No news is bad news

Well, its been a week now and there is not much on the single A landscape happening. These teams don't realize that they are missing valuable advertising time.

No team announcements

I am very surprised the MAHL has not announced Jamestown, NY and Morristown, NJ. They really need a fourth team announced ASAP. From a PR stand point all I ever hear from people I speak with is "they only have three teams, thats not a league".

HockeyOps.com

I am in the advanced stages of launching a platform for real fantasy hockey. HockeyOps.com will allow fans to pay a yearly fee and become fan-managers of a real hockey team. Below is a general idea of the offer.

The $500 Package

• A season pass to live video of team home games.
• Official promotional items. Such as a replica jersey and bobble head.
• A vote in important team decisions.
• Private team discussion area.
• Official staff reports.

Our goal is to get involved with a single A franchise. With a target of 500 fan-managers we will have enough investment to get this going.

In the time being you can purchase items from our store at CafePress.com/hockeyinvestor. We need to sell 200 items to fund our first round of advertising.

Name game winners.

IndianaIceMiners.com

WoosterWarriors.com

I have got to say, these are a bit corny. The marketing range of these names is the problem. Warrior is fairly bland, and there is no such thing as an "Ice Miner". Teams really shoot themselves in the foot when they don't get creative.

You have to think of things like slogans and advertising campaigns. What kind of slogan has Ice Miner in it? "Digging in for goals, Ice Miners?"

Add on top of that the same cookie cutter websites and you just don't come across that your in this for the long haul.

Name the team.

Lets play a little game called name the team. Here is what I have found so far.

Owned by Andrew Haines

IndianaIceHawks.com
IndianaIceMiners.com

WoosterWarriors.com

(Surprised I didn't find any York candidates, does anyone know of another area they could call the team by?)

Owned by Theodore Haddad Jr, the man trying to build a sports complex in Danbury.

DanburyHatTricks.com
DanburyBruins.com
DanburyDevils.com
DanburyRangers.com (the most recent name registered)

And from the can't trace the ownership department

CTTrashers.com was register on the 12th of June, 2007
NewEnglandTrashers.com was then also registered by the same group.

TheTrashers.com was obtained by another party on the 11th of June, 2007

TrashersHockey.com got picked up anonymously on the 12th of April, 2007

I'll dig some more tomorrow.

Baltimore, MD - The forbidden planet.

Word has it an ownership group approached the SPHL about putting a team in Baltimore, MD. The SPHL rejected them due to regional structure. Perhaps its time for a new brand of single A hockey to give it a try.

We do know that they are willing to work with smaller league teams, the ABA announced a team will be playing there next season.

The 1st Mariner Arena has never been successful at housing hockey, but it has also never been in a league that was designed to lower the costs for all involved. The arena is huge, it seats 11,000 for hockey, why not turn this burden into a blessing.

Instead of trying to get 1,000 people to give you $12, why not sell $6 tickets and try for 2,000 fans. With $150 season tickets it will be a lot easier to get fans in the doors.

Give the marketing to an agency and let them keep 60% of what they sell. Run some gimmicks and try to get some big games. A few thousand extra fans for a handful of games would be gravy on the budget.

If the Arena is giving the team a cut of concessions, another trick that they used to do in Fresno is to find large local employers (1000 plus employees) and let them buy tickets for $1-2. Try for a 3,000 person group. A lot of times the fans kids wont really know the sport so they will be all over the place, which always leads to concessions sales. If you get 10% of the fans to come back, thats 300 people.

It's defiantly an creative, but as I have talked about before, that needs to be the cornerstone of this level.

Quiet on the front

It's a little quite on the MAHL front. I am sort of surprised as I expected some kind of announcement today.

The last thing they need to do is to announce another team with no ownership. That kind of thing sets the league back two steps every time. I'd rather they come out and just say the league will be operating a few of the teams the first season. Put one decent Director of Business OP's in charge of all the teams, hire coaches for personnel decisions and announce the teams will not be allowed to make trades with each other. If the league is going to prop up some teams, mind as well cut costs and centralize a few things.

I personally think it would be smart for a single owner to own a few Far East markets (wow, there is a new use for the term Far East). Maybe Danbury, New Haven County (Hamden) and Utica.

Spend on marketing people and coaches for each team, but let the money be managed by one office. It would be better to hire top people in one 3 person business office, then hire 9 lower quality people.

Single A hockey is going to need to have a more creative approach to everything, why not the front office as well.

New Haven County (Hamden)

There is a 1,000 seat city owned rink in Hamden, CT that may be a good market to bridge the gap for a coastal division. Let them play each other a bunch.

Perhaps work with Yale to play a game there once or twice a season. Have the Yale games included in the season ticket package, but have the rest $5. Try to sell the rink out.

I'm not a huge fan of putting a team in such a small rink, but I think the travel savings could be enough to make it worth it. The team will need a large season ticket holder base. As much as 80% of capacity in season tickets.

Free Sweet Name

Danbury Carnivore
Indiana Carnivore
Utica Carnivore

Mascot(s) a group called the Carnivores.

A Bear , a Tiger and a Lion

League Meetings

Looks like the MAHL league meetings will be on the June 30th and July 1st. Curious to see what teams will be in attendance there in Wooster, OH.

I'm guessing this season will look something like.

Jamestown, NY
Danbury, CT
Mon Valley, PA
Wooster, OH
TBA, NJ

Outside of that there will probably be a team in Indiana, PA or some other small market just to get the numbers to 6. If the league is going to prop-up a team, I would do it in Utica, NY instead of Indiana, PA. There is so much more opportunity in Utica and it would be helpful to Danbury and the NJ team.

Two new teams to be announced.

Word has it Jamestown, NY and a NJ market will be announced soon. This could bridge the gap for Danbury.

Jamestown is going to be a premier player in this league, look for the team to average 2,000 or so fans per game.

Who are the players? Why is this needed?

Your probably wondering what magical pool of players will appear for this new brand of single A hockey. The truth is, this hockey is not going to be of spectacular quality. However, with a little effort by the teams, the whole experience should provide an entertaining product.

There is a pool of players who have that major league dream, but have no where to play once their college and junior eligibility expires. I'd imagine a lot of these players will play only a season or two in this league, luckily there is always going to be a new crop of 21-25 year olds who don't want to quit playing hockey.

As long as the teams can provide a fun experience for the fans, why not give these players an outlet?

The NHL needs this brand of hockey to exist. They need kids going to games and growing up thinking of hockey as a spectator sport. They need the $8 pro hockey ticket that minor league baseball enjoys.

Stretching West, Geneva, IL

Geneva, IL

Fox Valley Ice Arena
Seats 2,500
Population: 400k in the county, its a suburb of Chicago.

I have always thought single A will need to become a regional affair. Four to six team divisions that mostly play against each other and meet only for the play-offs. Much like the ECHL, only the teams that can afford to travel would be asked to. Or, teams can offer to pay a percentage of the other teams travel costs to bring them over.

Perhaps throw together a Danville(IL) , Geneva (IL), St Charles (MO) and Madison (WI) division. Those last two rinks are a little bigger then needed, but potential to draw is better as well.

Flint, MI and other UHL Markets

With the possible demise of the UHL, I think it would be wise for the MAHL to go after a few of the markets.

Flint has a fan base and a sponsor base, perhaps they should join a league where they have the finances to compete every season. If they would switch to the single A brand, I think a case could be made for Port Huron to come to.

Fort Wayne, Kalamazoo and Muskegon can jump to the CHL to join Youngstown(OH). Bloomington can go USHL like the ownership always wanted to.

Detroit and Findlay

All I can say is stay tuned.

Danbury , CT - Out of the way, desperate to play.

The fans of Danbury are desperate for pro hockey to return after the demise of the UHL Trashers. To top it off, the 3005 seat Danbury Ice Arena has been reported as an exceptional place to watch a hockey game.

There are two problems though.

First, can a new ownership group be found to take a risk in a media tainted market? The answer to this is simple, they just need to find ownership partners that advertise in the local media. The news will cover the team if they have a threat of losing advertising dollars. Give them little to no risk, with little to no profit. A symbolic ownership per say.

Second, will travel prevent the rest of the teams from excepting this team? There are a few solutions to this as well. Either get in this season and avoid any scrutiny or help the visiting teams out with travel.

I know the fans are ready to show up. It's whether or not the sponsors, media and visiting teams are ready to.

The Enigma that is Utica

Utica is a puzzler. The city has had many incarnations of minor league hockey. From the AA ACHL and UHL, to the AAA AHL. But the market has always been just a step behind in financial support.

The real question is, will people show up for the single A product? If 2,500-3,000 people could show up to the 4,000 seat Utica Memorial Auditorium, this would be one of the marquee franchises in the league.

Jamestown, NY

Jamestown , NY is the poster child for single A hockey. Everything from the newish 2,500 seat Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena , to the 130k regional population that generally knows hockey.
There is a group that in the past has been interested in bringing single A hockey to the city. They even have a decent name, Jamestown Juggernauts and a legacy website still up and running. This group is aware of the MAHL and my hope is they will get on board.

Mentioned Markets

These are markets mentioned in news articles as focused on by the league.

York, PA

York City Ice Arena
Seats 1000
Population: 400k in the county

Prospects - Not sure if the rink allows beer. This could make the city a no-go. The media will probably cover the team. I would expect 850-900 people per game, but with that number your going to need some serious concessions. Its also harder to get sponsors if they know the max they will reach is 1000 fans. I'd love to see a plan for a team to succeed in a market like this, I'm just not sure how it can happen.

Danville, IL

David S Palmer Arena
Seats 2,350
Population: 85k

Prospects - The arena would be optimal for this level. The problem is travel, the team would need to average 2,000 fans a game to support the distance to the rest of the single a markets. A few seasons from now, this will be high on the expansion list. Potential ownership just needs to see the ins and outs from a successful franchise.

Canonsburg, PA

Reported to be unavailable for the 07-08 season.

The Others.

Troy, OH

Hobart Arena
Seats 3,782
Population: 100k in the area

Prospects - Would be competing with Dayton ECHL, which doesn't draw that well in the first place. Would need to work with that team to minimize conflicting dates and possible setup an affiliation of some kind.

Ithaca, NY

Lynah Rink
Seats 4,267
Population: 100k in the area plus student body of Cornell

Prospects - Competing with a very popular program at Cornell might be tough, but that team turns fans away. The city had semi-pro in the past in the arena and supported it. Not sure if the city would allow beer sales though.

West Orange, NJ

Richard J Codey Arena
Seats 2,500
Population: 800k in the area.

Prospects - The Devils use the arena for training camp, so there has to be acceptable facilities. Not sure much else about the market, but the arena should provide good old time hockey.

Port Huron, MI

McMorran Place
Seats 3,373
Population: 100k in the area.

Prospects - One of the few other markets to have recently had pro hockey. The UHL team was able to draw 1,500-2,000. With any sponsorship this could be a star at this level.

Columbus, OH

Ohio Exposition Center Coliseum
Seats 7,000
Population: 1.7 million

Prospects - The city attempted UHL hockey a few years back, the ownership group is one of minor league hockeys Angel of Deaths. The team was destined to fail at the AA level. It is entirely dependent on a good lease for this market to be viable. With 80% of concessions and cheap rent the team might have a chance. They may also need some big time hockey fan sponsors. Honestly, this team would get no media coverage and would really need a big marketing budget.

Upper Marlboro, MD

Show Place Arena
Seats 5,100
Population: 900k in the county

Prospects - An ex-ECHL arena that straddles a variety of cities. Would be tough to build a specific market brand and have to go regional. I'd imagine the rent is going to be high, but the opportunity for profit is high as well. This could be a powerhouse at the A level.

Salisbury, MD

Wicomico Civic Center
Seats 4,100
Population: 100k in the area.

Prospects - It has been said this arena doesn't allow beer sales. This will probably prevent a team from ever coming in here. The team would be the only entertainment in town and there looks to be good media coverage. If the beer issue could be overcome, the market would be prime for single A hockey.

Possible MAHL Markets

These are what I think are the optimal markets for MAHL in order of potential.

1. Findlay, OH
2. Jamestown, NY
3. Utica, NY
3 1/2. Danbury, CT
5. Detroit, MI

Below the teams are not in order.

6. Troy, OH
7. Ithaca, NY
8. West Orange, NJ
9. Port Huron, MI
10. Columbus, OH
11. Upper Marlboro, MD
12. Salisbury, MD

I'll go into detail on each market in later posts.