The Predators last night tied the Stanley Cup Final at two games apiece, and after years of "despair and uncertainty," the team is now "turning a profit," according to Ken Campbell of THE HOCKEY NEWS. The Predators have "not only done an outstanding job of building their roster" under GM David Poile, they have "made a connection with their fan base like no other market in the league." The Predators sold out every home game this season. The team store is doing a "booming business, the local TV numbers are robust and the team is projecting to have between 13,000 and 14,000 season-ticket holders for a rink with a capacity of 17,113." Predators President & CEO Sean Henry said, "This year we will have black ink. The story of people questioning Nashville is over." Campbell: "The question now is how big can this thing get?" An exec from another NHL team said that last season the Predators had "revenues of about $700,000 per game, which is still on the low end of the league, but the Predators operate the Bridgestone Arena and get all of the revenues out of it." Last season the Predators had $116M in revenues on $38M in gate receipts. As far as hockey revenues are concerned, they are "bound to be much higher this season." Henry said, "It’s a record year on the building and each year has been busier than the prior year." Henry estimates that about 500 fans per game are "new to the sport, so it’s key to make the experience a memorable one for them." He realizes that a team that makes a run to the Final is "bound to attract a fair number of bandwagon fans, but the power of a party involving 50,000 people is really strong" (THEHOCKEYNEWS.com, 6/5).
KEYS TO SUCCESS: Henry said that the keys to success have been "striving to create the best venue experience and the best relationship with fans in all of sports." SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's Ian Thomas notes that has meant "continuing such things as hosting live music between periods on the stage above the Zamboni entrance, building ice rinks throughout the region and investing in premium seating and hospitality areas inside the arena, while also keeping prices near the bottom across the league and highlighting local food and beer" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 6/5 issue).
KEEPING GAME 4 UNDER CONTROL: In Nashville, Garrison & Ebert report a "significantly smaller crowd descended on Downtown Nashville" last night for Penguins-Predators Game 4, compared to Saturday's Game 3. Metro police spokesperson Don Aaron estimated 10,000-15,000 people "showed up on Lower Broadway." The crowd was "small enough that fans even had room to sit down on Broadway and watch the game on the various screens." Sporadic rain "may have helped tamper the size" of the crowd. Local officials made several changes "to help provide a better experience" at downtown watch parties (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 6/6). In Pittsburgh, Kevin Gorman writes, "Who would have believed that Nashville would transform into Smashville, from honky-tonk to hockey town?" Nashville has "gone all Hee Haw for hockey, and the Predators certainly have a Cinderella appeal" after becoming the first 16 seed to advance to the Final since the NHL expanded in '98. That has "replaced the Penguins' pursuit of becoming the first back-to-back Cup champions" since the Red Wings of '97 and '98 as the storyline of this series (TRIBLIVE.com, 6/6).
