Attendance in Atlanta hovered around 83% capacity, for Thrashers games.
This despite:
-Horrible Arena, that was one of the worst venues in the NHL
-Little marketing efforts by Turner or Atlanta Spirit Group (ASG)
-ASG had no interest in the NHL, when they purchased the Hawks, Phillips, and the Thrashers from Turner. They put little budget into the Thrashers
-LOCATION! The arena location was solid for the NBA and terrible for the NHL. The population in the Northern Suburbs are the fans that want to see games. Fans in Forsyth, Gwinnett, and Fulton, has to fight traffic for 2+ hours to attend a game.
Why it will succeed now
-Arena proposed is a state of the art arena in a development that is a work, live, and play community.
-Location, Forsyth County is one of the fastest growing counties in the US. Many people moving into this area are Northern Transplants, and the 400 corridor is loaded with northern transplants who where the bulk of the Thrashers season ticket holders.
-Growth in hockey. Youth Leagues continue to grow, and have done so for 20+ years. The ECHL Team in Gwinnett continues to have solid attendance. UGA's Men's hockey Team continues to see solid attendance.
-Both ownership groups have members that have been in ownership groups for other teams.