. Some people in the 55 years of age and older range have asked the Sea Dogs' president why all promotions seem to be geared to young people.

"After Christmas we're going to come out with promotions targeted toward people 55 and up," he said. "There's still a lot of them out there who haven't come back from year one.

"We did average over 4,400 in the first year, so they're out there. It's just a question of winning them back."

Another way the Sea Dogs hope to create buzz about the team and the major junior hockey product is through special events. Each season the QMJHL selects cities to host the entry draft and the ADT Canada/Russia Challenge games where an all-star QMJHL squad faces off against its Russian counterparts.

"One thing we're certainly going to put in an application for is the ADT Canada/Russia Challenge," Long said.

The bid would see the Sea Dogs partner with the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles with each team hosting one of the games.

"After that we certainly want to look at hosting a draft and it's a ways out there, but in 2012 we'd like to host the Memorial Cup," he said. "I think it would be great for the organization, city and region to host an event like that."

[springer]

I have to say that if I was in this ownership group I would be disappointed as well. They have spent some serious dollars and put a real good product on the ice and where is everyone? If they are not going to come out for this team who will they come out and support? We have one of the top teams in the country, one of the top scorers, we are in every game and the hockey is fast and entertaining. I did not even mind the first couple of years because I knew we were growing but this year has been a blast. It could come down to the fact that all sports are treated as second rate in our city and that this attitude is in the community. We need rinks, fields etc and while other places grow we appear to do nothing. Perhaps if more interest was shown by our leaders in the field of recreation people might get excited about the entire sports scene in our city. Just my opinion but when nothing for sports has really happened in our city since the Canada Games two decades ago people might tend to lose heart. Good luck to the Sea Dogs and I hope people wake up before it is too late and we lose another franchise in the city.

[shayman]

I hope iit does not go the way the Saint John Flames went. Its sad to me that they guys work so hard and there is very few fans. I go to as many games I can....

[chillywack]

Wait until after Christmas ... the crowds will increase. That's a chillywack guarantee.

[berner]

You're right chilly, the crowds will come. Don't feel too bad for ownership, they knew what they were getting in to and the team is only a mere 2 1/2 years old. The on ice and off ice product continues to improve, and that only bodes well for the future.

Springer, I think you're reading way too much into the numbers, and making a mountain out of a molehill here.

[robkennedy]

It's difficult for a city to "drop down" a level in hockey and have the fans show up right away. A few successful seasons, and you'll be averaging in the high 4s.

[brec7]

It seems like this isn't a fair comparison, comparing average attendance from the last 2 seasons to the attendance thus far this year. I know it's the case in CB that crowds go up after Christmas- it feels more natural going to a hockey game in the winter and the games start to mean more. You'd have to wait until year's end to see if having a good club on the ice makes a big difference attendance wise, and I would think it would.

[reddogbluedog]

I was of a similar position thinking that is was jus tthe overall disinterest in anything that this city does but then I ran into the the followign report that states that our attendance here is actually increased over last year.

The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League today revealed its latest attendance report for the 2007-08 season. The statistics show that overall attendance is up 0.6% compared to last year. Indeed, after 273 regular season games, the QMJHL is averaging 3,372 fans per contest for a grand total of 920,444 spectators.
Seven markets have noticed jumps in attendance. The most dramatic increases have been observed in Quebec City (+19.1%), Victoriaville (+10.1%), Shawinigan (+9.9%) and Cape Breton (+9.6%). The numbers in Halifax (+5.8%), Rouyn-Noranda (5.1%) and Saint John (+2.2%) are also on the rise. If the trend continues, the Victoriaville Tigres will surpass their all-time record of 74,006 fans. The Tigres are averaging 2,251 spectators per game and could reach the 78,000 mark by year's end. Conversely, the biggest drops in attendance have been witnessed in St. John's (-16.3%) and Moncton (-15.8%).

Seats are becoming scarce in a few markets, especially in Chicoutimi (99.91% capacity), Victoriaville (97.09%), Rouyn-Noranda (95.67%), Rimouski (90.66%) and Val-d'Or (90.48%). Fans are encouraged to reserve their tickets now in order to avoid the Holiday rush.

Of note, the QMJHL predicts that it will welcome its forty-millionth fan in the next few days.

We still have a lot to learn from the markets that support their teams whether winning or not but Saint John is just a real weird city for stuff like that. NAd yes we have crap for facilities adn I thik that this does have a bearing on how we approach supporting sports in general. I curse everytime I go to Moncton and see the 4plex and we have nothing. Maybe it is just me but it is almost embarassing hosting teams here from out of town. Merry Christams everyone and fill the rink this weekend there is no excuse.

[juliansteed]

I agree with those who say that attendance is bound to pick up in the 2nd half. The Sea Dogs had a very home heavy first half of the schedule. A few weeks ago we played 3 home games in 5 nights. Very few non-season-ticket holders are going to make it to 3 games in a week, especially so close to Christmas. Home games should be spaced out more in the 2nd half and that should help average attendance. I'm expecting a very large crowd Saturday and a decent sized one Sunday.

Also comparing Sea Dogs attendance to Flames' attendance isn't really a fair comparison, especially when looking at the Flames' early years. The city waited for what seemed like an eternity for the AHL, compared to 2 and a half years for the QMJHL. Also Harbour Station was brand new when the Flames first arrived and was a huge part of the attraction. And if you wanted to watch the Flames your only option was to buy a ticket and goto the game. The games were not broadcasted online. Occasionally they may have been on TV but that was only if the game was already sold out anyway.