The Devils "have resorted to fudging attendance figures
to avoid the embarrassing reality that the Continental
Airlines Arena is little more than half-filled on most game
nights," according to Matthew Futterman of the Newark STAR-
LEDGER, who reports that the newspaper "obtained actual
game-night turnstile counts that show the Devils regularly
pad their announced attendance figures by about 2,000 fans
per game." For the team's November 1 game against the
Flyers, "the team said 15,347 fans attended the game," while
"the actual turnstile count was 13,059, a difference of
2,288." For the November 10 game against the Penguins, "the
team said 16,035 fans attended the game," while "the actual
turnstile count was 14,471, a difference of 1,564." Devils
President Lou Lamoriello "denied the organization was
exaggerating the number of fans that pass through the
turnstiles." Lamoriello: "I'll back what our organization
has said. If someone comes to me with other information
then we'll confront them about it and look into it." Devils
Dir of Information Mike Levine said that "the team still
uses the turnstile count when it announces the attendance."
Futterman writes that "when asked again if there was a
misunderstanding between the team and the league regarding
the attendance figures, Levine confirmed that the Devils
always report the turnstile count" (STAR-LEDGER, 12/12).
