Courtesy of Faceoff.com:

Kansas City shows no interest in hockey

"The Islanders drew only 9,792 fans for an exhibition game against the Los Angeles Kings at the two-year-old Sprint Center in Kansas City.

The Long Island newspaper Newsday reported there was more excitement at the hearing than at the game. The game was designed to gauge interest in the NHL in Kansas City, but the upper deck of the arena was blocked off by black curtains. Tickets were available at the box office for US$10 if fans mentioned the local all-sports radio station.

Chris Botta, the Islanders' former vice-president of media relations who now writes a blog about the team, noted: "While Islanders players and coaches were wowed by the facility, the 50-per-cent-capacity crowd at the game did nothing to stamp [K. C.] as a serious contender for an NHL franchise."

Uh-huh...Don't tell Herr Bettman, he's got "big" plans for the Winnipeg Jets Ver. 3.0

Since when did fan interest enter in to Gary Bettman's formula for expansion or relocation? He could care less if the arena is 80% empty.

Just follow his "strategy" of a) Force-feeding NHL hockey to US markets that aren't interested in the sport to help him secure enormous national contracts with big networks like "Outdoor Life/Versus" b) Collect a big expansion/relocation fee. c) Secure guaranteed taxpayer money, find a crooked owner, and - "TA-DA!" - we have the Bettman formula for success!

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Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror, 'cause I get better looking each day. To know me is to love me, I must be a hell of a man. Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, but I'm doin' the best that I can.

What did the Sabres draw for the Caps game at HSBC?

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Sabres Hockey: Commitment to Mediocrity

Does the league even give out attendance figures for standard preseason games?

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Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror, 'cause I get better looking each day. To know me is to love me, I must be a hell of a man. Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, but I'm doin' the best that I can.

I think it would be fair to say that a city that already has a team will draw a lesser audience for the preseason, than a city that is supposed to be in the running for an expansion franchise - It's pre-season (in Buffalo) versus The Only Professional Game of The Year, in Kansas City...

The Sabres drew 11,600 for the Caps. But, KC is supposed to be the "Cinderella City" in the running for the next team...

AND, KC were only charging $10 a ticket for the lower bowl. Not a great endorsement for a fan-base. Can't give it away?

Hockey starved cities should draw well for exhibitions. They used to draw good crowds in the mid - late eightees in Cleveland for NHL exhibitions. Now if Cleveland, who was not being mentioned as a potential NHL site, was outdrawing KC - who is; I'd be leary of the market too.

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"I'll rap you with my cane; you pencil necked geek!!"

-Bowler, imitating Freddy Blassie, at the very first M & G.

Halifax routinely draws 10,000 for exhibition games...that's all their arena holds.

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Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror, 'cause I get better looking each day. To know me is to love me, I must be a hell of a man. Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, but I'm doin' the best that I can.

Surely Kansas City would be a great market for hockey...here's an idea for their uniforms!

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Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror, 'cause I get better looking each day. To know me is to love me, I must be a hell of a man. Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, but I'm doin' the best that I can.

Even here in Denver when someone talks about football for instance I'll try and change the subject to hockey and the Avalanche and most people are like "Well, yeah we do have them I guess well anyway back to the Broncos"

They just don't seem to care at all about it out here unless they're winning...because that's always fun.

It usually goes the other way as fans in cities with no real ties to the teams playing don't have the emotional fan interest to go to a pre-season game.

Just look at the Bills in Toronto and the debacle that has become.

I'm not saying that KC would be a great NHL market. I just don't think a neutral site pre-season game is the best indicator of potential success.

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Sabres Hockey: Commitment to Mediocrity

i dont like the idea of kansas city, but having a kansas city team over a team in arizona is more appealing to me.

seattle/portland or bust!

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I was at the Sens/Panthers game a week or so ago at the Metro Centre, with barely any big names in the lineup, there was still about 8000 at the game. Decent showing considering the biggest names were Chris Neil, Nathan Horton N co.

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If it's a tight squeeze, spit on it! - NyI

He's a middling AHL player who had the good fortune of a drunk arbitrator. - The Squanto re: Tim Kennedy

Nah; they'd never make a uniform out of those!

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"I'll rap you with my cane; you pencil necked geek!!"

-Bowler, imitating Freddy Blassie, at the very first M & G.

Put Detroit and Pittsburgh you'll have almost a sell-out house?

Who want to see two bottom feeder teams play? I would rather stay home instead of spending 10 bucks to watch pointless hockey with two teams that haven't made the playoffs for awhile now.

Well the Islanders made them a few years ago but they have sucked the past few seasons.

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i would. nhl hockey is nhl hockey. i go to a ton of minor league games.

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Well some would, but many would prefer to see good teams playing in a location where there isn't a team

Take the Detroit Lions and St Louis Rams, would you want to go see them play, or would you much rather see a team like Indy playing against the Giants or something?

Or Indy vs. Patriots? (I know you're a fan of Brady, but keep in mind if you weren't?

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im a pats and lions fan. so id go see the lions, yeah. but over both the pats and lions... gimme a good ole fashioned big 10 college football game with michigan in it.

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i like those jerseys dammit !

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"It is more about them than it is about the team...Cannot play with them, cannot win with them, cannot coach with them. Can't do it. I want winners. I want people that want to win." - Mike Singletary

Tyler Myers - Future captain of the Buffalo Sabres, and future Norris Trophy Winner

Manning the machine gun on the Tyler Myers Bandwagon - just in case any teams have an idea of prying him away from us (3 GM's shot already)

Connolly/Roy - 2 goals in the last 47 playoff games

Well I was saying if you weren't a fan of either of those teams and you lived in some random place without a football team, you'd rather want to go to a game with teams with big name players on it. And who didn't suck.

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DUDE! That's Eddie Gilbert!!!

He played for the Hamilton Red Wings (was a local boy, back in the early '70's) - One of their final seasons (perhaps their last in the OHA) in existence. I think he may have been their last NHL draft pick.

I have a photograph with him, taken for some kind of Scotiabank Kid's Savings promo I won - And his autograph!!

Sonofabitch!!