NHL lockout could help the Abbotsford Heat
Posted September 14, 2012 8:03 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
ABBOTSFORD (NEWS1130) – It has come to this, again; the NHL appears poised for a fourth lockout as both the owners and the players seem locked in a collective bargaining standoff.
However, the work stoppage may actually help a struggling local hockey team: the Abbotsford Heat of the American Hockey League.
The Calgary Flames’ farm club has struggled since moving to the Fraser Valley a few seasons back, often playing to half-empty houses at the taxpayer-subsidized Abbotsford Entertainment and Sports Centre.
The team has averaged 3,500 fans in the 7,000-seat venue, numbers management thinks can improve upon in a lockout year.
“We have suites, we have a restaurant, we have pretty much everything that people come to expect at a high level and the goal is to really increase that crowd opportunity this season,” explains club president Ryan Walter.
He adds the Heat is an affordable, family-friendly option, especially in the absence of any other pro-hockey this season.
“We have a number of initiatives that we sort of have underway for this season, independent of what happens at the NHL level. But, obviously, if things do happen, we’ll try to increase those increase those or sort of step up some of these initiatives,” adds Walter.
Working in the team’s favour is the fact that 10 of its first 13 games this season are at home.
On October 19th and 20th, the Canucks’ farm club, the Chicago Wolves, will be in Abbotsford; former Canucks Geoff Courtnall and Cliff Ronning will be there on the 19th to sign autographs.
The Heat is also now in a new division, which means the farm clubs for the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs will visit the Valley four times this year, instead of twice.
