The Examiner’s Brian McNally has a terrifically thoughtful blog file today on the Ilya Kovalchuk/hockey in Atlanta distress. I’m on record here as alleging that the jury’s come in on this second puck experiment in NASCAR country, and that the verdict isn’t pretty. McNally sees the situation much as I do, and captures the trauma to the South succinctly:
“Conventional wisdom is that [trading Kovalchuk] will cripple the Thrashers in Atlanta. I’m not so sure. What exactly have they done with Kovalchuk – admitedly a great player who has scored 328 goals over the last eight years? He’s one of the sport’s elite snipers. He will play a key role for Russia in next month’s Olympics. But in no way is his presence packing Philips Arena. Every time Caps beat writers Tarik El Bashir (Washington Post) and Corey Masisak (late of the Washington Times) went down to the ATL they inevitably tweeted pictures of horrendous crowds just minutes before the puck dropped.
“My point: How can you kill something that is already dead?”
I especially liked McNally’s deft analysis of the relative strength of the remainder of the Thrasher roster — there is talent there. So you’ve got young talent, a dynamic star (whom as McNally notes has been there eight years), a mediocre record, and still the very real possibility of finishing second in the division and qualifying for the postseason– all resulting in one of the emptiest buildings in the league.
McNally’s yet to arrive at the conclusion I have: that the team must be relocated as part of a Southeast demolition, its roster embraced with a ticket waiting list way up North. In fact, McNally suggests that the Thrashers could emulate the Caps in building a skilled and dynamic roster that’s allowed to mature together. One problem, though: their Ovechkin (Kovalchuk) is set to pack his bags. Star-less hockey can survive and even thrive in Minnesota; not Atlanta. If the hockey rink is empty with Kovy, what will it look like without him, when the Thrash roster, while perhaps young and skilled, would have to be marketed in a deep South sports-rich market with the promise of We’ll get it right one of these days? If you were a savvy Atlanta sports consumer, would you wager on Don Waddell and this ownership group pulling that off?
3 Comments
Jim Balsillie, call your office. There are underserved markets with good arenas waiting to be filled, since Atlanta has NEVER proven itself to be a good hockey market. If Balsillie’s burned bridges are not yet rebuilt, then Kansas City, Las Vegas (not sure about them) and, especially Oklahoma City (home to the newest NBA franchise and a very successful CHL minor league hockey market) would make fine homes for the Thrashers. I’m sure there are others.
I live in Atlanta and am a lifelong Isles fan and go to the Arena 2 times a year. Star power is not the issue, a winner is. The building was pack 2 years ago when they played the Rangers. In this town winners get supported, losers dont. Braves didnt draw until they started winning and same with the Falcons and this is a football hotbed. Kovi is a star in Hockey circles, but those seats will be sold with a quality product with or without him.
I lived in Atlanta for 20+ years and you have to understand that it is a very transient town. The city doesn’t have the home-grown fan base most other markets thrive on. And those are the ones who support the team in good and bad times. Professional sports in the area have long suffered from poor managment, partiularly when owners, with little expertise, were over involved. Face, it the predominant big business sport in the area is SEC football. I think a minor league team would be good for the market.
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