Which top ten NHL cities are the most hockey crazy right now?

[Lunatik]

What junior teams are in Toronto?
Marlies are very much on the radar.

Attendance is decent for the Marlies don't get me wrong, but for the "center of the hockey universe" not to be selling out a 7850 seat arena and finishing behind the Charlotte Checkers, San Antonio Rampage and Ontario Reign is not exactly what I would call "very much on the radar", maybe you pay attention to them, but not enough people go to make that claim IMO.

Also outside of Toronto, many consider Mississauga to be apart of the greater Toronto area. So the Steelheads drawing 3rd worst in the OHL, doesn't help the image.

 

[lawrence]

The Toronto Maple Leafs have a fantastic fanbase and I said so in my post. My own opinion that Edmonton is more hockey mad than Toronto is because on a per capita basis I think Edmonton fans care more. No doubt there's more Leafs fans, I just think Edmonton fans are more hardcore. This doesn't take anything away from Toronto, like I said in my original post, it is a legendary hockey city. I have a suspicion you know very little about Edmonton and probably have spent very little time there and know little about hockey culture in the city. I've lived in Edmonton for 20+ years, lived in Vancouver, visited Toronto 15+ times and have family there who are Leafs fans, and currently live in Montreal. I have pretty good experience within all the major Canadian cities, my own personal opinion is that no fanbase can match Edmonton's passion on a per capita basis.



Have you spent much time in Western Canada? Doesn't seem like it, because most people (even Flames and Vancouver fans) don't really agree with you. Yes the Canucks are worth more than the Oilers and generate more money. But the greater Vancouver area is almost 4x bigger than the greater Edmonton area. Literally nobody on earth that understands Western Canadian hockey will think that Vancouver is a true blue hockey city in the way that Edmonton is. There are great Canucks fans, many of which don't live in Vancouver. Vancouver is one of the greatest cities in the world to live in, I love the city, but it is nowhere close to the hockey town that Edmonton is, and I think anyone that knows Canadian hockey understands this. Vancouver has many beautiful things that Edmonton does not, insane passion for hockey is most definitely not one of them. Also not sure where you got the info for attendance numbers. Edmonton had perfect attendance in the darkest days imaginable and some of the league's highest ticket prices. Vancouver didn't sell out last season with 97% attendance. Edmonton hasn't had a number that low since 2001, despite having 1/4 of the population.


With all this said, all Canadian cities have the potential for great atmospheres and I like them all. I just stick to my guns that Edmonton is one of the most hockey mad places on the planet. I will also admit I might've underrated Calgary's fan base, but I maintain that Edmonton has the clear edge in hockey passion

as usual when an Edmontonian talk about Vancouver or an Albertan. Most of what they are saying is incorrect. no wait, love it how your trashing other die hard hockey cities like Montreal and Toronto, even as Vancouverites we will never touch that topic as inside we know those are the top in the Hockey world.

Vancouver area is almost 4x bigger than the greater Edmonton area.

in terms of what?

Edmonton has a 1.2 million population

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmonton
according to this Edmonton has a population of 932,546 as of 2016


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vancouver
according to this Vancouver has a population of 631,486 as of 2016

now if you want to include urban our population is 2.3 million. 4 times my ass.

absolutely not true what you said. One thing is true as a Vancouverite I do think Edmonton is more hockey mad about the game, but to Say Vancouver is not is absolute not true. We don't express it as highly as Edmontonians about the Canucks. Its the Culture of our city. Our city also has more to offer in terms of Entertainment then just hockey.

 

[Lunatik]

as usual when an Edmontonian talk about Vancouver or an Albertan. Most of what they are saying is incorrect. no wait, love it how your trashing other die hard hockey cities like Montreal and Toronto, even as Vancouverites we will never touch that topic as inside we know those are the top in the Hockey world.

in terms of what?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmonton
according to this Edmonton has a population of 932,546 as of 2016

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vancouver
according to this Vancouver has a population of 631,486 as of 2016

now if you want to include urban our population is 2.3 million. 4 times my ass.

absolutely not true what you said. One thing is true as a Vancouverite I do think Edmonton is more hockey mad about the game, but to Say Vancouver is not is absolute not true. We don't express it as highly as Edmontonians about the Canucks. Its the Culture of our city. Our city also has more to offer in terms of Entertainment then just hockey.

You always use the metro area. Vancouver is 2.463, Edmonton is 1.321 and Calgary is 1.393. Vancovuer is definitely not 4x as large, but they are close to double.

I'm not going to knock the fan support of the Leafs, because it is significant nation wide. But I would argue about them being hockey crazed. Toronto sees itself as a big league city, it's why they don't sell out Ricoh for the Marlie games, it's why Mississauga is among the lowest attendance in the OHL, you also see it on other sports, namely the CFL where the Argos draw worse than most other CFL teams. They love the Leafs, but they don't necessarily support lower levels, so I'm not sure I would call them hockey crazed. I would say Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg are more crazed than the Toronto area despite Toronto having almost 5x the population. That is not meant to be a shot at Toronto, just to be clear. It's just something that happens in larger cities, there are far more entertainment options and larger immigration populations which lead to hockey becoming less crazed. I would still put them in my top 10 quite easily though.

 

[goldenbladz1]

There was a time, not so long ago that I would have had the 7 Canadian teams in the top 7, but Ottawa doesn't deserve it anymore after the playoffs.


1. Montreal(Huge arena, always full, craziest fans)
2. Toronto(Fiercely loyal despite the last 50 years)
3. Edmonton(Arena remained full for some TOUGH times between 2006-2016)
4. Winnipeg(Deafening fans that literally never stop chanting)
5. Calgary(Also loyal, although didn't endure what Edmonton had to)
6. Vancouver(Weakest of the Canadian markets that you would trust to be full in the playoffs)
7. Detroit(Yeah it's Hockeytown. The Red Wings are HUGE in Michigan)
8. Philadelphia(Loud and loyal, through thick and thin)
9. Minnesota(Hockey is ingrained in the state's culture, Wild need to build a tradition)
10. Buffalo(Also currently standing by their team through some lean years)


HM: NY Rangers, Nashville, San Jose


No respect for bandwagon cities like Chicago, DC, Boston and Pittsburgh. Also the Flyers are definitely #3 in Philly. The Sixers have been playing to empty houses for years. Even in the Iverson days the Flyers were more popular.

The Blackhawks are loved in Chicago and do a lot for the community and are not an after thought in a big city with 4 other pro teams. Also their fans travel with the team to many other locations and are very visible in other teams arenas

 

[goldenbladz1]

Anybody putting the Hawks near the top is kidding themselves.

Chicago right now is a Cubs town. Before that even with the Hawks winning Cups it was a bears town.

Cubs
Bears
Bulls
Blackhawks



Sox

I disagree, Most people attending a baseball game have no idea what's going on and it's more of a social event to sit around and gab, drink beer and enjoy the sun. They are not rabid like hockey fans are. I don't see Cubs fans travelling to other cities to see their team but I see plenty of Hawks fans travel to watch their team on the road.

 

[Beauner]

Am I the only one that has no idea what this means?

Yeah literally 0% of that is factual and I recall the Penguins actually having good tv ratings in 04 despite the crap team

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

Then your wait list must be less?

probably? whats your point?

 

[IwanttomoveoutWest*]

1. Toronto
2. Montreal
3. Edmonton
4. Pittsburgh
5. New York
6. Detroit
7. Boston
8. Philadelphia
9. Vancouver
10. Winnipeg

Boston ahead of Philadelphia? The same Boston that was bottom of the league in attendance for several years before 2011? That Boston? Why hasn't a single person mentioned this yet? It took 7 pages.

As much as I loathe Philadelphia sports teams, Philly is a top 5 American hockey market. It's one of the top sports markets period to be honest.

 

[IwanttomoveoutWest*]

Boston's attendance from 1996-2008 is pretty questionable for such a hockey market. Hell, most of their history is up and down. I don't buy it. It shouldn't be ahead of teams that sell out win or lose. Absolutely not.

http://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph.php?tmi=4919

 

[Inkling]

What junior teams are in Toronto?

Exactly! They're all gone. Well, to be fair the Oshawa Generals do get good support and have been around for ages. Oshawa is far enough out in the GTA that they probably have a local identity that gathers support. Marlies, St. Mikes and Brampton are all gonzo. Mississauga doesn't get great support but are still hanging on.

It's the same in Montreal though, so many Junior teams have come and gone. It's hard for anything other than the NHL team to get a following.

 

[TheKingPin]

Am I the only one that has no idea what this means?

I am also not very clear on it. Doesn't every team in the league now have locally broadcasted games? I know there was one last one that was not available but I imagine that's not the case anymore?

 

[Oilers Propagandist]

Read up on what Leaf fans went through with Harrold Ballard. Far worse than what Oiler fans went through,

Were you even alive? Regardless, in terms of this stuff people have a short memory. Especially after how long ago Harold messed with the leafs fans. People changed their tune quickly when they said "I will never support the nhl ever again", after the 2012 lockout and the nhl came back better than before, just like us Oilers fans will eventually forget about the decade of darkness which we endured up until the 15' season at a bare minimum. Lol. What I'm saying is, who cares about what leafs fans endured in the Ballard era. Was 8 decades ago.

 

[ThePhoenixx]

Were you even alive? Regardless, in terms of this stuff people have a short memory. Especially after how long ago Harold messed with the leafs fans. People changed their tune quickly when they said "I will never support the nhl ever again", after the 2012 lockout and the nhl came back better than before, just like us Oilers fans will eventually forget about the decade of darkness which we endured up until the 15' season at a bare minimum. Lol. What I'm saying is, who cares about what leafs fans endured in the Ballard era. Was 8 decades ago.

He was in purgatory. They still made him watch the leafs though.

 

[Cams]

Being across the river from Detroit, and surrounded by Wings fans (and their other sports teams), I can say Detroit is passionate about hockey, but their fans tend to not go to games when their teams are doing poorly. This applies to the Wings, Tigers (and probably Pistons). I remember going to Wings games at JLA in the '80s and you could actually get a higher up ticket and go walk down and get a very good seat much closer to the ice. Same things with the Tigers - I've been baseball games at Tiger Stadium and Comerica where they were lucky to have 10,000 there.

So..that being said, it is a passionate hockey city, but once the novelty of the new arena wears off, it won't look like it, unless the Leafs or other big rival is in town.

 

[Cams]

Were you even alive? Regardless, in terms of this stuff people have a short memory. Especially after how long ago Harold messed with the leafs fans. People changed their tune quickly when they said "I will never support the nhl ever again", after the 2012 lockout and the nhl came back better than before, just like us Oilers fans will eventually forget about the decade of darkness which we endured up until the 15' season at a bare minimum. Lol. What I'm saying is, who cares about what leafs fans endured in the Ballard era. Was 8 decades ago.

Uhm...no. 4 decades ago it started, didn't end until late '80s. I wish it was 8 decades ago (feels like 8 decades of drama at times).

 

[BruinsFan1990]

Boston ahead of Philadelphia? The same Boston that was bottom of the league in attendance for several years before 2011? That Boston? Why hasn't a single person mentioned this yet? It took 7 pages.

As much as I loathe Philadelphia sports teams, Philly is a top 5 American hockey market. It's one of the top sports markets period to be honest.

Boston's attendance from 1996-2008 is pretty questionable for such a hockey market. Hell, most of their history is up and down. I don't buy it. It shouldn't be ahead of teams that sell out win or lose. Absolutely not.

http://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph.php?tmi=4919

Notice the title of the thread...? "Which top ten NHL cities are the most hockey crazy right now?"

 

[Datsyukian Deke]

Being across the river from Detroit, and surrounded by Wings fans (and their other sports teams), I can say Detroit is passionate about hockey, but their fans tend to not go to games when their teams are doing poorly. This applies to the Wings, Tigers (and probably Pistons). I remember going to Wings games at JLA in the '80s and you could actually get a higher up ticket and go walk down and get a very good seat much closer to the ice. Same things with the Tigers - I've been baseball games at Tiger Stadium and Comerica where they were lucky to have 10,000 there.

So..that being said, it is a passionate hockey city, but once the novelty of the new arena wears off, it won't look like it, unless the Leafs or other big rival is in town.

Between all 3 of those teams, I believe what you're witnessing are fans being upset (and rightfully so) at the content stench of mediocrity & self inflicted damage, cause by incompetent GM's, and Head Coaches/Managers.

Therefore, I can't blame people when they say "I decline to further spend my money when the front office and team have this non-serious mentality." Sure, fans will go for the Wings to check out the new arena, but as long as Holland & Blashill are around, things won't change for the better. And with Chris Ilitch being solely a bottom line/profits owner (unlike his father), the only way it seems to get his attention to make long overdue changes, would be to hit him in the pocketbook...same as the Tigers.

 

[BruinsFan1990]

My List:

Toronto
Edmonton
Montreal
Pittsburgh
Chicago
Calgary
Winnipeg
Boston
Detroit
Philly

Ready for the hate

 

[I am not exposed]

For the last few years, Vancouver has been very meh with its hockey team. I can't blame them, as the future looks bleak. Hell, even when they played against Calgary in the Stanley Cup a couple of seasons, no one in the bars I went to seemed to care. Several years ago, regular season games were getting more hype in the bars. People seem very apathetic to them at the moment.

 

[I am not exposed]

as usual when an Edmontonian talk about Vancouver or an Albertan. Most of what they are saying is incorrect. no wait, love it how your trashing other die hard hockey cities like Montreal and Toronto, even as Vancouverites we will never touch that topic as inside we know those are the top in the Hockey world.



in terms of what?




https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmonton
according to this Edmonton has a population of 932,546 as of 2016


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vancouver
according to this Vancouver has a population of 631,486 as of 2016

now if you want to include urban our population is 2.3 million. 4 times my ass.

absolutely not true what you said. One thing is true as a Vancouverite I do think Edmonton is more hockey mad about the game, but to Say Vancouver is not is absolute not true. We don't express it as highly as Edmontonians about the Canucks. Its the Culture of our city. Our city also has more to offer in terms of Entertainment then just hockey.

It honestly feels like there is more hype with the Whitecaps these days than the Canucks. I would say the Canucks are still more popular overall, but considering they are dreadful and the future is bleak, the Whitecaps seem to have more of a buzz around them.

 

[IwanttomoveoutWest*]

My List:

Toronto
Edmonton
Montreal
Pittsburgh
Chicago
Calgary
Winnipeg
Boston
Detroit
Philly

Ready for the hate

Boston isn't ahead of Philadelphia or Detroit. Sorry.

 

[IwanttomoveoutWest*]

Notice the title of the thread...? "Which top ten NHL cities are the most hockey crazy right now?"

Oh right, how convenient for you.

So when the Bruins go back to being irrelevant then they can slip out of the ten?

 

[REAVES]

Winnipeg has to be in the Top 5
If the OP is about being "Hockey" mad...doesn't matter if it's August 1st..it's all about hockey..
If it's about The NHL rather than Hockey in general you have to give props to Nashville.
Pure "Hockey" mad cities
1. Edmonton - supports both a NHL and WHL team. Good attendance in some really bad years
2. Calgary - supports both a NHL and WHL team
3. Winnipeg - NHLs smallest city and it is all about hockey supports both NHL and AHL
4. Montreal - "NHL" mad but junior and minor hockey is not on the radar
5. Toronto - junior hockey and The Marlies are not on the radar
6. "Twin Cities"- NHL, Gophers, and high school hockey are all huge
7. Vancouver- supports both NHL and WHL but with the Canucks not a elite team anymore support has dropped
8. Detroit- time will tell how much support the Wings will get with a team that is no longer a power house
9. Philly- fans are nuts pure and simple
10. Pittsburgh- back to back champions will make any fan a bandwagon jumper

You have no idea. You can bandwagon my bung hole

 

[BruinsFan1990]

Oh right, how convenient for you.

So when the Bruins go back to being irrelevant then they can slip out of the ten?

Just pointing out the title of the thread. Apparently thats too much for you to handle.

 

[BruinsFan1990]

Boston isn't ahead of Philadelphia or Detroit. Sorry.

No apology necessary. Its an opinion.