***OFFICIAL STANLEY CUP FINALS THREAD***

[CC97]

What's worth noting is that their average attendence was basically the same in 2002-2003 and this year. Recall that the former year was coming off of a Eastern Conference Championship. Coming off of a lockout, I'd say this year's numbers were great, and next year, one can only wonder what will happen.

I can't say I agree with you... a team this competitive should've done better than 21st in the NHL. Remember that all NHL teams were coming off a lockout year as well.

I'm just saying hockey in Carolina cannot be considered a definite success at this point, not with those numbers.

'Zat is all.

Next year should be interesting... I would expect a much higher ranking -- Tampa Bay was 2nd in the NHL in attendence this season.

[NoHoJoe]

What's worth noting is that their average attendence was basically the same in 2002-2003 and this year. Recall that the former year was coming off of a Eastern Conference Championship. Coming off of a lockout, I'd say this year's numbers were great, and next year, one can only wonder what will happen.

I can't say I agree with you... a team this competitive should've done better than 21st in the NHL. Remember that all NHL teams were coming off a lockout year as well.

I'm just saying hockey in Carolina cannot be considered a definite success at this point, not with those numbers.

'Zat is all.

Next year should be interesting... I would expect a much higher ranking -- Tampa Bay was 2nd in the NHL in attendence this season.

IF that is the case, then show me a top ten ranking in attendance for the 2006-2007 campaign, and I will show you the 2006 North Carolina Class A State High School Hockey Champions!!!

[KCScout76]

I predict the Hurricanes will win it all - this post occured on Sunday morning.

What's up with the Southeast Division winning the Cups???? First Tampa, Now Carolina.

[winters in buffalo]

Before y'all start going WHOOOOEE HURRICANES ARE THE REAL DEAL UP YOURS BLUE STATE CUNNETACIT, just out of curiosity, I wonder how many millions of dollars Petey Karmanos has lost on this endeavor? Right off the bat it cost $20 million to bail out of Hartford, the two Greensboro years must've incurred huge financial losses, so he must've needed to have six incredibly prosperous years in Raleigh to even break even here, which I'm guessing is fairly unlikely. It's worth looking into, though, before we declare this a huge success.

This is the first season they'll be profitable.

Karmanos doesn't release numbers for profits or losses, so no one seems to know how much he's lost.

For this season, profits are likely just a couple million. According to a local news report, the team had broken even after the Conference Finals.

[NJTank]

If hockey does not catch on in Raleigh now it never will they better have few if any games where its not close to being sold out.

[The_Admiral]

You know, I'm sure he and the state of Connecticut could've worked something out, and maybe the team would've been profitable during these years. His demands were pretty insane at the beginning: no rent, public funding, parking revenue, access to a time machine, etc. That he finally got a Cup in the new salary-capped NHL is kind of a weak "told ya so" when you look at how this team was a money pit and laughingstock until now.

[HatCityEnforcer]

Heck, like I stated earlier...I'm a CT resident and I'm not bitter about it anymore...what happened happened...

Besides, it only took the former residents of the Hartford Civic Center 6 years to catch up to the current residents of the HCC in hoisting a championship banner (seeing the Whale's replacements, the Wolfpack, hoisted the Calder Cup in 2000)

[HedleyLamarr]

a team this competitive should've done better than 21st in the NHL.

But you do have to factor in the lockout and the predictions of the Hurricanes not expected to do very well. All those early season 10-12-13,000-person games cancel out their late season 17-18,000-person games.