The Hurricanes relocation from Hartford "has been like
one of those marriages arranged years in advance by parents.
From the start, there was never a grassroots push for the
NHL in North Carolina ... Four months have passed since the
big day, and predictably, there's no passion," according to
columnist Caulton Tudor of the Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER. With
only 3,000 season tickets sold, "regional fans obviously are
interested in the same thing that usually dominates their
attention in September. Football." The NHL "arrives at a
time when the regional sports plate is full. ... Given the
price of admission to NHL games, it's only logical to ask:
Where are the Hurricanes going to find their customers?"
Tudor concluded that while "an indication of how much the
Hurricanes misjudged the market is season ticket sales," the
"one thing the NHL and the Hurricanes may have on their side
is time. ... But patience in professional sports, is just
another word for expenses. Unless the marketplace rallies
furiously in 1997 and '98, there's every reason to believe
the Hurricanes could be a fortune in the red by the time its
permanent home is ready" (NEWS & OBSERVER, 9/9).
FROM AFAR: In Toronto, Damien Cox: "Right now, there's
a real chance that Hurricane home games ... will be played
before audiences of 7,000 or less. ... Who would have
thought Hartford would look so good?" Hurricanes GM Jim
Rutherford: "We felt that if we'd gone to Columbus it would
have gone quicker at the start, and so far, we're right. ...
We expected the first year to be slow, but as long as we're
showing progress, we're happy" (TORONTO STAR, 9/7).
