Michigan State 2009-2010

[aallenpollreisz]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

A. Allen brought it hard during Everybody's and actually had a fair portion of the students join in. My SO asked if you would feel like they were stealing your thunder. I told her not at all. That's what he's shooting for, and there's not a one of them that can match him move for move. BTW, those were some nasty bruises on the backs of your calf muscles. Dance related injury?

Yep. My calves nailed the bleachers a couple more times tonight, so the bruises will likely be a darker hue of purple come tomorrow morning.

Yeah, it's exactly what I've been shooting for in my last four years here - I've seen swarms of kids buy Slaps tickets in their first year at MSU only to leave Munn at season's end forever. Why? It wasn't because suddenly they've fallen out of favor with hockey - nearly all of those kids (that I still talk to) still have some sort of NHL allegiance.

The answer? It wasn't fun, and the way things were (and still are, to an extent) with the building culture made it a huge faux pas to act in an uninhibited manner at Munn. If you didn't sit on your hands and bite your tongue, you were an outcast.

I think I can say that - with certainty - every Slapshot that attended tonight's game left the arena saying to themselves, "Geez, that was fun."

That's only a good thing - it'll go a long way in enticing ticketholders to return to the arena in future years, and it'll build the student section into something bigger and better in each of those years. Combining the student sections last year helped gigantically, but all the traditions and other things that have been implemented over the past few years are finally starting to pay off.

 

[Pirateasaurus]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Well this team just keeps showing up and playing well. Pretty solid all around game tonight and cool to see Tropp and Grant continue to make things happen. I think Palmisano is going to become the best goalie in the league, maybe even NCAA before his time here is up. I don't think anybody predicted we would start off this well but for sure, we're a good, solid team. A lot of credit to comley for completely retooling the team and systems.

I feel that attendance tomorrow will be much better. I am predicting about 5200.

 

[aallenpollreisz]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

I feel that attendance tomorrow will be much better. I am predicting about 5200.

It'll be better, but I don't think we're breaking the 5,000 barrier tomorrow.

I'll take a stab and say 4,700.

 

[Gomer]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Well this team just keeps showing up and playing well. Pretty solid all around game tonight and cool to see Tropp and Grant continue to make things happen. I think Palmisano is going to become the best goalie in the league, maybe even NCAA before his time here is up.* I don't think anybody predicted we would start off this well but for sure, we're a good, solid team. A lot of credit to comley for completely retooling the team and systems.

I feel that attendance tomorrow will be much better. I am predicting about 5200.

Easy on the koolaid buddy. I like it as much as the next guy... but just like water, drink too much of it, and koolaid will kill you!

*I think (hope) you might be right... but I'm not going to start telling everybody yet =)

 

[owslachief]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

I hear ya... But it's not the poor play that emptied the building IMO. Go to www.zillow.com and look at the property values in East Lansing over the past 5 years. Look at unemployment in Mid-Michigan. $200 to take a family of 4 to Munn for a weekend series isn't going to happen. Period. End of discussion.

I'm not saying that demand hasn't gone down (right or wrong). But couple any drop in demand with ticket, parking, and vending prices that the market can't bear and you've got your attendance crash at Munn. Hanging banners won't hurt, that's for sure. But as long as the economy is what it is and prices are what they are, 4K-5K is going to be the norm.

Poor play didn't help, certainly. Also didn't help there was a 10th-ranked women's basketball game going on next door.

 

[Arwen22266]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Noon football game, 'ya say? Play the second game of the hockey series at 8:30p on Saturday night - problem solved.

Spoken like a student who has nothing else to do on a Sunday, except maybe roll out of bed at noon.

Attendance tonight was dismal - a really, really generous 3,900.

I am certain that we could be playing the Swedish All-Nude Female Hockey Babe-Stars on a Thursday night, and we'd still have trouble drawing flies to horse dung. I was expecting attendance to be pretty horrid tonight, but that was the worst draw I've seen for a conference game in four years here.

And frankly, I don't expect the numbers for Notre Dame in two weeks to be any better.

Aside from that, we played a picture-perfect game of hockey tonight. Darn good performance.

I wasn't all that encouraged by the lack of attendance last night either, but those who were there appreciated what they saw. And, just perhaps, those who were there will carry word of how good this team looks back to their friends. After last year, building things up will take time.

Try thinking about it this way - maybe those who might have gone didn't give a rat's patootie about UNO. There will be much more interest in Notre Dame, simply for who they are. Have a little faith.

 

[owslachief]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Spoken like a student who has nothing else to do on a Sunday, except maybe roll out of bed at noon.

I think 8:30 is reasonable. But also 7:05. It's somewhat rediculous that a noon start football game would conflict with a 7:05 hockey start. I understand the concept of a post-game tailgate and having to pay parking staff an extended day's work - but that's at LEAST a 2 hour break for them.

And this isn't Michigan or Ohio State coming in - no disrespect to Western Michigan, but this isn't a major annual event.

What's the problem?

 

[aallenpollreisz]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

I think 8:30 is reasonable. But also 7:05. It's somewhat rediculous that a noon start football game would conflict with a 7:05 hockey start. I understand the concept of a post-game tailgate and having to pay parking staff an extended day's work - but that's at LEAST a 2 hour break for them.

And this isn't Michigan or Ohio State coming in - no disrespect to Western Michigan, but this isn't a major annual event.

What's the problem?

I always say 8:00p or 8:30p just so the parking situation can get fully alleviated.

It can be done, and I have no clue as to why we can't try it. I mean, volleyball does it all the time with success.

 

[Arwen22266]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

I always say 8:00p or 8:30p just to the parking situation can get fully alleviated.

It can be done, and I have no clue as to why we can't try it. I mean, volleyball does it all the time with success.

I just looked at MSU's volleyball schedule, and I can't speak to past matches, but the majority of what they have left is 6 p.m. or 6:30 starts.

If you want to bring people of all ages in - including young hockey players and their families - you can't make a start time that's only fit for itinerant college students. I don't want to be walking out of a hockey game at 10:30 or 11 p.m. and be thinking about everything I have to do on Sunday.

 

[Pirateasaurus]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

If you want to bring people of all ages in - including young hockey players and their families - you can't make a start time that's only fit for itinerant college students. I don't want to be walking out of a hockey game at 10:30 or 11 p.m. and be thinking about everything I have to do on Sunday.

Who has stuff to do on sunday? Everyone has all evening to do their homework!

 

[Hammer]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

We had a similar discussion the other day on the Ferris thread about Saturday game times. The only exception is that Ferris has moved their game times on Saturdays to 5:05, which I am NOT a fan of.

7 PM appears to be the sweet spot from my vantage point. If you go earlier, you're messing with dinner time for a normal family, and if that family thinks that they can just get dinner at a concession stand they probably need to be kicked square in their fat asses. If you get past 7:30 you're dealing with exactly what Arwen pointed out. A 7:30 start puts the game ending at 9:45-10:15 depending on if there's an overtime. Leaving a game after 10 PM is not exactly ideal, especially with a younger family or the older generation (55+ crowd that has had season tickets since the McKinley Administration blah-blah-blah). And if the game starts later than 7:30, (like 8 PM or 8:30) you can forget about getting a decent meal after a game, as it's pushing 11 PM before you leave the arena. You can argue basketball and football, but they've already whored themselves out to the highest dollar and will do whatever TV tells them to. College hockey still needs to cater to the people that put the butts in seats.

The students are virtually irrelevant in this discussion. They'll be able go to a game at 4 in the afternoon, and they'll show at midnight if you start it then. They can also party and drink at those times as well.

 

[EBoone]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Any idea what's going on? It seems CBS College Sports All-Access is no longer streaming video of MSU home hockey games. All-Access replied to my e-mail that the game was 'canceled'.

Come to find out the BTN streamed the game last night for $2.99 and they have all the games in the near future listed at their site. I just renewed my All-Access annual subscription just for hockey a couple weeks ago. I better get a refund.

 

[Pirateasaurus]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Well, a number of things to mention about tonights game.
1. I think we overall played very well. I actually think we played better than last night. We generated so many chances that were either blocked or tipped wide or off our stick at the very last moment. Nebraska's 2nd goal was incredibly flukey but i think we played very well.

2. Holy crap penalties! It was unbelievable how much time we spent in the box and how much time UNO didn't spend in the box. They had to have had around 15 more minutes of powerplay time than us. I honestly couldn't make out the majority of the calls but we just can't do that. And another 5 minute checking from behind! Reeaallly irritating.

3. That was probably the most fun i've had at an msu hockey game since 2 seasons ago. That was an absolute blast, especially the 3rd period.

Oh also, reeaal sub par attendance again. Too bad more people aren't coming out because we have a really fun team.

 

[aallenpollreisz]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Tough loss to take, but it's better to leave the building with four points on the weekend than three (or, hell, zero, for that matter).

It'll be interesting to see the makeup of the crowd for the Michigan game next week. I'm certain it's going to be a sellout, but, given the amount of total apathy from our fanbase right now, it's pretty likely that at least one-third of our building will be in blue next Saturday.

I hope I'm wrong, but I doubt I'm going to be. If we won't buy our own tickets, they will - this is for certain.

 

[owslachief]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Well I think we've all figured out what MSU's got to work on.

Judas Priest!

 

[aallenpollreisz]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Well I think we've all figured out what MSU's got to work on.

Judas Priest!

I'm still trying to figure out how Rowe wasn't dinged for checking from behind in the third on that boarding call.

I mean, with this season so far, it seems like we could just look at the back of a guy's jersey and get a misconduct. Meanwhile, Rowe takes a pretty stiff shot at the opposing guy in a precarious situation and only gets a minor.

Go figure. But the penalties do need to stop.

 

[puppet]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Tough loss to take, but it's better to leave the building with four points on the weekend than three (or, hell, zero, for that matter).

It'll be interesting to see the makeup of the crowd for the Michigan game next week. I'm certain it's going to be a sellout, but, given the amount of total apathy from our fanbase right now, it's pretty likely that at least one-third of our building will be in blue next Saturday.

I hope I'm wrong, but I doubt I'm going to be. If we won't buy our own tickets, they will - this is for certain.

Congrats on 1000 posts

 

[Gomer]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

I'm still trying to figure out how Rowe wasn't dinged for checking from behind in the third on that boarding call.

I mean, with this season so far, it seems like we could just look at the back of a guy's jersey and get a misconduct. Meanwhile, Rowe takes a pretty stiff shot at the opposing guy in a precarious situation and only gets a minor.

Go figure. But the penalties do need to stop.

On the contrary, I'm not even sure it was boarding. It was certainly no worse than the hit UNO laid on Gazely just up the boards from there. Sucks not having instant replay at the arena and I didn't have my radio with me either to help me color my perception of things.

 

[owslachief]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

I'm still trying to figure out how Rowe wasn't dinged for checking from behind in the third on that boarding call.

I mean, with this season so far, it seems like we could just look at the back of a guy's jersey and get a misconduct. Meanwhile, Rowe takes a pretty stiff shot at the opposing guy in a precarious situation and only gets a minor.

Go figure. But the penalties do need to stop.

Never saw the game; at a benefit dinner in Detroit and was one of those guys who keeps nodding his head during table conversation while reading EBoone's updates. And then I read "8 (MSU) penalties" - the latest for 5 mins. The nodding stopped.

Also the reported attendance number last night was appalling. I'm in a cold sweat bracing for the brazen sacrilege that will surely be committed in section E and points throughout the arena next Saturday.

 

[owslachief]

Re: Michigan State 2009-2010

Now that the Fire Comley rant has been squelched a bit for now on Red Cedar message board - there's a lone voice left, it seems - it's nice to read mostly useful stuff there now.

Nice work as usual, AAllen and the other sages.