Attendance at Carolina Hurricanes’ games are the lowest they’ve been in any season since coming to Raleigh in 1999. With the team having lost twice as many games as it has won, attendance is just over 12,000 a game with the trend being even more downward.
Is the love affair with hockey over in North Carolina? Attendance is down 3,000 per game from last season and 5,000 per game from two years ago.
When the Hurricanes lost to the New Jersey Devils 2-1 at home recently, they fell to 8-16-3 overall and 1-4 on the home stand. Attendance was 9,815 – about half of capacity.
Certainly a couple of down years can hurt attendance, so can the economy. Injuries and youth have hurt the Canes. A lot of coaching and front office changes slows development as well, even if it becomes a positive.
Right now the Hurricanes really need to score more goals – even if they lose – and they need to play with enthusiasm. Of course, boisterous crowds help with the excitement so it’s a chicken or egg situation.
“It’s all about scoring goals,” the Hurricanes’ Nathan Gerbe said. “You have to score more than the other team to win, and that’s what we didn’t do.”
The Hurricanes have been taking more shots than their opponents but not scoring. Why is that?
“That’s the million-dollar question right now,” head coach Bill Peters said. “We’ve got to find the answers and be solution-based.
The Hurricanes’ Jeff Skinner says the team isn’t working hard enough. “Everyone in here wants to win,” Skinner said. “When you find ways to lose, it’s tough and frustrating.”
There are lots of ways for families to spend their money, especially during the Christmas season. If the Hurricanes don’t start scoring some goals and winning some games, the question is going to get louder and louder – will North Carolina continue to support hockey?
It would be as a shame for the Hurricanes – a team that brought tailgating to the NHL and a team that has had perhaps the loudest fans during Stanley Cup runs – to leave Raleigh. But as things are now, how long would it take for the average person to know they are gone?