So I began wondering a while back if losing Bryzgalov would spell doom for Phoenix ... and then he went to (and was later signed by) Philly. Then after that it is announced that the investor that had shown interest in the Coyotes was now out of the running leaving the team without a potential buyer. While not the only issue, could losing Ilya Bryzgalov spell the end of hockey in the desert?
Many people will say that hockey just couldn't work in Phoenix. That's a load if you ask me. It can and has, but when it was decided that the arena would be built in Glendale where it sits, rather than in Phoenix itself, a major mistake was made. Instead of having a central location where it was easy for everyone to attend games they put the team an hour drive or better for many of their fans "across town". Given people's busy schedules and desires not to drive a couple hours through the city on weeknights especially this was a horrible decision by the city. I think this alone likely has the biggest impact on the team's ability to draw in a crowd regularly.
However the fiasco with the league and trying to find a new owner hasn't helped anyone believe that hockey would be feasible in Phoenix. It isn't just in Phoenix though as you see similar situations with ownership in other cities such as Dallas and recently Atlanta. A good owner, much like a good location, can do wonders for a team. Just look to Buffalo this year for proof of that. If the team could still find a good owner they could still work, however they would still have the issue of location but it could work.
However by not being able to keep their star goalie in town is that the straw that breaks the Coyote back? The team doesn't have any stars, and do things more by committee. This makes it harder for the team to bring fans to watch that "exciting player" and have that guy to really follow. Yandle, who just re-signed which is great for the team, and Doan are both great, great players but they are blue collar guys who don't get the big headlines. Bryz was that guy, the guy who stole games and made them a challenge to play against every night. He wasn't a real star but he was the #1 guy in Phoenix.
Now you remove him and replace him with someone of lesser ability, and let's be honest in that no one they have or have brought in are near his level, and the team is weaker in goal. They weren't a great offensive team already and didn't improve there so don't expect a bailout up front. They will still rely on their defense and their team play, but the Coyotes are definitely not as strong now as they were last year. If the team starts losing more games, and they don't have that goalie to steal them one here and there, then fans are less likely to make that drive across town and then all the way back afterwards than they were before. Fewer ticket sales isn't going to lead to improved interest from anyone to purchase the team.
So with Bryzgalov gone does that lead to the end of Phoenix? A bad location for the arena, failure to find ownership, and now a team that doesn't have their star goalie and will likely struggle next year, not only to win games but to get people in the seats because of increased on-ice struggles and things don't look good in the desert. I hate to say it, especially after having just seen one team up and move, but we could be watching the last season of Coyote hockey being played in Arizona. I hope I'm wrong, but don't be surprised if talk starts soon about where the team could be playing as soon as next season.
No comments:
Post a Comment