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New XL Center

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How about fixing Gampel's roof, first. Kind of a pressing concern.
 
This arena would need a tenant to justify it's cost for the time being and it's not going to be the Arena Football League. It's going to be UConn. Our hockey games proved to be very successful draws in Hartford. Have to develop according to hand of cards dealt. I think UConn may have on campus facilities again, some day. If this goes through, that is.

Glad to hear this state is booming. I knew it can't sink.
 
brasssbonanzaa said:
fwiw, the "cheaper" option is still basically a new arena - still costs $250-300 million, just not a new structure, no demolition costs, and wouldn't displace UConn/AHL for three years (which I'd be fine with.) It would certainly not appear to just be a Band-Aid solution.
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Just saw the renderings and it looks to me like they're using the same seating bowl even the ridiculously high nosebleeds on that one end of the arena and the seats under the sky boxes where you cant see the scoreboard.
 
The Viking said:
They supported them about as well as you can "reasonably" expect them to. The Whale was awful for the vast majority of their existence here.
Why do you continue to refuse to acknowledge that fact? Because it hurts your argument about an NHL team having no shot here?
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First off, it's not a fact. Second, I've ignored it because it's a stupid misinformed statement.

Buffalo is a small market team. Worst record in the NHL so far this season. Feb 10, a Tuesday night, home against .500 Ottawa? The attendance was 19,070. Thursday, January 15, home against Minnesota? The attendance was 18,963. What's your excuse now?

Hartford doesn't get a pass for not showing up because the team sucked. It's a sports town with fans.
 
FartMan69 said:
Just saw the renderings and it looks to me like they're using the same seating bowl even the ridiculously high nosebleeds on that one end of the arena and the seats under the sky boxes where you cant see the scoreboard.
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Now that you mention it that does appear to be the case. The corners are still open and the large columns are still visable. I hope that does not end up being built.
 
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Deepster said:
First off, it's not a fact. Second, I've ignored it because it's a stupid misinformed statement.

Buffalo is a small market team. Worst record in the NHL so far this season. Feb 10, a Tuesday night, home against .500 Ottawa? The attendance was 19,070. Thursday, January 15, home against Minnesota? The attendance was 18,963. What's your excuse now?

Hartford doesn't get a pass for not showing up because the team sucked. It's a sports town with fans.
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Buffalo has a history dating back to 1970 and has made 3 cup finals. And a local owner committed to the area. Want a comparison? Nashville. Similar market size, newer franchise had awful start, bad ownership, poor attendance. Than what happened? New owner, winning team, full house. Hartford never got that much needed owner. Keep singling out Hartford though, please.
 
FartMan69 said:
Buffalo has a history dating back to 1970 and has made 3 cup finals. And a local owner committed to the area. Want a comparison? Nashville. Similar market size, newer franchise had awful start, bad ownership, poor attendance. Than what happened? New owner, winning team, full house. Hartford never got that much needed owner. Keep singling out Hartford though, please.
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They made the Cup finals in 1999 and 1975. You're telling me they get 19,000 fans on a Tuesday or Thursday against middle of the road opponents because of that? They were 21-51 last season and are 16-37 so far this year. Keep spinning your Hartford excuses.
 
I just don't see any way they can do the cheaper option. The building is a disaster. Small footprint, horrible sight lines, steep as heck seating etc. They can't go cheap on this, it has to be a new state of the art building.
 
Deepster said:
They made the Cup finals in 1999 and 1975. You're telling me they get 19,000 fans on a Tuesday or Thursday against middle of the road opponents because of that? They were 21-51 last season and are 16-37 so far this year. Keep spinning your Hartford excuses.
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They have multiple generations of fans who have seen success! That goes a long way. What don't you understand? If the Whale made or won the cup in 86 or 87 the team would still be here. You didn't even address my Nashville example but i look forward to you dismissing it as "dumb" because it doesn't support your weird hate for your own Market.
 
From the Courant on the recommendations made -

While it may make some extra money for UConn, I don't like how (as predicted) Hartford's problem with the XL Center becomes UConn's problem. Plus, it takes away from the on-campus (student) experience. Sure, UConn hokey is a hot ticket right now; but, lets say they look more like UMass than BC in the win loss column after 4 or 5 years and the fans stop coming. What then? Does this 'lock' all of the major UConn basketball games into the new XL prohibiting UConn from playing at MSG/Barclays/Prudential once or twice a year? Plus, like before, bet on the student section being able to touch the ceiling yet again while corporate big wigs sit quietly in the front row working on their Ashley Madison account for a meet and greet at the Hilton during the second half.

"Recommends that the University of Connecticut become a partner in the XL Center, rather than a tenant as it is now. A partnership would require UConn to play most of its high-profile basketball and ice hockey matchups in Hartford and to overhaul how it sells tickets and to enter joint marketing agreements. In exchange, UConn would reap a share in the overall — and presumably higher — revenues from its events, not just ticket sales. The partnership would run at least 20 years."​
 
FartMan69 said:
They have multiple generations of fans who have seen success! That goes a long way. What don't you understand? If the Whale made or won the cup in 86 or 87 the team would still be here. You didn't even address my Nashville example but i look forward to you dismissing it as "dumb" because it doesn't support your weird hate for your own Market.
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Hartford has 25 years running of UConn success. Four national titles in fifteen years. That doesn't even get 10,000 fans in the XL center against a crappy team. But the Sabres get 19,000 fans because they made the Stanley Cup finals in 1999?
 
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Mr. Conehead said:
From the Courant on the recommendations made -

While it may make some extra money for UConn, I don't like how (as predicted) Hartford's problem with the XL Center becomes UConn's problem. Plus, it takes away from the on-campus (student) experience. Sure, UConn hokey is a hot ticket right now; but, lets say they look more like UMass than BC in the win loss column after 4 or 5 years and the fans stop coming. What then? Does this 'lock' all of the major UConn basketball games into the new XL prohibiting UConn from playing at MSG/Barclays/Prudential once or twice a year? Plus, like before, bet on the student section being able to touch the ceiling yet again while corporate big wigs sit quietly in the front row working on their Ashley Madison account for a meet and greet at the Hilton during the second half.

"Recommends that the University of Connecticut become a partner in the XL Center, rather than a tenant as it is now. A partnership would require UConn to play most of its high-profile basketball and ice hockey matchups in Hartford and to overhaul how it sells tickets and to enter joint marketing agreements. In exchange, UConn would reap a share in the overall — and presumably higher — revenues from its events, not just ticket sales. The partnership would run at least 20 years."​
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Why would UConn want to play in Barklays, Prudential, MSG?
 
Hope everyone here doesn't mind significantly higher ticket prices, because that's a given with either option.
 
As I stated earlier, I have no problem with the set up with Hartford and Gampel.

Yeah, in an ideal world we would play on campus but given the nature of the state that just won't happen.

Yeah taking a bus kind of sucks for the 4 years on campus. But crying out loud it's a 30 minute bus ride to see a basketball game when you're a student. It's not that big of a deal.

As far as the Whalers? Good luck getting the Bruins, Rangers, Islanders and even Devils signing off on that without a huge check.
 
Deepster said:
Hartford has 25 years running of UConn success. Four national titles in fifteen years. That doesn't even get 10,000 fans in the XL center against a crappy team. But the Sabres get 19,000 fans because they made the Stanley Cup finals in 1999?
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Now we're comparing pro hockey with a college basketball game against Coppin State? K
 
ConnHuskBask said:
As far as the Whalers? Good luck getting the Bruins, Rangers, Islanders and even Devils signing off on that without a huge check.
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I forgot the exact number but none of those teams can legally block expansion/relocation in a certain radius and Hartford is outside of it.
 
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FfldCntyFan said:
84 going through Hartford isn't great but it wasn't a major problem. 91 basically eliminating Hartford's entire riverfront was stupidity at a monumental level.
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Bingo, 91 was the problem and short of a Big Dig-style project, it's not going anywhere.

Hartford needs to build this arena for Hartford, with an impetus to grow the city, grow the economy, attract concerts, events, tradeshows, and maybe one day the Whalers will come home. It cannot build this arena as a pawn to get UConn to bail them out of sucking as a city - that's another Band-Aid solution that doesn't fix the underlying problem. The report addresses the problem, people view Hartford as an unattractive city, a minor league city (only exacerbated by this ridiculous minor league baseball stadium), pretty much on par with the likes of Worcester and Springfield.
 
Deepster said:
First off, it's not a fact. Second, I've ignored it because it's a stupid misinformed statement.

Buffalo is a small market team. Worst record in the NHL so far this season. Feb 10, a Tuesday night, home against .500 Ottawa? The attendance was 19,070. Thursday, January 15, home against Minnesota? The attendance was 18,963. What's your excuse now?

Hartford doesn't get a pass for not showing up because the team sucked. It's a sports town with fans.
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It's not a fact? The Whale had 3 seasons over .500. 2 of those 3 they were only 4 games and 5 games over .500.
The last 5 years he they didn't make the playoffs in a league where it's not that hard. The 6 years before that they were eliminated in the first round. Only once in 18 years did they get past the first round.
Over 18 years they were a whopping 175 games under 500.

Yes, Buffalo has sucked the past two years but they have been a very good NHL team for decades.

I'm surprised you don't know this because it appears you are taking some time to do SOME research. Unfortunately it appears to be very selective. And I'm still blown away at the passion you have as a self-proclaimed Whalers fan who thinks that Hartford's hockey market deserves no second chance.
 
Hartford is on the rise fellas.

People from all over central CT will be coming in droves via the bus way to watch minor league baseball in downtown Hartford.
 
Speaking of Buffalo's attendance despite having a bad year - I just went on StubHub to look at a Sunday night game and there are some VERY good seats for dirt cheap.

For example lower bowl seats as low as $28, upper bowl seats as cheap as 11. And judging by the view on StubHub those upper level seats have really nice views.
 
TheDoggPound said:
Who are we to say it won't work when Friemuth has the figures in front of him and believes it can? Keep in mind this guy was not gung-ho from the beginning but has come around. Also the investors mulling around seem to think the numbers work as well. The obstacle is the facility. These people have more insight than us and they think it can work.
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People who don't have a direct stake in increasing the size CRDA? Tell you what if it can built with private money, I'll be the biggest cheerleader for the project.
 
ConnHuskBask said:
Hartford is on the rise fellas.

People from all over central CT will be coming in droves via the bus way to watch minor league baseball in downtown Hartford.
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I don't live in CT anymore and I plan on catching a game there.
 
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CL82 said:
I don't live in CT anymore and I plan on catching a game there.
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I'm sure the minor league experience will be fine.

But that's just what it is - minor league. Just like Hartford always will be.

Busways, millions on minor league stadiums, the half XL Renovations.

They all scream, small time. I don't even hate Hartford, just calling a spade a spade.
 
FfldCntyFan said:
84 going through Hartford isn't great but it wasn't a major problem. 91 basically eliminating Hartford's entire riverfront was stupidity at a monumental level.
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Dumbest move ever, Hartford sits on the beautiful Connecticut river and they decide to build a freakin interstate blocking the city from the water, mindnumbingly dumb.
 
Deepster said:
Hartford doesn't get a pass for not showing up because the team sucked. It's a sports town with fans.
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Pittsburgh was a worse hockey market than Hartford until Mario appeared. Yearly attendance ranges from 6K-11K. If a Karmanos took the Penguins away pre-Lemieux, you would be sitting here dumping on them as an awful hockey market as well. No one calls them an awful hockey market today.

http://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph.php?tmi=7475
 
ConnHuskBask said:
I'm sure the minor league experience will be fine.

But that's just what it is - minor league. Just like Hartford always will be.

Busways, millions on minor league stadiums, the half XL Renovations.

They all scream, small time. I don't even hate Hartford, just calling a spade a spade.
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Bullseye. And the more UConn associates with this minor league city, the more minor league UConn will be. We're not Louisville, who plays in a downtown arena in a minor league city, they're already located there. We're willfully exporting our athletics 25 miles away to play in a rundown dump of an arena in a city who's grand plans include AA baseball, a giant grocery store, and a bus lane. That doesn't scream B1G, that screams AAC.
 
The Viking said:
Pittsburgh was a worse hockey market than Hartford until Mario appeared. Yearly attendance ranges from 6K-11K. If a Karmanos took the Penguins away pre-Lemieux, you would be sitting here dumping on them as an awful hockey market as well. No one calls them an awful hockey market today.

http://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph.php?tmi=7475
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Only two of the seasons the Whalers existed would their average attendance be in last place this season. And this is with the present day attendance numbers that are massively fudged.
http://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph.php?tmi=6045
http://espn.go.com/nhl/attendance
 
The Viking said:
Pittsburgh was a worse hockey market than Hartford until Mario appeared. Yearly attendance ranges from 6K-11K. If a Karmanos took the Penguins away pre-Lemieux, you would be sitting here dumping on them as an awful hockey market as well. No one calls them an awful hockey market today.

http://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph.php?tmi=7475
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What you guys are overlooking is that cities like Pittsburgh, Boston, Chicago....support other major league franchises. The Penguins or Bruins in a down year aren't the only game in town. Hartford has NOTHING else and still couldn't get 10k at their games.

Ill tell you what. When I'm wrong, the NHL moves a team here and they draw well? I'll admit I am wrong. Until then, keep your excuses spinning and your head stuck in the sand.
 
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