Rick Osentoski – USA TODAY Sports
The biggest question with the end of the NHL lockout ending and a shortened 2013 schedule commencing is, will the fans come back? If attendance at Tuesday night’s Red-White scrimmage game and tonight’s planned “Jam the Joe” open practice are any indication, the Detroit Red Wings will have no problems bringing back their fans.
Hockeytown has long been known for its loyal fans, and with many of them now starved for hockey, expect Joe Louis Arena to once again be full for most home games. The Wings haven’t had to go to the lengths other teams have to entice fans to come back, but have offered some discounted and fee-free tickets for the beginning of the season. The draw of stars like Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg will continue to help the team, and fans will get to see young stars like Brendan Smith in action as well. New additions Jonas Gustavsson, Jordin Tootoo, Mikael Samuelsson and Carlo Colaiacovo will also try to quickly endear themselves to fans in Detroit.
Another factor helping the Wings is that their owners, Mike and Marian Ilitch remain beloved and were never really involved at the forefront of NHL negotiations. While the Boston Bruins’ Jeremy Jacobs became a public enemy to players and fans during the lockout, the Ilitches were busy securing plans to build a new arena in downtown Detroit.
The fans’ anger due to the lockout in the Detroit area seems to have been more focused on Gary Bettman than the players, meaning they will likely not see much of a dip in ticket sales this season. Last season saw every home game sell out, a league-record 23-game home winning streak and the growth of social media (Facebook, Twitter and more), which the Wings rank first in for the entire NHL. On the line in 2013 is a 21-season streak of reaching the playoffs, and expect fans to continue to flock to Hockeytown as the team works toward that goal.
