2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

[Bob Gray]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

The Yotes take on the Blackhawks tonight, with the top of the West at stake, and the Yotes going for their 10th straight win. Go Yotes!

[moe24]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

The Yotes take on the Blackhawks tonight, with the top of the West at stake, and the Yotes going for their 10th straight win. Go Yotes!

And anyone who would have predicted this to happen before the season started would have been driven straight to the funny farm. What a turnaround by that team.

[PrezdeJohnson09]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

The Yotes take on the Blackhawks tonight, with the top of the West at stake, and the Yotes going for their 10th straight win. Go Yotes!

I saw these two teams play on November 5th in Phoenix...If you would have told me they would be playing again tonight for first place in the West I would laughed in your face.

With that said...Go Yotes!

My sister lives out in Gilbert now working as a school psychologist. I might have to jump on the Yotes bandwagon for the playoffs and see if I can get out there for a game during the playoffs.

Has attendance gotten any better yet?

I think there may have been 10K people...probably closer to 8K when I was there in November and I'd say atleast half were Hawks fans.

[pardonme]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

And anyone who would have predicted this to happen before the season started would have been driven straight to the funny farm. What a turnaround by that team.

Its amazing what happens when you realize that being a great player doesn't mean you are a great coach.

[Bob Gray]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

I saw these two teams play on November 5th in Phoenix...If you would have told me they would be playing again tonight for first place in the West I would laughed in your face.

With that said...Go Yotes!

My sister lives out in Gilbert now working as a school psychologist. I might have to jump on the Yotes bandwagon for the playoffs and see if I can get out there for a game during the playoffs.

Has attendance gotten any better yet?

I think there may have been 10K people...probably closer to 8K when I was there in November and I'd say atleast half were Hawks fans.

My understanding is that attendance has gone up a lot. Unfortunately they're on the road most of the time down the stretch, so their season attendance numbers are weighted heavily to the early season which reflected things like they hadn't sold season tickets for at least a lot of the offseason, hadn't advertised at all, etc. 5 of their last 6 have been on the road, and 12 of their last 15 are on the road overall. But, their one home game last week drew, 17,534. They still don't get a lot of coverage in the local media, but that's slowly starting to turn.

[FadeToBlack&Gold]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

And anyone who would have predicted this to happen before the season started would have been driven straight to the funny farm. What a turnaround by that team.

When they hired Tippett, I figured they had a shot at the playoffs. Definitely not at first place though.

Something I never knew about him before this season - he played for the Sioux and was their captain when they won the 1982 NCAA title.

[Bob Gray]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

Its amazing what happens when you realize that being a great player doesn't mean you are a great coach.

Yah. Gretzky was a huge millstone around the Yotes' neck. He was an awful coach, and had by far the highest coaching salary, at between $7 and $8 million annually for 5 years. I remember a quote from one of the players when Tippett came onboard that the player was really excited to play for a coach who had a system for the players to play within. Even if Phoenix had been brimming with talent under Gretzky, the team would have foundered. One of the greatest ever on the ice, but he did a lot of damage during his tenure in Phoenix.

[PrezdeJohnson09]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

My understanding is that attendance has gone up a lot. Unfortunately they're on the road most of the time down the stretch, so their season attendance numbers are weighted heavily to the early season which reflected things like they hadn't sold season tickets for at least a lot of the offseason, hadn't advertised at all, etc. 5 of their last 6 have been on the road, and 12 of their last 15 are on the road overall. But, their one home game last week drew, 17,534. They still don't get a lot of coverage in the local media, but that's slowly starting to turn.

Great news.

Hope it keeps improving!

That arena is gorgeous and the team deserves better. I like the way they play the game and will definitely be rooting for Phoenix in the playoffs once the Rangers are eliminated from the race.

Phoenix/Colorado/LA/Calgary/Chicago in that order. Plus I'll be rooting for the Sabres too. My hatred of that team and the bandwagon fans from 2006 and 2007 has gone signifcantly down.

[state of hockey]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

Is Nabokov starting for the Sharks tonight? I figure that way the Wild will have a chance.

[bronconick]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

John Scott getting a penalty is surprising to me.

[FadeToBlack&Gold]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

Is Nabokov starting for the Sharks tonight? I figure that way the Wild will have a chance.

Well, you're not going to get too many goals when you manage 19 shots through 55 minutes of play.

EDIT: Make that 19 for the whole game.

In other news, Brodeur gets to 40 wins on the season...

*****http://files.myopera.com/drlaunch/albums/37656/no-wai001.jpg******

[bronconick]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

Oh, and after tonight, I'm wondering if Nathan got the license # of the Ferrari that drove the net and shoved the 2nd San Jose goal past his sieve.

[state of hockey]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

I'm glad the Wild helped keep you from slitting your wrists tonight.

[bronconick]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

I'm glad the Wild helped keep you from slitting your wrists tonight.

The cheap vodka is going back in the fridge to be taken back out for game 3 of the 1st round.

[kennedy]

Re: 2009-2010 NHL Season Part 3: After The Gold Rush

But, their one home game last week drew, 17,534. They still don't get a lot of coverage in the local media, but that's slowly starting to turn.

The building was better than 50% Blackhawks fans on Saturday night, their first sellout of the season. With Cubs/White Sox spring training nearby, traveling and transplanted Chicagoans packed the place.

I THINK tonight might have been the Coyotes' first road game with a beat writer present, but I'm not positive.

Having now seen them in person twice in the last four days, this Phoenix team is incredibly organized, sneaky physical, defensively sound, and capitalizes on mistakes. I think they'll settle into the fourth seed in the West when all is said and done (unsustainable pace up/down recently for PHX/SJS, road-heavy schedule) and despite not having much of a home-ice advantage in the first round I think they'd beat LA, Nashville, or Colorado. You need to stay disciplined to beat them, and they'll drive an inexperienced team crazy.