Should Houston have NHL team?

I would prefer that the NHL stop expanding to non-traditional hockey markets. The game isn't a part of daily life in these cities and other locations like Hartford, Winnipeg, Quebec, etc. deserve a team more than a city that has no clue about hockey culture. That isn't to say it hasn't work - the Dallas Stars seem to have a done good job integrating into the community - but, there are too many examples (Phoenix, Nashville, Miami, Atlanta, etc.) of this idea not working.

 

Interesting, because I agree with you. I HATE how almost all hockey fans are anti-non-traditional (I'm a Phoenix fan), but I agree that it probably expanded too fast into these places and hasn't really caught hold. There are way too many elitist/bigot hockey fans.

But I love hockey. I actually play ice hockey, where being 5'11 165 and really quick can cut it (unlike basketball). The NHL is more honor and team sum-of-the-parts where the NBA is more flair and individual showmanship. It has a different appeal, and for the 20 years I grew up in Houston I wished I could attend NHL games.

Now that I'm gone I'm indifferent. I voted no.

 

Only if they're a winner

 

No The Aeros are enough. And those games dont even get sold out. This market does not have enough die hard hockey fans to fully support an NHL team.

 

Someone gifted me a groupon for the aeros (10 tix + tundra parking)...in november...needless to say, i haven't used them...

 

that is not any kind of indicator, the Aeros are a minor league team, so who cares?

 

Let Mark Cuban own it. Nah just kidding. Sure Id love me some hockey who wouldnt?

 

Get rid of two teams. Not sure why they expanded so quickly. They had four teams in like two years or something.

 

Yes and No

No we shouldn't have a team, but Hockey is already in markets where it shouldn't be Nashville, Phoenix, Miami, Tampa, Atlanta. By raw number of people we should have a hockey team over these cities. If they insist on no contraction we should have a team.

The only reason the Stars have done so well is because they competed for and won a cup almost immediately after getting to Dallas. If the team was good, given all of the corporate dollars available in town, there's no reason we can't support one. Fan attendance is not the most important factor in supporting a team.

And we do have a lot of transplanted yankees in town, if there was a team maybe the sport would get more traction with us natives. Dallas wasn't alive with Hockey talk before the Stars.

 

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Hockey is a corporate game. Expensive tickets and luxury boxes. No reason why a city with a corporate base the size of Houston's shouldn't have an NHL team.

 

Totally agree. Growing up in Houston I didn't know much about hockey but now living in MN I can really see the appeal of hockey. Its one thing to have just some corporate sport as Mad Max says but another to have a sport in a place where the kids grow up playing it, follow the players and even having some home grown talent. The NHL in the last 15 years has expanded too much and moved away from its traditional black and blue roots. IMO they would be better off contracting some teams outside of traditional hockey regions than adding more.

 

No. Not needed.

 

Agree. I dont follow hockey or the Aeros because they are a minor league team but I would definitely support an NHL Houston team. I'm sure there are lots of other people who feel the same way.

A lot of the die hard hockey fans will say no to hockey in Houston because it's not a "true" or "deserving" place for it. I grew up watching and supporting the Rockets/Astros/Oilers and continue to do so, minus the Oilers of course (go Texans!). Watching these sports growing up sparked my interest in actually playing, which I did in all three sports. Now my point to this is if Houston had a NHL hockey team I more than likely would have supported them and would have ended up playing as well just because of the interest I had in sports. This creates the "die hard" fans and I'm sure it would spark interest in a lot of the youngsters with a new Major Leage sport in the area.

 

I would love to see hockey in the fourth largest city in America. A lot of NE transplants and midwest transplants here; I think there'd be a decent enough market.

Houston is a world-class city; there is no reason we can't support all four of the "big four".

 

Do we have the physical capability to support 4 teams financially and population wise? Sure.

The question is will we.... historically, that has only happened in Houston (strong support) when the team is a bonafied winner, OR, if there was a new stadium involved. The Texans (and the NFL as a whole) may end up being exempted from the "win or else nobody shows up" debate, as a.) there are only 8 home games, and b.) the NFL is so popular that even a losing team routinely gets supported.

But, we've already seen what happens to the Astros and Rockets attendance the longer they are mediocre. The NHL ranks BELOW these sports, in terms of popularity, in even the most established of hockey towns.

Houstonians will have a generalized disinterest in the NHL, unless they have a true winner on their hands.

 

to be fair, that describes the entirety of the Sun Belt. all through Texas, Arizona, California and Florida it's that way.

 

The point has already been made that the NHL is a corporate game, making its money on expensive tickets and luxury boxes. Houston has a huge corporate base. Also, the number of kids in youth hockey leagues around here might surprise you. While our city is certainly a "football town", it is anything but a "football-only" town. In other words, when the team loses and attendance is low that won't be the end of the world any more than it is for the Rox or Astros.

 

I think a smarter investment would be a 2nd NFL team. I'd bank that another owner would figure it out before the 10th season.