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Fans and the hockey club grow weary of the topic.
Yet, the attendance issue of the Ottawa Senators is not something we can just tarp over and forget. Last spring, during the Senators spectacular run to the Eastern Conference final, Ottawa’s attendance became a national story and is likely to become one again this season, judging by the soft sales for the first two home games of the season, Thursday against the Washington Capitals and Saturday versus the Detroit Red Wings.
For a better sense of the problem, the Citizen consulted NHL insiders with intimate knowledge of the Ottawa market. There are very real challenges in this marketplace, including these top factors:
Lack of a strong corporate base
This is a biggie. Ottawa’s smallish business sector serves to diminish the impact of a regional population of 1.4 million. Professional sports leagues like the NHL use a model to assess potential corporate supporters — companies with at least $5 million in sales and 25 employees are considered able to afford NHL season tickets. On this basis, Ottawa is the smallest corporate entity in the league with about 900 suitable businesses. Winnipeg, by comparison, has more than 1,700 companies from which to draw, a source says.
The Conference Board of Canada noted this about the Senators in a 2014 report on the business of pro sport:
“Ottawa has a smaller corporate sector and many fewer head offices than a city of comparable size, like Calgary,” said Glen Hodgson, the Board’s chief economist at the time. “This puts added pressure on team ownership and management to put a quality product on the rink or field.”
The Senators only get about half their season ticket support (roughly 4,000 of an estimated 8,000 season ticket holders) from corporate outlets. In the Greater Toronto Area, the Maple Leafs have the luxury of tying up about 80 per cent of their season ticket sales (roughly 13,000 of 16,000) from corporations. The massive population of the GTA fights over the remaining tickets like chickens chasing feed.
Size of venue
The Senators drew gasps from fans when they opted this summer to drape tarp over some 1,500 300-level seats to shrink the arena. In fact, the rink has always been too big for this town, as executives with the club acknowledge. When they opened the Palladium in January, 1996, the venue (capacity of 19,000-plus) was larger than the big market rinks of Toronto (still in Maple Leaf Gardens then) and Vancouver. Only the storied Montreal Canadiens played in a larger venue, the new Bell Centre. The Senators managed OK when the team was among the NHL elite from 2000-07 and selling reasonably priced tickets. In recent years, a playoff bubble team known for conservative play (with Erik Karlsson the outlier) has struggled to fill the arena, which is too big for the tiny corporate base. Walk-up crowds can’t be counted on 41 times per season, plus playoffs.
Government restrictions
For ethical reasons, government offices and employees cannot buy tickets and distribute them as perks. In addition, companies that do business with government can’t provide tickets to government staff, a huge disincentive for businesses to even bother buying season tickets. This has driven every Senators owner batty, dating back to Rod Bryden’s days. With some 144,000 employees, government remains the region’s top employer. Those employees can buy personal tickets, of course, but that does not drive season ticket sales in nearly the same way. Gone are the days when Ottawa could turn to big high-tech firms like Nortel and Corel to help close the gap. Newer IT companies are smaller and less likely to buy ads and suites. Newcomer Shopify is downtown and far from the arena.
Location, location
An oldie, but still true. Kanata is a bridge too far. The Senators themselves finally admitted this while bidding successfully to move to LeBreton Flats, ultimately. As an NHL insider points out, smaller market teams, especially, need a central location. Those that don’t — Florida, Phoenix, the New York Islanders (lost souls from suburban Long Island now in the borough of Brooklyn) — have struggled. Ticket sales have generally thrived in other smaller markets with downtown arenas, such as Buffalo, Columbus, Nashville and Minnesota.
When the LeBreton project is up and running, several years down the road, the Senators arena will be at the centre of the action, near a major transit hub and within walking distance of downtown. “Fan experience” has become a major focus at sporting events (witness the success of the CFL Ottawa Redblacks with their party atmosphere) and that experience will be heightened at LeBreton Flats. Nevertheless, the Senators need to sell tickets now and for the foreseeable future in their suburban rink.
Chronic fatigue syndrome
After two decades in Kanata, there is evidence of fatigue everywhere. Fans are weary of the driving and parking hassles and costs, weary of ownership. The decision making of owner Eugene Melnyk, known for his big personality, has at times irked fans. New club president and chief executive Tom Anselmi has his hands full, given all of the parameters above. Anselmi once presided as chief operating officer of MLSE, where opening the doors to the Air Canada Centre ensured a sellout to Leafs games.
Fans and media are tired of talking and writing about Ottawa’s myriad issues, including poor attendance. But the story won’t go away soon.
wscanlan@postmedia.com
twitter/@hockeyscanner
查看原文...
Yet, the attendance issue of the Ottawa Senators is not something we can just tarp over and forget. Last spring, during the Senators spectacular run to the Eastern Conference final, Ottawa’s attendance became a national story and is likely to become one again this season, judging by the soft sales for the first two home games of the season, Thursday against the Washington Capitals and Saturday versus the Detroit Red Wings.
For a better sense of the problem, the Citizen consulted NHL insiders with intimate knowledge of the Ottawa market. There are very real challenges in this marketplace, including these top factors:
Lack of a strong corporate base
This is a biggie. Ottawa’s smallish business sector serves to diminish the impact of a regional population of 1.4 million. Professional sports leagues like the NHL use a model to assess potential corporate supporters — companies with at least $5 million in sales and 25 employees are considered able to afford NHL season tickets. On this basis, Ottawa is the smallest corporate entity in the league with about 900 suitable businesses. Winnipeg, by comparison, has more than 1,700 companies from which to draw, a source says.
The Conference Board of Canada noted this about the Senators in a 2014 report on the business of pro sport:
“Ottawa has a smaller corporate sector and many fewer head offices than a city of comparable size, like Calgary,” said Glen Hodgson, the Board’s chief economist at the time. “This puts added pressure on team ownership and management to put a quality product on the rink or field.”
The Senators only get about half their season ticket support (roughly 4,000 of an estimated 8,000 season ticket holders) from corporate outlets. In the Greater Toronto Area, the Maple Leafs have the luxury of tying up about 80 per cent of their season ticket sales (roughly 13,000 of 16,000) from corporations. The massive population of the GTA fights over the remaining tickets like chickens chasing feed.
Size of venue
The Senators drew gasps from fans when they opted this summer to drape tarp over some 1,500 300-level seats to shrink the arena. In fact, the rink has always been too big for this town, as executives with the club acknowledge. When they opened the Palladium in January, 1996, the venue (capacity of 19,000-plus) was larger than the big market rinks of Toronto (still in Maple Leaf Gardens then) and Vancouver. Only the storied Montreal Canadiens played in a larger venue, the new Bell Centre. The Senators managed OK when the team was among the NHL elite from 2000-07 and selling reasonably priced tickets. In recent years, a playoff bubble team known for conservative play (with Erik Karlsson the outlier) has struggled to fill the arena, which is too big for the tiny corporate base. Walk-up crowds can’t be counted on 41 times per season, plus playoffs.
Government restrictions
For ethical reasons, government offices and employees cannot buy tickets and distribute them as perks. In addition, companies that do business with government can’t provide tickets to government staff, a huge disincentive for businesses to even bother buying season tickets. This has driven every Senators owner batty, dating back to Rod Bryden’s days. With some 144,000 employees, government remains the region’s top employer. Those employees can buy personal tickets, of course, but that does not drive season ticket sales in nearly the same way. Gone are the days when Ottawa could turn to big high-tech firms like Nortel and Corel to help close the gap. Newer IT companies are smaller and less likely to buy ads and suites. Newcomer Shopify is downtown and far from the arena.
Location, location
An oldie, but still true. Kanata is a bridge too far. The Senators themselves finally admitted this while bidding successfully to move to LeBreton Flats, ultimately. As an NHL insider points out, smaller market teams, especially, need a central location. Those that don’t — Florida, Phoenix, the New York Islanders (lost souls from suburban Long Island now in the borough of Brooklyn) — have struggled. Ticket sales have generally thrived in other smaller markets with downtown arenas, such as Buffalo, Columbus, Nashville and Minnesota.
When the LeBreton project is up and running, several years down the road, the Senators arena will be at the centre of the action, near a major transit hub and within walking distance of downtown. “Fan experience” has become a major focus at sporting events (witness the success of the CFL Ottawa Redblacks with their party atmosphere) and that experience will be heightened at LeBreton Flats. Nevertheless, the Senators need to sell tickets now and for the foreseeable future in their suburban rink.
Chronic fatigue syndrome
After two decades in Kanata, there is evidence of fatigue everywhere. Fans are weary of the driving and parking hassles and costs, weary of ownership. The decision making of owner Eugene Melnyk, known for his big personality, has at times irked fans. New club president and chief executive Tom Anselmi has his hands full, given all of the parameters above. Anselmi once presided as chief operating officer of MLSE, where opening the doors to the Air Canada Centre ensured a sellout to Leafs games.
Fans and media are tired of talking and writing about Ottawa’s myriad issues, including poor attendance. But the story won’t go away soon.
wscanlan@postmedia.com
twitter/@hockeyscanner
查看原文...
