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Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit
Prior to this year I had attended 41 straight ECAC championships, typically with a group of between 20 and 40 people. Although many in the group are Cornell alumni or fans, we went regardless of which teams were in the field.None of that group was even remotely interested in going to Atlantic City this year. Boston was a great venue before the teams from Hockey East left, Lake Placid was fantastic and Albany was more than acceptable. We had certainly hoped that the event would return to Lake Placid if Albany lost it and were stunned beyond comprhension when the move to Atlantic City was announced (particularly in light of the very modest financial guarantee). I have not been able to find any information on yesterday's attendance, but it certainly looked ridiculously low on the television screen. The ECAC is primarily a New York State and New England league with a core of fans from the various schools which could historically be counted on to send between 5,500 and (in the best cases) 8,000 or so fans each year. Those totals were fairly consistent during the last few years in Boston, during the Lake Placid years, and in Albany. There were always fans attending each year even when their own teams were not in the event. I doubt that very many of those are in Atlantic City this weekend and there is no reason to think that they will be there in the future. The location has no connection to the league, and even the hope that new fans from NYC might change the attendance totals seems to have been misguided. It is sad to the members of our group that what seems to me to be an unrealistic hope for a larger crowd has led to this development. If it were up to me I would focus on the realities of the core group of true ECAC fans and get this event back to Lake Placid or Albany as soon as possible.
Prior to this year I had attended 41 straight ECAC championships, typically with a group of between 20 and 40 people. Although many in the group are Cornell alumni or fans, we went regardless of which teams were in the field.None of that group was even remotely interested in going to Atlantic City this year. Boston was a great venue before the teams from Hockey East left, Lake Placid was fantastic and Albany was more than acceptable. We had certainly hoped that the event would return to Lake Placid if Albany lost it and were stunned beyond comprhension when the move to Atlantic City was announced (particularly in light of the very modest financial guarantee). I have not been able to find any information on yesterday's attendance, but it certainly looked ridiculously low on the television screen. The ECAC is primarily a New York State and New England league with a core of fans from the various schools which could historically be counted on to send between 5,500 and (in the best cases) 8,000 or so fans each year. Those totals were fairly consistent during the last few years in Boston, during the Lake Placid years, and in Albany. There were always fans attending each year even when their own teams were not in the event. I doubt that very many of those are in Atlantic City this weekend and there is no reason to think that they will be there in the future. The location has no connection to the league, and even the hope that new fans from NYC might change the attendance totals seems to have been misguided. It is sad to the members of our group that what seems to me to be an unrealistic hope for a larger crowd has led to this development. If it were up to me I would focus on the realities of the core group of true ECAC fans and get this event back to Lake Placid or Albany as soon as possible.
. In any regard it should be an exciting moment.
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